23. Britta

Chapter twenty-three

Britta

Moments after Dex and I agree to get married, he yells the news to Archie, who's in his room. From that point on, Archie takes over, and I see why Dex hired him as his manager. The next twenty-four hours are a whirlwind.

I figured we'd have to drive to Las Vegas for a quickie wedding, but within minutes Archie has found a same-day wedding service right here in LA.

"You can get married on the beach in Santa Monica without a permit. It's first come, first serve, and with just a few of us there, it won't be a problem." He's on the couch between Dex and me, feet on the edge of the coffee table and his laptop on his bent knees.

All I can see of Dex is his bouncing legs, which doesn't make me any less nervous. I mean, I know it's not an actual marriage, but I'm still getting married, and it has to look real, especially because Dex is a famous surfer. He's in the media enough that there will be extra scrutiny.

"Rhys can perform the ceremony if you want. He's still in town for a couple of days," Archie says.

"Rhys James is an ordained minister?" I did not see that coming.

"He got ordained online so he could perform Frankie's ceremony last summer," Dex mutters off-hand.

"Frankie is married?" I don't read a lot of Hollywood gossip, but I can't believe that news wasn't splashed all over. This day is full of all kinds of surprises.

"Not anymore," Archie says tightly, and I ask no more questions about his twin.

Dex's legs stop bouncing, and he leans forward so I can see him. "Is all of this okay with you?"

"The sooner we can get the naturalization process started, the better." Archie is all business, which makes this feel even less like a real wedding.

"Are you asking if I'm okay having Archie Forsythe as my wedding planner and Rhys James as the officiant?" I blink long and slow. "As long as Rhys sings the whole thing."

Dex and Archie both laugh, and Archie says, "I'll see what I can do. He may charge extra for the service."

"I just don't want you to feel rushed into anything," Dex adds more seriously.

I shake my head. "I don't… I mean, I do, but I'd rather get things rolling than wait. I have to talk to my dad first, though. And Stella, obviously. She has to be there."

"Of course," Dex agrees, but Archie shakes his head.

"You've got to keep this a secret," he says. "At least the real reason you're getting married. Not even your family can know. If it gets out, you and Dex will both be in a lot of trouble and Dex could be deported. He wouldn't be able to come back for competitions."

"I can't lie to my family." That's a deal breaker right there.

"Then don't. But you can't tell them the whole truth either," Archie says firmly.

I stare at him and decide that I don't like being managed.

But I don't have much choice if I want to buy Annie's. Or if I want to help Dex get to the Olympics. Annie's is my primary motivation for marrying Dex, but I also love the idea of being a part of him achieving his dream. Maybe I should be worried about how invested I am in his getting to the Olympics, but I can't help it.

Dex came to Paradise at the perfect time, a month after Mom passed, a ray of sunshine at the darkest time of my life. I'm getting Annie's and a new life out of the deal, but if marrying Dex gets him to the Olympics, I'll be happy to have returned the happiness he brought me.

"Okay, then." I push myself from the couch. "I'm going to figure out how not to lie to my dad while also not telling him the truth while you two finish this." I sweep my hand in a circle to indicate Archie's laptop and the million tabs he has opened.

Dex stands too. "All right then, I guess we're getting married."

An awkward moment follows where we both do what can only be described as a dance around how to say goodbye as an officially engaged couple without touching each other.

Finally, I jut out my hand. "It's a deal."

Dex's gaze drops to my hand, then back to my face. His eyes meet mine. In the distance, I hear waves crashing. The smell of the ocean permeates everything, and I'm reminded of the taste of Dex's lips.

He slides his hand in mine, slowly. His fingertips brush my palm, then my wrist. He doesn't shake my hand. He holds it, like he did last night—the last time we touched. Tenderly. Protectively.

"Deal." The word comes out as a whisper, but he keeps hold of my hand. The feeling of security that accompanies his touch is both comforting and terrifying. Suddenly, his soft expression transforms into wide-eyed horror. "I don't have a ring."

The breath I'd been holding comes out as a laugh. "It's okay. We can figure that out later."

He exhales and releases my hand. "Right. Rings can wait."

"You'll need a place to live, too," Archie offers without taking his eyes from his laptop.

"Together?" Dex and I say at the same time.

Archie sends both of us a look that can only be interpreted as a silent duh. "Everything has to be airtight if we're going to convince officials that this marriage isn't just about Dex fast-tracking the immigration process."

I hadn't really thought through where I'd have my bedroom and bathroom when I wrote up our contract. My only thought was to include every contingency.

"I sorta thought we'd keep things the way they are until Britta has to move out of her unit. Then she could move in here." Dex rakes his hand through his hair, clutching a handful.

"Into our two-bedroom apartment?" Archie asks.

"We're hardly ever here." His hair stands up where he's pulled at it, and he reminds me of Bear when he was a toddler. Completely clueless.

"Don't worry. I'll handle it." Archie goes back to his laptop.

"I need my room and bathroom," I say carefully. "It's in the contract."

Archie stops typing long enough to send me an exasperated look. "You realize that contract isn't legally binding, right?" He waits for me to answer, but I don't appreciate his tone, so I don't say anything. "You'll have your own space," he finally relents.

With that, I leave so I'll have some privacy when I break the news to my dad that I'm getting married.

Stella is waiting at the door for me when I walk in. "Well?"

"I'm getting married tomorrow." I walk past her, ignoring her pleas for details. If I don't call Dad now, I'll chicken out. Then he'll find out from the news, my brothers, or some other source, and it will break his heart.

He answers on the first ring. Of course. The one time he doesn't have to search for his phone is the one time I could use a few more seconds to breathe.

"Britta! Is everything okay, honey? I wasn't expecting another call from you today." The worry in his voice doesn't give me any time to beat around the bush.

"Everything's fine, Dad. I have some news to tell you, but it's good news." I hope he thinks so, but I decide to play it up more because he's going to take a lot of convincing. "Really, really good news."

"We can use some good news around here, but hold on a minute…" His phone goes quiet.

"Dad? Are you still there?"

"I'm here, just walking to the kitchen." His voice is muffled, and there's a lot of background noise.

"Dad, I can barely hear you."

"Almost there." Silence again. Except for the blood pounding in my ears.

The number one thing I don't miss about Paradise is the terrible reception and dropped calls. Every time the line goes quiet, my pulse fills in the absence by thumping hard.

As soon as I hear Dad again, I say, "When I tell you this news, I need you to trust me. I really am happy, and it's the best thing for me right now."

My phone buzzes. Dad is trying to FaceTime me. I sigh and accept the call. Then his face pops up in front of me, which doesn't make it easier to deliver my news.

"Okay, go ahe—"

"—I'm getting married." I don't let him finish his sentence. If I do, I'll lose my courage.

The shock on Dad's face I expected, but then Adam's face pops into the screen next to Dad's. "You're what?"

"Did you say you're getting married?" Dad asks, and the background noise gets louder and clearer.

"Who's getting married?" Zach yells.

I suddenly realize I've made a crucial mistake by forgetting it's Evie's birthday. I close my eyes and mutter, "No, no, no."

"You're not getting married?" Dad asks. "Thank goodness. I thought that's what I heard you say."

I take a deep breath and open my eyes. "I am getting married, Dad."

My entire family is at Dad's celebrating. Not just my brothers and their partners. Stella's mom and brother, too. Along with his wife and stepdaughter. Literally, everyone is there. Which means my private conversation with Dad is now going to be a family meeting.

"You're getting married? To who?" Bear's face fills the screen. He's my baby brother, but he's always been the most protective of me.

He's also the biggest of my brothers, and suddenly I'm a little worried about Dex's safety. I've got a lot of explaining to do—without too much truth-telling—but at least I'll only have to do it one time. So maybe this rip-the-Band-Aid-off moment is a good thing. If I can get them to stop asking me questions all at the same time.

I put my fingers between my lips and whistle. "Listen up!"

The room goes silent and more faces squeeze into the screen. But I have everyone's attention, so I let out as much information as I can in one long breath.

"LiamandIaregettingmarriedtomorrow,andIneedyoutotrustmethatthisiswhatIwantandnotaskalotofquestions."

A beat passes before Bear growls, "Who is Liam?"

"Dex. I mean Dex." I have to get used to calling him that again—I guess—since it's his one and only condition.

"I called it!" Georgia yells, followed by Zach's confused voice. "The surfer?"

And I'm swept away in a sea of voices and questions. I toss out answers to as many as I can and ignore the ones I can't answer. Like the one from Dad about whether I'm in love with Dex.

But when everyone goes silent, and Dad asks in a sad voice, "Did you say tomorrow?" I can't ignore him.

"Yeah. We don't want it to be a big deal—what with the media and everything. It's just going to be us and a couple of friends on the beach."

Dad's expression grows sadder in equal proportion to the increasing perkiness in my voice until the hurt on his face is unbearable.

"Who's walking you down the aisle?" He asks, and I am unprepared for the longing that fills my chest.

Thirteen was my wedding-obsession era. I imagined a big wedding with Mom and Dad both giving me away. I had a Pinterest board of ideas and everything. Mom and I worked on it together.

Then she got sick… and, well, you know.

"There won't be an aisle on the beach," I say weakly, without looking at his face. I officially hate video calls almost as much as I hate the deep well of sadness in Dad's blue eyes.

"If you could put it off a day," he says, slowly. "We could drive to California and be there for it."

"Or go to Vegas, and we'll meet you there!" My cousin Seb calls from somewhere off-screen.

I start to shake my head, then catch Dad's eye.

"Vegas is closer for us," he says carefully. "We could leave early tomorrow morning and be there late afternoon. You wouldn't have to postpone, and we'd be part of your big day."

If I'd only heard the pleading in Dad's voice over the phone and not seen it written wide on my cell screen, I could have said no.

But I dare anyone to look at Dad when he has that face and tell him no. I am reminded in this moment of something I've been so aware of but haven't thought about yet. Dad has lost so much. He lost his wife, partner, and best friend to a slow and miserable disease. He spent his life working toward a future he will never have and watched the toll it took on all of us.

Three years from now, I'm going to get a divorce, and he'll never know the real reason. I've shocked him with this announcement, but he's not telling me not to do it. He just wants to be there for what he thinks is a beautiful decision I've made. I feel like the worst daughter ever, but I can't tell him that either. Instead, I tell him I'll see what I can do.

Which is how, the following day, instead of driving fifteen minutes to Santa Monica beach and although I've never been on an airplane, Dex, Archie, Stella, and I meet Rhys James at a private jet at the Burbank Airport to fly to Las Vegas—a place I've never been—for my fake wedding day.