I sipped my coffee and leaned against the counter, trying to relax even though I was uncertain about this conversation. I felt confident that Amelia would support me in anything I did. But that didn't mean she'd think it was a good idea. Plus, this scheme was insane, and I didn't want my sister to think I'd gone nuts.
"Reyna and I are getting married."
Amelia's job dropped. She stared at me, unable to form words. It occurred to me that perhaps I should've started with something else.
"Remember when I told you that the board decided that because I was unmarried, I gave the appearance that I was unstable, a risk? So, I asked Reyna to marry me."
Her eyes were still wide and round, but she found her voice. "And she said yes?" She gave her head a quick shake. "I don't understand. If you don't like her, why are you getting married?"
I never said I didn't like her, but I kept that to myself because I didn't want Amelia reading more into my interest in Reyna "The marriage is a business deal. She's agreed to be married to me for a year and help me exude an air of strength and stability."
"What does she get?"
“Five million dollars."
Once again, her job dropped. "I thought you were done with gold-diggers." Amelia's attitude toward Reyna changed. She saw Reyna as someone taking advantage of me.
"I am done with gold-diggers. Reyna is not one. Initially, she told me no. The plan was my idea. And the terms for it were my idea as well. I don't know everything about her yet, but she's a woman who has lived a very sheltered life, or at the very least, one that has been dictated by other people around her. She's in Las Vegas trying to forge her own way, but her parents have cut her off." I remembered the giddy expression on her face at the idea of her doing something as naughty as pretending to fake marry me. "I'm going to give her enough money that she can figure out who she is and what she wants. The woman has spent two and half years in law school, and I get the impression that she doesn't want to be a lawyer."
Amelia crossed her arms, tilting her head and narrowing her eyes. I looked down at my coffee, not liking her scrutiny.
"That's crazy. And it seems dangerous if the board finds out."
I nodded in agreement.
"It sounds like something Dad would do."
My gaze jerked up to her, feeling the words like a dagger to the heart. I wasn't like our dad. God, I hoped I wasn't, anyway. "It's not the same. Dad schemed and manipulated to get what he wanted—"
"And you're not?"
"I wouldn't be doing this if the board wasn't on the verge of firing me. This is in response to them. And Reyna is fully on board. I'm telling you because you're my sister and I don't want to deceive you too. And while I know it's crazy and perhaps you can't support it, I'm hoping you will at the very least not tell anybody."
She sighed. "Of course I'm going to support you, James. And I understand why you're doing it. I just think it's a risk. And it's not just a risk to you, it's a risk to her as well."
I nodded.
Amelia studied me a little bit longer. "So, when is this wedding taking place?"
"The cover story is that she and I had been together in the past. We don't have details on that yet. We’ll sort that out on the honeymoon. But then I messed everything up, and we broke up, and recently, we reconnected. I'm the one who brought her back here to work under the guise of trying to win her heart back."
"That's a pretty good story. I'm not sure anyone will buy it."
"Not even you?"
"I know you better than anyone." She went quiet for a minute. "Then again, you've been private about your love life, so maybe."
"The story is that I asked her to marry me on Christmas, and tomorrow, we are going to the courthouse to the clerk's office to get a marriage license and then find a chapel to get married."
Amelia was shaking her head before I finished. "No. You're not going to a chapel of love in Las Vegas to get married. Not if this woman is the love of your life."
"I don't have time for a long engagement and a big wedding."
Amelia's eyes narrowed as if in thought. Finally, she said, "I know. You'll get married here. It'll be a family thing. It'll make your story look all the more real."
I appreciated what she was doing, but it made me uncomfortable. “It’s one thing to say vows that I don't mean, but to do them in front of family feels disingenuous. There's something wrong about that."
"Then we'll do it with just with me and Max, and maybe Vivie. I'm not quite sure when she's going back to New York. Or maybe she's going back to Los Angeles."