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“Let me see.” I grab her shoulders and turn her to face me. When I brush her soft curls aside, I wince at the blue goose egg that’s already forming.

“Crap. It’s bad, isn’t it?” she asks.

“Probably ought to put some ice on it to keep the swelling down, but it’s nothing a little concealer can’t hide.”

“Yes, Monty, I’m sure concealer will reduce all the swelling.” She reaches up to rub at it again and winces. “Oh, this is not how I wanted to meet your mother.”

“It’s fine. I’ll tell her the truth, that you love the ring more than me and were watching it instead of where you were walking.”

Kendall lets out a puff of laughter. “My precious is already doing a number on me.” She twists the ring around her finger. “Maybe I should leave it with you until tomorrow.”

“No. Keep it.” I grab her hand to stop her before she can remove it.

I’m not sure why, but I like seeing my ring on her hand more than I should, the way it overwhelms her in the best way. And she loves it so much that the thought of her taking it off makes my stomach roll.

When I realize I’m still holding her hands, I let them go gently and take a step back. “Keep it, just watch where you’re going. Do you think you’ll be okay to drive?”

“Because of the ring or the egg on my head?” she asks.

“Either. Both.”

“I’m fine. Just feel like an idiot. Unfortunately, this time my stupidity left a literal mark.”

“It’ll fade in a few days.”

“That’s too long. But I guess there’s nothing I can do about it now.”

“Buy a hat. One of those giant straw ones.”

“A hat could work,” Kendall agrees, looking a little bit better about her injury. “See you tomorrow.”

“See you then,” I agree, looking forward to it a little too much.

That’s how I know I’m probably making a huge mistake.

But spending a weekend pretending to be Kendall’s fiancé wasn’t a mistake I wanted to avoid.

8

Kendall

I feel like one of those classy actresses in a 1970s movie as I sweep through airport security wearing my new white dress with black polka dots, a giant white sunhat, and cat-eye sunglasses.

Monty is already waiting at the gate even though I made sure to drop off Mr. Jingles with Maggie and get here early.

“You look…different,” he says as he gets to his feet to meet me, like he isn’t sure whether that’s allowed. His eyes linger just a second too long on my cleavage before he looks away again.

“I can’t tell if that’s a compliment or not, but it doesn’t matter because I feel great,” I tell him. “Do you know how long it’s been since I bought a new dress? Over a year.”

“I like it and the hat,” he says. “If it rains, I think it will keep us both dry.”

“True enough,” I say with a bark of laughter.

“You run into anything else while distracted by the ring?” Monty asks with a raised eyebrow.

“No, but when I hit my precious against the bathroom doorframe last night, I almost had a heart attack.”

“You’ve got to stop calling it that.”