“I just want to help out,” she started before she waved her hand dismissively “Screw that. The truth is that I might have told a tiny white lie to my supervisor at work that I was getting married and now I need a groom to prove it so I can cash out on fifty thousand dollars.”
“Woah! Come again?”
She nodded, excited. “Neither you nor Jason has been listening to me lately, but I tried telling you about a marketing idea the Wedding Experience is having. They want to find a bride and groom who’re getting married to make a Wedding Experience documentary. They will film us, key moments in the wedding. Of course, whatever we decide to use will be provided by the Wedding Experience. It’s the whole idea behind the promotion for people to see what they have to offer. As an incentive for being featured in the film, they will gift us with fifty thousand dollars to start us off on our new journey.”
Everything she’d explained was too good to be true. The fact that it aligned so neatly into my father’s expectations would mean we would all get what we wanted. I would get my life back. She would have enough money to start over. The only innocent caught in the mix would be Jason. Granted, if I ever decided to go ahead with this crazy scheme, it would also be for him. What kind of life could I offer him when I had nothing of my own? I wasn’t even certain of my house. If I didn’t do my father’s bidding, I had no doubt he would force me to sell. Broke, homeless, unable to pick up a decent job. What kind of daddy would I be to Jason like that?
I would have to let him go if I were ever in that situation, but going with his mother’s scheme meant I may be able to keep him. We’d have to be discreet during the period of our marriage, but he would know Becca didn’t mean anything more to me than a friend, right?
“I don’t know, Becca,” I remarked. “It all sounds like the best solution right now, but Jason… I can’t hurt that boy.”
“We won’t hurt him,” she stated. “He knows we love him, and whatever we do will be to benefit him. He’ll never make it out there in the world on his own, Lucas. He’ll stick by your side, because he’s fiercely loyal, but if you don’t do this, you’ll be in an even worse situation than us. You don’t want that for him either, do you?”
Again, everything she said was the truth, but I hesitated. “I need to sit him down and talk to him about it first.”
“I want to be the one to do it,” she said. “Trust me. I know how to break these things to Jason. I know he’ll probably be shocked and upset at first, but in the end, he’ll realize he’s not losing you, and we won’t be married forever. Just for us to be more secure, and then you can ride off into the sunset together.”
“It’s too early for us to consider riding off into the sunset together.” I let out a sigh and rubbed the back of my neck. “I can’t believe I’m thinking about this, but fine. You talk to him first, and then I’ll talk to him.”
The ideas rolled around in my head as I thought about all that would be made possible if we all agreed on entering this fake marriage. Most importantly, we’d be able to keep Jason in a safety net between the two of us.
Chapter Nineteen
Jason
I’m sorry. I can’t go with you. Why don’t you take Becca?
Like who wanted to go to the nightclub with their mother instead of their sexy boyfriend? I pushed my phone into my pocket before my supervisor spotted me using it. I just couldn’t stop going over that message that Lucas had sent me last night in response to whether or not he wanted to catch a drag performance with me. As he’d suggested, Becca and I had gone together, and although we had a wonderful time, including talking to the girls backstage after their performance, the night hadn’t been complete.
“Excuse me, do you work here?”
I snapped out of my thoughts to focus on a slender woman wearing a blonde wig who approached the counter. I wasn’t in the mood to be the best salesperson of the year, but I pasted a smile on my face and offered help. She didn’t know what she wanted. She was one of those customers who wanted to try everything and never purchased a single item. I was on the verge of asking if she just wanted some free makeup for a date to not waste my time when another customer approached and asked for assistance as well.
Usually, there were two of us working at the makeup counter, but Candace, the other girl, had called in sick, so I was alone. With my mood all over the place, my smile started slipping. Neither of the women could make up their minds, and whenever I suggested something, they weren’t sure.
“I think I’ve made up my mind now,” the blonde replied. “I’ll have the Cherry Blossom, Mango Peach, Tropical Fever, and the Blueberry Twist.”
Thank fuck. I took down the lip balm flavors she asked for and placed them on the glass counter that stood between us.
“And for me the number c34 face powder you showed me first and the eye shadow palette with the warm colors.”
“Sure. Just a second, please.”
The face powder was a shade too light for her complexion, but she refused to listen. The last time I’d tried to correct a customer in what would work for her, she’d reported me to the supervisor, and I really didn’t need McKellan riding my ass today.
I placed the face powder and eye shadow palette into the small basket that she would be required to take to the cashier as soon as I rang up the items. When I turned to her, the blonde woman had disappeared from the counter. So had the lip balms.
“Hey, where did she go?” I asked, checking the aisle leading to the cashier in the event she didn’t realize I had to ring her up first and provide the receipt. The cashing system was one step too complicated, and it had confused more than one customer already.
“Uh, I’m not sure,” the woman replied. “I think she went that way.”
She pointed in the direction of the changing rooms. Shit. If that customer had walked out of the store without paying for the items, it would all come from my paycheck.
“Oh man,” I muttered, walking around the counter. “I’ll be—just give me a minute, please.”
She couldn’t have gotten far, but I didn’t see the blonde wig anywhere, and I would have spotted it from afar. The wig was bad, and there was no saving it. Unable to find her and not wanting to abandon my post, I turned to ring up the other customer. I would pay for the items out of my pocket so no one would know.
Except the second customer had disappeared as well. I started to sweat. This was too coincidental. Had I been duped by two shoplifters? I was about to ask one of the other assistants who worked in the shoe section of the store what to do when McKellan loomed right in front of me.
“Jesus, you frightened me,” I said, clutching my chest.
“Were you just about to leave your post?” she asked me.
“Only for a hot second,” I answered.
“A hot second, huh?” she parroted. “So not only have you been careless enough to have two customers shoplift items under your watch, but you’re also abandoning your post?”
My shoulders drooped. The damn cameras. They were everywhere in the shop, and word was that McKellan checked them regularly. She must have been watching me and taken in what happened.
“You mean you saw?” I asked.
“I told you I would be keeping an eye on you.”
I stared at her in disbelief. “I am managing the counter alone today. I have to turn my back to get the items from the shelves. What more could I have done? I can’t grow eyes at the back of my head.” You might already have them, but I assure you, the rest of us mere mortals don’t.
“Are you being facetious on top of everything?” she snapped, color rushing into her cheeks.
“I’m just—” I inhaled and let it out slowly. “I’ll pay for the items.” Although it meant spending the little money I had to take Lucas out this weekend because he was so down lately. I’d just have to find some other way to cheer him up.
“Of course it’s coming out of your final salary! Don’t doubt that for one minute.”
“Final salary?” I s
queaked.
“Yes, I’ve had it with you, Jason. You’re too flighty and immature to even run a makeup counter that you should thrive on.”
“But that’s not fair,” I argued. “I was working the counter alone. I should have had someone to assist me.”
“When you’re done for the day, step into my office and claim your final paycheck.”
I stared after her straight back and bun as she walked away. “No!” I said loud enough to stop her in her tracks.
She spun to face me. “Excuse me?”
“If you’re firing me, you do so right now,” I replied, my hands doubled into fists. “I’m not going to work the usual hours if I’m being fired. I’ll collect my check now and be about my business.”
“Then I’ll dock your pay for the day,” she said, smirking at me. “Even better.”
She called to one of the young women who worked at the shoes display in the store to take over the cosmetic counter. I wished I could get down on my knees and plead with her to give me a second chance. I would have done it too because her firing me meant both Lucas and I were now out of a job. He was already worried about his direction, and here I was about to compound the issue.
But if there was one thing I knew about McKellan, it was that she wouldn’t bend and change her mind.
***
“Who stole your candy?” Becca asked later that evening when she entered the apartment clutching a paper bag to her chest. I had a bowl of popcorn in my hand, munching because there was nothing else to do. This was my third bag since I’d come home from being fired, and I was feeling slightly nauseous.
“I got fired today,” I replied, following her into the kitchen.
She put the bag onto the counter and stared at me. “You what?”
“F-I-R-E-D,” I spelled out the word for her.
“Don’t be a smart-ass,” she replied. “What do you mean you got fired? Everybody fucking loves you.”
“There’s always an exception to the rule, and that exception is Dorothy McKellan. I don’t know why she hates me so much.”
“Is she pretty?”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“Because pretty girls can feel threatened by you, Jason. You’re beautiful, and when you’re in a room, people hardly notice anyone else.”
I pulled out a kitchen chair and sat to watch her pull stuff out of her bag. “You do know how to cheer a girl up, but I’m not feeling especially pretty at the moment.”
“Will this help?”
She took out a small transparent container with the Gelatiamo brand and slid it across the table to me. I grabbed it and held it to my chest.
“All mine,” I said, grinning at her. “Comfort food. How did you know I needed this today?”
“A little birdy told me.”
I got rid of the ribbon and made quick work of pulling the lid off to get to the cream puffs. I stuffed one into my mouth and moaned at the discovery of the chocolate cream inside. Just what I needed after this hellish day.
“So what happened?” she pressed.
“Two women shoplifted from the makeup counter while my back was turned. I even offered to pay for the items although I should have had help at the counter, but McKellan wouldn’t hear of it.”
“Never mind. We’ll find you another job soon.”
I groaned. “We both know it can take a while to get a job working with makeup. How am I even going to tell Daddy Luke?”
She kept moving back and forth from the grocery bag to the cupboards to the refrigerator. “Don’t worry about it. Something tells me everything will be just fine.”
Into my mouth another cream puff went. “I don’t know, Becca.”
She looked up at me from the fridge, but she glanced away quickly. “You don’t know what?”
“I don’t know about Daddy Luke,” I said, tears springing to my eyes, and I sniffed. “I know barely any time has passed since we started sleeping together, but I feel he’s been getting distant, and I don’t know what to do about it. I’m afraid he’s losing interest in me. Maybe I’m not slutty enough for him?”
“Ugh, Jason, can we not go there?”
My mouth dropped open as I stared at her. “You always wanted me to go there. Why not now when I’m having an actual crisis? You know about these things more than me. It’s your responsibility to tell me if the man I’m in love with has lost interest in me.”
Becca sighed and finally turned to look fully at me. “Come on, Jace. What do you want from me? You already know despite his hesitation Lucas is crazy about you. You need to know that. Despite everything he’s going through right now, he cares. And if he’s a bit distant, maybe it’s because he’s trying to figure out how to get his life back on track. He thinks he may have a solution.”
“Thank fuck! I told him I wasn’t high-maintenance. I mean, I can take care of myself, but getting fired is probably not the best way to prove that to him.”
She didn’t say anything for a while, just stared at me in a serious manner that was unlike her.
“What is it?”
She pulled out a seat from around the table and turned it in my direction. She reached for my sticky hand on top of the table. Her whole demeanor was so unlike her that I was immediately worried.
“You’re not telling me something,” I said.
“I—” she started, then swallowed. “I’m sorry about your job. Sorry that I didn’t have a better plan to help you to attend college so you could have options. I’ve not been a very good mother, have I?”
Becca bringing up the mom card? “Are you dying?” I asked.
“No!” She blanched. “Why’d you think that?”
“Because you’re saying mom shit, and the last time you did that was like my senior prom.”
“Well, it’s true,” she replied. “I’m sorry I didn’t provide better for you, and I’m sorry about some of the stuff we’ve had to do to ensure we’re fine. You know everything I’ve done has been for you, don’t you, Jason?”
The air had become too solemn, and I wasn’t used to it. I had to deflect while I figured out why Becca was being peculiar.
“You mean all the men who you’ve brought home have been for me? Because I wouldn’t have been a virgin this long if that was the case.”
“Okay, so that part might have been for me,” she remarked, getting to her feet. “I needed me time too. What do you say we have a night in? We’ll do a deep-cleansing facial and break out that bottle of wine I bought?”
I should call Lucas and ask if he was busy. I should visit with Miss Puss and ensure she was fine, but I didn’t want to face telling Lucas about losing my job yet. I didn’t want to listen to him turning me down either, making up excuses for why he couldn’t see me. I’d enjoy the night with Becca and fortify myself to confront him tomorrow.
“Fine,” I agreed. “But you have to listen to all my boyfriend woes and help me figure out how to get Lucas to see me instead of all his problems.”
Chapter Twenty
Jason
“Just don’t do anything,” Becca said, sitting at the foot of my bed. She was already dressed for work, and the makeup I’d applied to her eyes hid the fact that we had been up late last night drinking, chatting, and engaging in a tough beauty regimen that started with our hair and ended at our toes.
“I need to talk to him,” I replied.
“I know, but let’s talk about it some more when I get home from work,” she stated. “Keep yourself busy. Try to find a new job. Better yet, go on YouTube and make yourself a channel. That’s how many people get started with recognition, and before you know it, you’ll be another beauty guru. We need to talk when I get home, and once we do, then you can have a chat with Lucas.”
“Hmm, that channel stuff might not be a bad idea,” I remarked, already taking to the idea. “I’ve always thought to do one, but I never worked on it.”
“Good. See! That’s something to get you through the day. See you later!”
She air-kissed me before she hurried from the room as she was already running late. I flopped onto my back on the bed and grimaced. Last night had been fun. It had been a combination of our once-in-a-while beauty regimen and me griping about my love life, specifically my fear that Lucas had changed his mind about me.
A part of me didn’t want to believe he wouldn’t get tired of me so soon. Becca didn’t seem to think that was true, but if she knew why Lucas was being distant, she hadn’t said.
I grabbed my laptop from my bookshelf. I’d had the thing since high school, so it wasn’t the most reliable. I connected to our neighbor’s Wi-Fi. He’d shared his password with us in exchange for us paying a third of his monthly fee. As long as I was working on a vlog, I decided to also make new accounts for my other social media accounts. I should have been doing this a long time ago and started growing fans.
After showering, I did my makeup, ensuring it was flawless, and recorded my first video using my phone. My computer camera was shit. By the time I uploaded the video to my new channel, it was already noon, and I was feeling quite positive about the new venture. I’d have to find a way to get people to check out my page. That would probably take some time, but at least this was a beginning.
A few snaps uploaded to Instagram, and I was feeling almost like my old self. I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed dressing up and taking pictures. As an idea formed, I had a quick bite to eat and searched through my closet. I’d promised Becca I wouldn’t do anything until she got home and we talked, but I couldn’t sit around twiddling my thumbs when I could be spending the day with Lucas.
I spotted the perfect thing in my closet. Half an hour later, dressed in nothing but red heels and a trench coat that ended just above my knees, I paid the cab driver that had taken me to Lucas’s house. I was relieved to see his car parked at the front because I had wanted to surprise him, so I never bothered to call to let him know I would be over.
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