Scarlett’s lips part, and I can see her brain calculating what this means.
“I know it’s a lot,” I add. “But after the away game, I’m not sure Rafael is convinced about us. He never saw us together. A full week with the family might be the only thing that changes his mind about the contract.”
She bites her lip, then nods once. “You know what? I’ll do it.”
“Wait, did you just say yes?”
“I’ve been weighing this since Isabella showed up at my cafe.” She straightens her shoulders. “The contract, the lease, Rafael—it all points to the same answer. I just needed a good enough reason to say it out loud.”
I level my gaze with hers. “Do you know what you’re getting into?”
“Maybe not completely. But wouldn’t it be weird if I said no? It would call everything between us into question and possibly affect my potential vendor contract with your uncle.”
“I could make up an excuse. Tell them you have too much to do at the cafe.”
“No, Bren. I can shut the cafe down for a week.” She glances down at her hands. “I understand what this wedding means to your family. And I know I need to be there if we’re going to make this relationship look believable. Especially since Rafael didn’t get a chance to see us together.”
I study her, worried that she’ll regret this later. She doesn’t know my extended family the way I do. “Are you sure about this?”
“No.” She laughs to herself. “But it’s what I need to do if I want that contract.” She picks up the phone from where I hid it. “Now go call your sister back before she drives here herself.”
THIRTEEN
Scarlett
My stomach flutters nervously when Brendan’s SUV pulls in right behind Mona. I dash out of the house, wave to my brother, and haul myself into one of Brendan’s luxurious leather seats. Eli’s working under Mona’s hood but shooting glances our way.
“Thanks for the ride,” I say. “Even though Eli swore he fixed the engine in my car, it’s still making that same noise, and I’d rather not break down in Charleston traffic.”
“It’ll look better if we show up together anyway,” Brendan says. “Especially since this is the first time you’re meeting my aunt and grandmother.”
As he backs out of the driveway, a text notification chimes through the speakers at maximum volume.
“Message from Carmen,” the robotic voice announces. “The suit and dress fitting is today. Remember to dress appropriately.”
“At least I got that right.” Brendan is wearing a tailored, charcoal-gray suit that makes him look absolutely gorgeous. It’s easy to sell this fake dating thing to his family when he looks like that.
The car chimes again. “Message from Carmen: Did you remember to tell Scarlett?”
I try not to laugh as Brendan rolls his eyes. “She has absolutely no clue you’re sitting right here.”
Another chime echoes through the vehicle. “Message from Carmen: You forgot, didn’t you?”
“I should probably answer her,” Brendan says, hitting the button to respond with voice-to-text. “Carmen, I didn’t forget. Scarlett will be there.”
Before we turn the corner, his sister replies. “Message from Carmen: I’m hoping she’s close to Laila’s size. The seamstress wants to know what her bra size is.”
Brendan’s ears turn bright red. “Umm…I’m so sorry about that.”
Then another chime. “Message from Carmen: And her cup size. Which is not a number, Brendan. It’s letters of the alphabet. In case you’ve forgotten basic bra measurements.”
“I KNOW WHAT A CUP SIZE IS, CARMEN!” Brendan shouts at his phone, his ears flaming.
I snort. “Did you just yell at your sister about my bra size through Bluetooth?”
“Yes. Yes, I did,” he says, keeping his eyes glued on the road.
“Message from Carmen: It’s not like I planned for my bridesmaid to drop out three weeks before my wedding. Scarlett is a saint for doing this.”