But that had to wait until Ria was out of the picture.
“There are plenty of places we can visit during your time off, but Paris is definitely at the top of my list. We should visit the Swiss Alps sometime too. I have a feeling you’d love it there.”
Ginger smiled at me while leaning in for a kiss. “You are the most romantic man that I’ve ever known, Jorge Stein.”
“Only because you’ve made me that way, Ginger Bowers.”
As we resumed eating, I found it hard to look at anything other than her ring and the bogus symbol it represented. It was one big reminder that I had to throw a phony wedding ceremony and that Ginger needed to know about it sooner rather than later. But everything was going so well between us that night, that I couldn’t find the right time to tell her.
Ginger caught me staring at it, though, and suddenly became insecure. “I should probably give this back to you, Jorge. I’m sorry for still wearing it.”
I shifted in my seat, realizing that it was now or never. “Actually, I want you to keep it, Ginger.”
Her face lit up as she clapped her hands together excitedly. “Wait, are you serious?”
Oh, God, no. She thinks that I’m about to propose!“Well, yes, you see—”
“Jorge, I can’t believe you want me to keep this ring! Oh, God! I can’t remember the last time I was so happy! Today feels like one big walking dream!”
Well, it’s about to turn into one big walking nightmare.
Ginger started fanning her face as the tears fell down her cheeks, and I wanted nothing more than to slither under the table and disappear.
“You see, it’s just that—”
“First, I get a promotion at the spa, and now this! Oh, I’m sorry, Jorge! I keep interrupting you.” She smoothed the white napkin on her lap while composing herself, and at that point, everyone on the terrace was looking at us.
This cannot be happening to me.
I spent the next couple of minutes trying to find the words to tell Ginger about needing a fake wedding ceremony, but I couldn’t speak. Not with so many people staring at us so intensely, and especially not after realizing Ginger was expecting a real marriage proposal.
Ginger couldn’t take it any longer. “Jorge, please, just ask me! I can’t wait any longer!”
“Ria emailed me the morning after we met her at The Spicy Pineapple for drinks.”
Ginger’s face instantly turned to ice. Her expression fell, and her shoulders slumped, and with it went my heart. “Why did she email you?”
“Because she still doesn’t believe that you’re my fiancée, and she’s refusing to leave the company.”
Ginger stood up as she leaned across the table. “Are you kidding me right now? How could she not believe us, Jorge? She got up and left after seeing the tennis bracelet you gave me!”
“Is everything all right over here?”
Ginger sat down while nodding at the waitress, who then looked at me with concern. “Yes, I’m terribly sorry.”
Once the waitress left, I decided just to rip off the bandage. “Anyway, she’ll never believe that I’m getting married and that I’ll never be completely rid of her. Feeling incredibly frustrated, I called my friend Gavin who suggested that we follow through with a wedding ceremony.”
Ginger leaned back in her chair, slumping as all color drained from her face. “That’s why you told me to keep the engagement ring.”
I hated that she said it as a statement, rather than posing it as a question. I reached across the table and began rubbing the ring again as I held her hand. “Ginger, you must know that I love you! I’ve never been in love with any other woman before you, and this isn’t how I thought tonight would go. Not that I thought you’d necessarily be excited about being my fake bride, but certainly not this.”
“Are you honestly going to throw an entire wedding ceremony just to get rid of this woman, Jorge? Because if you are, then maybe it’s time you get your lawyers involved. I know you’re terrified of ruining your reputation in the diamond business, but this is getting insane. It’s one thing to be a fake fiancée, but I don’t even know how I’d pull off being a fake bride.”
It became incredibly uncomfortable between us over the next several minutes, which we spent shifting uncomfortably in our seats while poking away at our key lime pies.
“Well,” I said, “I think I can create some fake marriage documents. At least the certificate, although I’m not sure what else is needed. I’ll probably just hit up my lawyer, explain the situation, and see what he says.”
“Or you could hit up your lawyer, tell him that Ria embezzled near a million dollars from the company, and let them handle the rest. She’ll probably be forced out of the company while the investigation was going on, anyway, and I’d be more than happy to show them everything that I found.”
