Page 6 of Her Inconvenient Wedding Date (Unexpected Dates #2)

Hunter

“Kindness is free. Sprinkle that stuff everywhere.” ~Unknown

Did Lily Lam just propose to me?

“What did you say?” My heart’s pounding in my chest like the booming of a bass drum, setting the mood for this suspenseful conversation. “Are you asking me what I think you just asked me?”

“What do you think I just asked you?” Her tone is tentative, and she has a hard time maintaining eye contact. “You know what? I take it back. Let’s pretend I didn’t say anything. This night’s already gone sideways. It’d be best if I kept my thoughts to myself.”

I frown, seeing Lily be so unsure of herself.

This is a woman who can hold her own in a room full of colleagues, most of whom are men.

She’s often the first to offer a solution that no one else thought of and is one of the last people on the team to leave the office when there’s a project due.

Besides having a strong work ethic, she’s also a great friend.

I’ve heard her on the phone with her friends, listening and giving them advice.

And it’s impressive how hard she tries to be a good sister, even to the point of asking a random guy to marry her.

Given that the random guy is me, maybe she’s just desperate.

Desperate or not, I’m not foolish enough to pass up an opportunity when I see one.

“I want to hear them, your thoughts,” I say to Lily. “Are you talking about us pretending to be married or us having an actual marriage of inconvenience?”

Her expression softens enough for her to crack a small smile. “It’s marriage of convenience. And I can’t believe you’re entertaining my wild idea.”

“Call me Sir Wild. I was known to do a wild thing or two in my younger days.”

“How wild are we talking about?”

“When I was two, I went down the tallest slide at the park, head first, and ended up with four stitches right here.” I tilt my head in her direction and point to an area around my hairline.

“Then when I was thirteen, I crashed into the same slide on my skateboard and had to get a few more stitches on my backside. I’ll spare you the visual for that one. ”

Nodding quickly, she says, “I’ll take your word for it.”

“So, I’m all for wild ideas. We only have one life to live. Might as well make the most of the time that God’s given us.”

Her brows quirk as she regards me. “You know something? You’re full of surprises. Or maybe I didn’t know the real you before today.”

“This works out perfectly then. What better way to get to know someone than to marry them, right?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“When am I not serious?” I joke, using her trademark line.

My tone is lighthearted, but I decide to switch gears.

This is a big deal to Lily and not something to joke about, even though humor is what I fall back on when I’m nervous.

And boy, am I nervous. I think I’m about to make the biggest decision of my life.

But then I take one look at Lily’s downcast face and all my nerves fade away.

Lily’s not the only one being surprised today.

I feel like I’m discovering bits and pieces of her that she usually keeps hidden.

Like a blooming onion appetizer that’s served in restaurants, this woman has so many layers to peel back.

Underneath her stylish clothes and pretty hair and makeup, she has a soft and delicate heart.

Having her reveal her insecurities to me makes me want to go into caveman mode—to grunt and brandish my club—so I can protect her.

But since we’re living in civilized times, I’ll be a gentleman and give her a proper offer.

Because spending time with her is as satisfying as eating that deep-fried, savory goodness, and I only want more.

“However way you want to do it, Lil, I’m game. I will marry you.”

The next few seconds pass by in silence as Lily’s deep brown eyes stare up at me.

I can almost see the wheels turning in her head as she considers the ramifications of my words.

Her expression is more thoughtful now, as if she’s working out the details in her mind.

Whatever said details are, I’m eager to find out.

She gives me a questioning glance and asks, “Why do you want to help me, Hunter? I haven’t exactly gone out of my way to be nice to you.

I’m not always patient or friendly when you try to talk to me.

I know you’re a good guy, but this goes beyond a regular act of kindness—way beyond.

Why in the world would you agree to do this? ”

Her confusion throws me for a loop. Does Lily honestly not know how I feel about her?

Even though I haven’t expressed my interest out loud, I thought she’d have gotten a clue by now based on how often I visit her cubicle.

Apparently, my unspoken rizz has been loudly ineffective.

Since she doesn’t realize how much I like her, I give her a platonic answer.

“You know the second greatest commandment. I’m trying to love my neighbor as myself. ”

Her eyes brighten. “That’s how I feel about helping my sister.

I know she’d do this for me if we were in each other’s place.

Loving someone isn’t only about how they make you feel but also how you make them feel.

True love involves sacrifice, right? I may make a stink when Jasmine borrows my clothes without asking, but I’d do anything for her.

I literally prayed for a sibling, and God gave her to me.

She’s one of the best gifts I could’ve asked for. ”

If I thought I couldn’t like Lily more, I was wrong. Hearing her talk like this shows me how big her heart is. “You’re an amazing sister, you know that? My sisters could take a lesson from you. I’m pretty sure neither one of them would marry a stranger for my sake.”

“You’re not a stranger. I’ve known you for a year and I’ve seen your presentations at work—the thought you put into your color schemes is quite impressive. And we agree on the most important thing, that TP should hang over, not under.”

“For sure.” I chuckle along with her. “It’s a deal then. All we need to do now is to talk about logistics.”

“Logistics—right.” She looks off into the distance for a moment, then turns back to me.

“How about this? We can pretend to be engaged, and I’ll introduce you to my family.

I’ll talk my mom into letting Jasmine set a wedding date so she can book the venue and send out invitations.

Then we can amicably break up before the wedding, so you won’t have to meet my extended family. Does that sound okay with you?”

Okay? An amicable breakup is an oxymoron if I’ve ever heard of one.

I want to shake my head so vigorously my contacts might fall out, but I nod instead.

I’m grateful for this opportunity to be Lily’s fiancé, even if it’s pretend.

Because once she gets a taste of what it’s like to be in a relationship with me, she’ll wish it were real.

At least that’s my plan. I don’t have any experience being engaged, but I am a professional when it comes to crushing on Lily Lam. You could call me the unofficial president of her fan club.

A fan club of only one, I hope.

“That sounds fine,” I readily agree. “A pretend engagement shouldn’t be hard to pull off. We already see each other five days out of the week. This will be an extension of our relationship outside of the office.”

“Exactly. We technically already have a meet-cute to tell people about.”

“A meet what?”

“A meet-cute. The scene when a couple first meets that’s usually cute, hence the name, or it can be funny or awkward. I guess for us it would be more of the latter.”

I cringe, wishing I could redo our first meeting. “Oh yeah, that was completely my fault.”

“Your fault? No way. It was so rude of the new intern to stuff a bagel in your mouth. You turned as red as a tomato, especially your ears. I actually thought about doing the Heimlich on you.”

“You did?”

“Of course. Death by bagel does kind of have a nice ring to it, but it would be a horrible way to go.”

“True.” Or maybe not. I won’t lie—the thought of Lily wrapping her arms around my torso and squeezing me tight kind of makes me wish I’d choked that day.

Hopefully I won’t have to put my life in danger to experience being that close to her.

Speaking of danger, I see some red flags in her plan that we need to talk about.

“You said you’re going to talk your mom into letting your sister set a wedding date and send out invitations.

What do we say when they ask about our wedding plans?

I thought the whole point was for you to get married first? ”

She nods thoughtfully. “That’s a valid point. The thing is… how do I put this? My parents, especially my mom, won’t be easy to deal with. They’re going to have some concerns when they meet you.”

“What do you mean?” Her ominous tone sends a shiver down my spine. “They don’t force prospective sons-in-law to eat pineapple on their pizza, do they?”

She smirks. “Not that I know of, but they do have a list of requirements for what they want in a son-in-law. Unfortunately, you meet all of them except for one.”

“Which one?” It’s not beneath me to work on myself if it will earn me brownie points with Lily’s parents. “I’m open to changing.”

“This isn’t something you can change.”

“Try me.”

“They want me to marry a Chinese guy.”

“Oh.” My insides twist into a tangled knot.

Forget red flags, we’ve just entered sirens and flares territory.

I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised about this requirement, given what I’ve learned about Chinese culture, but it’s still hard to swallow.

Forcing out a smile, I joke, “And I thought being forced to eat pineapple on pizza would be hard to beat.”

“Yeah.” She sighs, her expression pained. “It’s a silly requirement and not fair at all, if you ask me. I wish it wasn’t like this.”

“So, how is it going to work then? How do I get their blessing?” Our engagement may be pretend, but my question is as real as can be. I have faith that God can do the impossible. I’ve seen Him change hearts before.

“Well, I’m hoping that once they meet you and see what a good guy you are, they’ll bend the rules. They’ll have to approve of your heart.”

I’d like to bask in the glow of Lily’s compliment, but I can’t shake the concern tightening my chest. “That’s kind of you to say, Lil, but what if they don’t?”

“I guess the next step then would be to elope.”

“Elope?” I can’t tell if she’s being serious, but I’m afraid to ask. It’s one thing to agree to marry her, but another thing to cross her parents by eloping. I’m pretty sure I’d never earn their trust and respect that way.

“Don’t worry,” Lily says, “I’m kidding. My mom would never forgive me if I didn’t give her the chance to throw a ten-table wedding banquet. We’ll cross that path if—when—we come to it. For now, let’s focus on you meeting them first. It’s like writing code. We’ll take it one line at a time.”

One line at a time—right. I can write code in my sleep, but meeting my fake fiancée’s parents? I’m going to need a crash course for that.

It’s time to call in the experts on Chinese culture—my parents.