“Are you okay?” Lisa’s brows draw together.
“I’m fine.” I kick off the wellies, take out my phone, then hang up my jacket. “I’ll be back in a second.” I march off to my bedroom and close the door behind me.
Once inside, I go over to the bed, sit down, and take out my phone. I bring up messages, pull up his name, type a text, and send it. I’m sure he’s at Midnight, partying the night away, so I don’t expect him to reply, but to my surprise he comes back in thirty seconds.
Me:The answer is yes.
Kingi:Hey! Really?
Me:Yeah.
Kingi:Shit! What convinced you?
Me:It was a variety of things, including Tamati turning up tonight. I told him we were dating to get him off my back. I’m really sorry about that.
I send it, feeling a tug of guilt. Maybe he’s already changed his mind about his offer, and outing him like that might make him cross.
But he comes back withTaku tau, that’s fine, I’m glad I could help. It means ‘my beloved’, and it’s a very romantic endearment. Kingi is so openhearted. It makes me smile.
Me:We should probably meet to talk about it, do you think?
Kingi:Definitely. I’d like to draw something up legally, actually. I’ll make an appointment with my lawyers and let you know the time
My eyebrows rise.
Me:Do we need to get lawyers involved?
Kingi:It’s always best to when money is involved. It’s to protect both of us, and we can discuss the finer details while we’re there
My heart races. Suddenly it feels very real. This isn’t him giving me fifty bucks to go on a date at a family function to stop his grandmother nagging him about settling down. We’re not eighteen anymore. Kingi is a hard-nosed businessman who lives in the limelight, and we’re talking a significant amount of money. The full realization of what I’m doing hits me. For a hundred thousand dollars, I’m going to have to pretend to be getting married to him in front of family, friends, and the rest of the country. People are going to want to take my photograph. Maybe even interview me. And the scariest thing of all is that I’m going to have to be close to him… to pretend to be his… Will he want to touch me? Kiss me?
Kingi:You okay?
Me:You know I’m a terrible liar, right?
Kingi:LOL. You don’t have to lie
Me:Sorry, what? We’re going to pretend to be dating
Kingi:Look, we’re old friends. We’ll go on a few dates. Yeah, maybe the engagement will be a white lie, but it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that something like this could have happened
Me:I guess
Kingi:It’ll be fine, and I really appreciate you doing this for me
Me:You’re welcome. I appreciate the money
Kingi:Are you all right? Did Tamati shake you up?
Me:A bit
Kingi:Want me to go around and rearrange his teeth?
That makes me laugh.
Me:No, I’m hoping that’s done the trick. I don’t think he’ll be back
Kingi:He will