Page 10 of You Chive Me Crazy

Lita smiled. “Well, aren’t you the sweetest thing?”

I smiled back, then pointed to the waiting area. “I need to get off my feet.” I hobbled toward a chair.

“You look like you have a hitch in your giddy-up,” Lita said.

I nodded. “Yeah—I messed up my ankle.”

“Do you want to have the doc look at it while you’re here?”

The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind to get it checked out. I had been completely focused on Zoe. I figured I would just ice my ankle after I checked into the hotel.

“Just to be on the safe side, you know?” Lita added. “It could just be a mild ankle sprain, but there’s always the possibility of a more serious injury, like a stress fracture or something.” She didn’t wait for an answer, waving me over. “Come on. You might as well get it checked out, since this place is a ghost town.”

I guessed it wouldn’t hurt to have it checked out, as long as they didn’t stick me in the same vicinity as Zoe.

Luckily, I had a room all to myself.

Even better, the X-rays and MRI results showed no serious injuries. All I had was some inflammation, which had already gone down since they’d iced it while I was waiting for the results. They even gave me an ice pack to go. Dr. Bonebrake recommended some ibuprofen, and to take it easy for a couple of days. I would be fine, which wasn’t a surprise.

However, what came next might be considered the most shocking thing I had ever heard in my life.

On my way back to the reception area, the nurse stopped me in the hallway and said, “Excuse me, Mr. Filo . . . your wife would like to speak with you.”

I blinked twice, certain I’d heard her wrong. “Pardon me?”

“Your wife . . .” She pointed toward the half-open door. “She’s right through that door.”

“Th-thank you,” I stammered, my mind reeling as I tried to figure out what form of not-so-sweet revenge Zoe was concocting.

I guessed it didn’t really matter.

Like a moth to a flame, I walked toward her room and pushed open the door.

“Honey! There you are!” Zoe said, before I could say a word.

I studied her, wondering what in the world she was up to since the woman hated me with a passion. Why was she pretending to be my wife?

Zoe was nervous, fidgeting with the zipper on her purse.

Her wide eyes told me I was supposed to play along with her charade.

My mind was telling me to run.

Because I knew Zoe with an un-vetted plan was trouble.

ChapterThree

ZOE

Lucas entered my room with the demeanor of an adrenaline junkie trapped at a yoga retreat. I hadn’t planned on blindsiding him, but desperate times called for desperate deception, or something like that. What else was I supposed to do when Dr. Bonebrake told me he wanted to keep me overnight for observation because I showed signs of a possible concussion?

Fine—I freaked out and went into survival mode.

Dr. Bonebrake said the only way he would discharge me was under the care and supervision of a family member who would be able to monitor my condition for the next day or two. Since I wasn’t currently geographically close to any of my family or friends, Lucas was my only option.

“If we’re married, does that make me Mr. Potato Head?” he said with a quirked brow.

Okay, I had just tossed him a pretty big bombshell without warning, so it was understandable he was going to get snarky with me. But there was no way I was going to spend a night or two in the hospital. The Big Bang Big Bear food truck festival promised to be a seminal moment in my life and I needed to prepare for it. My future depended on it.