Daniel wondered how long he'd have to fake the limp he'd adopted since their sledding disaster that afternoon. After that amazing kiss, and then blowing it, he needed some space. Melinda's family had seen them ride back though, and, after Mrs. Garrett chastised them for skipping out on their couple’s massage, she had sent him back to his room with an icepack. She wanted him feeling better for the wedding rehearsal and dinner that evening.
With a groan, Daniel turned off the TV and shoved his pillow over his face. When had the weekend become so complicated? All he wanted was to be back in Amor, with Melinda, without all the lies and the pretending. If Daniel were being honest, he would have kissed Melinda even longer and harder than he had. He hadn't wanted to stop, but knowing it was all an act—his heart couldn't handle that. Except no one else had been there to see…had their kiss really been as fake as their engagement? Or had it meant as much to Melinda as it had to him?
There was a knock on the door and Daniel pulled himself out of bed to answer it. When he swung the door open, his breath hitched. Melinda stood there, wearing a jade spaghetti-strap dress that was so long, it covered her toes. Her hair cascaded over her shoulders and Daniel had the sudden desire to run his fingers through it.
"Hi," she said with a small smile. Then she looked him over and her smile faded. "Why aren't you dressed?"
"I was just about to," Daniel said, opening the door wider. "You can come in, if you want. It will only take me a minute."
Melinda hesitated, but then walked into his suite. It looked the same as hers, but she seemed to be taking it all in, just the same.
"Is your mom still annoyed with us?" he asked as he rummaged in the closet for his one and only suit.
"Probably." She stepped up beside Daniel, scanning his limited wardrobe. "It's not in there." And then she flipped open the lid to Daniel's suitcase, which he had thought was empty, only to find the suit rolled up in a ball.
Daniel groaned. "Any chance it doesn't have a million wrinkles?"
Melinda picked up the suit jacket. It looked like a raisin, all shriveled up. "Nope." She glanced at her watch. "We don't have time to have housekeeping iron it for you."
"Does it really matter?" Daniel asked. "I mean, there shouldn't even be a wedding rehearsal, considering it’s supposed to be for people who are actually getting married."
"Impressions are everything to my parents," Melinda said. "My dad's boss will be there. So will my grandmother, who arrived a couple hours ago. So, yes, it does matter." She sank onto the couch. "But I wish it didn't. Ever since we arrived…" Melinda clasped her hands on her lap. "It almost doesn't feel like we're 'us' anymore. We're acting out this grand play, but someone else wrote the script."
"That's not completely your parents' fault," Daniel said.
Melinda frowned. "So, you’re blaming me for it?"
"No. I’m just saying that to them, this is real. All of it. Us. Bree and Mark. It’s not their fault they are in the dark. Besides, it's only a couple more days.” He sat down next to Melinda, but when he did, he sank into the couch more than he’d expected to and his leg grazed Melinda's. Not wanting her to think he had less than noble intentions, he instinctively scooted away, though he couldn't keep his pulse from quickening.
"Hopefully less," Melinda said.
Daniel's insides twisted at the thought of the weekend ending, especially because Melinda wanted nothing more than to get away from it all. As strange and uncomfortable as it had been, he had also enjoyed spending time with her. Once they returned to Amor, he wouldn't have an excuse to take her hand, or give her a quick kiss on the cheek.
But then Melinda continued. "If I knew Bree was happy, I think I could enjoy the wedding and all the silly traditions that go along with it." She sighed. "But she's no better off than we are. Worse, actually. I can't believe she's let things get this far. If she doesn't call off the wedding tonight—" Melinda glanced at her phone and her eyes widened. "Oh my gosh, you have to get dressed. We're supposed to be there right now."
Daniel held up his suit and wrinkled his nose. "I think I'd be better off wearing my swim trunks than this thing."
"Try it on," Melinda said. "Maybe it won't look as bad when you're wearing it."
Daniel went into the bathroom and changed, but groaned when he looked in the mirror. Now that there was a body in it, the suit looked far worse, and it managed to make Daniel look like he should tie a handkerchief around the end of a stick and go train hopping. He could only imagine how embarrassing it would be if someone called security because a vagabond had managed to crash the party.
"So, how's it look?" Melinda asked from the other room.
Daniel took a few tentative steps out of the bathroom. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as he thought. Everyone was more critical of themselves than others were. But he knew he was doomed when Melinda's eyes widened.
"Oh, that's bad," she said.
Daniel slumped onto the second couch that faced her. "Why don't you just go? I'm not actually in the wedding party, so I don't need to be there for the rehearsal, right?"
Melinda was already shaking her head before he finished speaking. "And how is that going to look if I show up without my fiancé?"
"Better than if you show up with me looking like this," Daniel said. "Just tell them I had a wardrobe malfunction and I'll meet up with them for the dinner."
Melinda pulled out her phone, her attention suddenly diverted by the screen. "I can't go without you," she said, not looking up, her fingers typing away. "They expect you to be there, and as my fiancé, they will take it as a personal offense if you are not there for the rehearsal. Especially my grandmother." She paused and looked up, her gaze meeting Daniel's. "It's not just because of expectations, though. I need you. The only way I've been able to get through this weekend has been because you've been by my side. I don't think I can make it through the rehearsal without you keeping me grounded and in check. I don't want to mess up everything we've been working for."
Daniel’s breath quickened. Melinda needed him. He had the sudden desire to take her in his arms and tell her he'd be with her every step of the way, followed by a kiss so passionate, it would leave both of their heads spinning. Daniel dug a fingernail into his thigh to bring himself back to reality. Melinda needed her best friend, the one that helped her out of messes, whether at the diner in Amor or with her family at a fancy resort.
"I'm open to suggestions," he said, "but we're already late for the rehearsal."
Melinda smiled and held up her phone. It showed search results for How to smooth out wrinkles fast. "Five minutes with a blow dryer should work. We can use both the one that is provided in your bathroom as well as the one I brought from home." She sprinted from the room, and Daniel was left wishing he had never volunteered to come as Melinda's date. With every moment they spent together, he found himself wanting so much more. He didn't know if he'd be able to ever go back to just being friends when they returned.
"Why haven't you started yet?" Melinda asked, rushing back into the room. "Come on." She ushered him into the bathroom and plugged her own hair dryer in. "You do the pants and I'll do your suit jacket."
Daniel untangled the cord of the resort-issued dryer and started on the front of his pants. With heat coming from two directions, he felt like he had jumped into a sauna and didn't know how long he'd be able to withstand the heat. "Five minutes, right?" he asked, smoothing the heated section of his pants with his hand. He moved to the other pant leg.
"Yes, I think so. It's going pretty quick back here," Melinda said, running her hand along the back of the suit coat.
Her touch ignited Daniel's nerves, and he turned his blow dryer off.
"You're already finished?" Melinda asked, surprised.
Daniel turned so he faced her. "Better?" They stood so close that Melinda had to step back to see. Her cheeks were pink from the heat from the blow dryer.
"Definitely," she said.
Neither of them moved, but stared, holding each other's gazes.
"Daniel?"
"Yes?"
"What are we doing?" Melinda asked, her voice barely coming out as a whisper.
"That depends. What would you like to be doing?" Daniel asked, his voice hoarse. His gaze wandered to her lips. She licked them.
"I—" Melinda looked down at her feet, then stepped past him. "I would like to be rehearsing my sister's fake wedding."
Daniel swallowed hard. "Oh, yeah. Of course."
"If I'm going to escape my family's wrath and convince them to sell the diner, we need to get down there," Melinda said, not raising her eyes. She stepped out of the bathroom, the jade dress hugging her curves and swishing with each move.
Daniel averted his gaze. "Then we better get down there. Can't keep them waiting."
They had just stepped into the hallway and were walking toward the elevator when Melinda's phone rang.
"It's my mother," she said, pausing mid-step. "I'll just text Bree to let her know we're on our way. That will give us time to come up with a good excuse."
"Maybe my phone fell into the toilet," Daniel said, wishing that was a hypothetical situation, and not the story of his life. "And you were running around trying to find an employee who could get us a bag of rice to stick the phone in. Except everyone must have been on break because you couldn't find anyone and—"
Melinda laughed, immediately dissipating the tension that had wrapped itself around them. "How about if I do most of the talking tonight?"
"Hey, that was a good one," Daniel protested. "I'd like to see you try and come up with something better." But even though he acted like he was offended, he was just happy that the weirdness he had created between them seemed to be gone.
They were nearly at the elevator when they heard arguing from a nearby room. The door was cracked open and Daniel caught a glimpse of Bree, her naturally pretty features distorted in anger. Mark stood in front of her, his back to the door.
"We have to tell them tonight," Bree said. "The wedding is tomorrow, and I'm not marrying someone who loves his dad's secretary more than his fiancée."
Melinda slowed her steps and shared an anxious look with Daniel.
"Aren't they supposed to be at the rehearsal right now?" he whispered.
Melinda rolled her eyes and gave him a look that said, Well, duh, of course they are.
"Have you been listening?" Mark said. "Our dads, the CEO and his right-hand man, are quitting their jobs and starting their own business. My dad has invited all of their business associates to the wedding and plans on making the announcement at the wedding reception."
"And because they decided to push things forward with their little venture, I'm supposed to be stuck with you for the rest of my life?" Bree asked, her voice rising in volume.
Man, Bree didn't just not love Mark, she hated him. The loathing in her voice was unmistakable.
"Just until the deal is finalized and they offer me a job, and then we can get a divorce. I don't want to be married either, you know."
"Yes, well, you and what's-her-name made that very clear last week."
"Her name is Amanda," Mark said.
"And I wish you two all the happiness in the world," Bree said, sarcasm dripping from each word. "But I'm not going down there and making a sacred promise to love and respect you, when all I want to do is pummel you over the head."
Mark turned, like he was going to leave, and Melinda pushed Daniel toward the elevator. Mark barely made it out of Bree's room before the door slammed shut. Not having time to wait for the elevator door to open, Daniel slipped around the corner into the adjoining hallway and through a stairwell door, pulling Melinda after him. He leaned against the cold concrete wall.
"That was…intense," he said.
Melinda rubbed her eyes and released a long breath. When she looked up at Daniel, she had mascara smudged around her eyes, but he thought it gave them a smoky, sexy look. When he saw the glistening of a tear on one cheek, though, his protective instincts kicked in.
"Hey, Bree's going to be fine. She seems like a strong woman who stands up for what she needs," Daniel said.
Melinda slumped to the floor and shook her head. "This whole weekend is akin to the Titanic, except I'm not sure there are going to be any survivors."
Daniel slid to the floor next to her and tentatively placed an arm around her shoulders. Instead of pulling away, like he had feared she would, Melinda rested her head on his shoulder.
"Do you regret offering to be my date for the weekend?" she asked, her voice soft. "I know it's been awful. But I'll make it up to you. I'm not sure how yet, but I'll do something amazing for you."
Daniel chuckled and rested his head on Melinda's. Had it been different than he had expected? In more ways than he could count. But different didn't always have to be bad, and sitting there with Melinda in that moment while the wedding crashed around them, he felt better than he had in years. "I don't regret a thing," he mumbled. "And if I could go back in time, I'd still choose to come with you. Every time."