Or rather, she had.
The day after her parents' gathering, she'd finalized the sale of her house in California and hopped a plane to the other side of the country. For the past seven days, she'd called the Sherbrooke Copley Square in Boston home. Tomorrow afternoon, she'd sign all the paperwork for her new condo and move in. Well, more like “officially” move in. Since her cousin Alec owned the condo she was purchasing, he'd allowed her to start moving in her stuff early. The movers had delivered her things two days ago, and she'd started unpacking yesterday. So far, she hadn't gotten very far, which was why she'd decided to spend one last night at the hotel rather than at the condo, even though Alec wouldn't have minded if she had.
“I don't know how I'll make it through the week if he acts as he did at my parents' house while we're in Puerto Rico.” She hadn't even stepped foot on the island yet, and she already pictured Grant waiting outside her hotel room each morning so he could escort her to breakfast or whatever event Ivy had planned for the day.
“Do you want me to ask Preston to talk to him?”
It wasn't the first time Ivy had made the offer. “No, I don't think it'll help.”
“It doesn't hurt to try, and who knows, he might finally get the message and leave you alone.”
There Tory disagreed. People could be weird when third parties stuck their noses where they didn't belong. Grant might brush off such a conversation with his cousin. Or he might get angry. As frustrated as she was with Grant, she didn't want to cause a rift between him and Preston, especially not with the wedding right around the corner.
“The only thing that might get the message through his thick skull is if I announce I'm engaged. Even then, he might not accept it. I'm pretty sure my parents wouldn't. They really want to join our families.” Although why both parties wanted it escaped her. It wasn't like either needed a boost in their social standings, and money wasn't an issue for either family.
“Hey, that's not a bad idea.”
With their conversation about as far away from a girls' weekend in New York as you could get, Tory set her laptop down. “You want me to tell Grant I'm engaged? He'd never believe me. And I wouldn't blame him. I wouldn’t believe me either.”
Maybe if seven or eight months had passed since she broke things off, she could convince him she'd met and fallen for someone else. But not after only two months, especially since she hadn't been seen with anyone else.
“No, that would look too forced. But if you arrive in Puerto Rico for the wedding with a boyfriend, Grant might accept that you don't want anything to do with him. At the very least, I think he'd leave you alone while you're there. And afterward, you'll be on opposite sides of the country again, so he'll never know the difference. It's not like I can't add one more person to the guest list.”
Tory believed in looking outside the box for solutions. However, Ivy's suggestion was not only outside the box but outside this reality. “I love your idea, Ivy. Really, I do. Only it has one teeny tiny hole in it. I don't have a boyfriend. I haven't even been out with anyone since before Grant. So who am I supposed to bring with me?”
Tory had plenty of friends who'd help her out if she ever needed it. But, unfortunately, they were all women, and the only men she knew who'd step up if she needed them were related to her—making them useless in this situation.
“Unless you know a place where I can rent a boyfriend for the week, don't bother adding another person to your guest list.”
“Nope, but you do. Well, maybe not rent a boyfriend but at least meet a possible candidate. You're going to a bachelor auction. The keyword in that sentence is bachelor, my friend. I'm looking at the website now. There are going to be twelve very single men there.”
She'd tossed around the idea of bidding on a bachelor just because it might be fun and the money went to a good cause, but she had yet to decide. She'd logged onto the website long enough to purchase her ticket last week but hadn't bothered to see who'd be parading across the stage in November.
“Ivy, the men participating agreed to take the highest bidder on four romantic dates. They didn't agree to pretend to be someone's boyfriend and go away for a week.”
Sure, the men were all single, but that didn't mean they were interested in anything more than what they signed up for.
“Two of your cousins met their wives at the last one. So maybe you'll bid on Mr. Right, and he won't have to pretend.”
Ivy wasn't entirely correct there. Yes, Scott had the auction to thank for bringing Paige into his life. However, Derek and his wife, Brooklyn, had been friends long before she outbid everyone else and embarrassed the heck out of Tasha in the process. Tory saw no point in correcting Ivy, though, because, at the end of the day, it didn't matter. The auction had played a role in both of their relationships.
“That's about as likely as it snowing on your wedding day.” Mr. Right might be out there, and she might meet him someday, but it wouldn't be at next month's fundraiser.
“Hey, if you pick the right bachelor, you never know. Even if he's not the one, he might be willing to help you out in exchange for something.” Once Ivy got an idea in her head, she didn't like to let it go. Clearly, she wasn't ready to give up on her crazy proposal.
“Such as? And if you say sex, I'm hanging up now.”
Some people would help her in exchange for an all-expenses trip to Puerto Rico. But not those who would be strutting across the stage next month. If they wanted a trip somewhere, they could all afford it.
“No, not sex.”
“Then what?” Tory couldn't think of a single thing that would entice her to do what Ivy suggested she ask a stranger to do.
“I don't know. At least one of those men probably has political aspirations. Perhaps you can promise to endorse him or make a hefty donation to his campaign. We both know how much the Sherbrooke name helps in politics.”
Tory knew all too well how much clout the Sherbrooke name carried. She was convinced it was one reason Grant, who saw himself in the California Governor's mansion or even the White House someday, refused to accept they had no future together. She knew it was the reason Luke, her ex-fiancé, had asked her to marry him. And Ivy was right. Given the type of individuals participating, there was a high probability at least one saw politics in their future. But she couldn't publicly back someone or donate money without knowing his stance on issues, even if it would keep Grant from bothering her while at the wedding.
“Even if I were comfortable doing either, he'd have to intend to run soon. I doubt anyone would be willing to help me now if his campaign is years away. Do you have any other brilliant suggestions, oh wise one?”