Chapter3: His Contract Wife

Tempted to reply immediately, Leila opened the candy crush app instead. She didn’t want to give off the impression of being desperate.

Someone laughed in the crowd. The garden had filled up now and they were raising a toast to the couple. Leila reached for the glass of wine on her table and cheered to the air.

Where was her best friend?

Nearly everyone in this garden was paired except her. One more reason she hated attending weddings.

Another message came in from this Kelvin guy and she didn’t take her time to reply to this one.

Kelvin: Are you busy?

Leila: Kind of. I’m at this wedding my best friend forced me to attend.

Force was not the best word to describe the true story. But Leila could bet her left ankle that Freya would have dragged her out of her house if she went there instead of coming to this wedding.

Kelvin: same. In my case, I lost a bet so I had to come. I’m bored out of my mind. Weddings are not my thing but a single man has no say in such matters. My sister is trying to hook me up.

Kelvin: I didn’t lose the bet to my best friend. I lost it to my sister. I’m here on her behalf.

She laughed. He was rambling but she liked it.

Leila: I’m bored too.

Leila: Oh my God. You get it. I didn’t have a choice either and now my best friend is nowhere to be found. Yay me!!!!! The perks of being single.

Leila: I really wish I could leave.

Kelvin: me too. I could be your ticket to leaving boredom land. What do you say?

Rolling her lip between her teeth, Leila nodded like he could see her. Kelvin didn’t have a face on his profile so she had no expectations but she couldn’t help herself from typing another reply to him.

Leila: Are you short?

Kelvin: What?

Leila: forget I asked. Count me in. I’m at Corey street. The sad lady in a black gown, red lips, little makeup, hair down, waiting for her prince charming to show up. Lol. You can easily hear the music playing down the road but if you don’t, hit me up for directions. Here’s my number. Call, don’t text.

Giddy with excitement, Leila left him her number. At least, Freya would get off her back for a minute. Speaking of best friends, Freya was taking too long. She sent her a text and groaned at the reply from her best friend.

Something came up. Will be back in a jiffy.

All the more reasons for her to leave this place.

The chair Freya once occupied squeaked, she looked up to see the hot stranger.

“Leilani.” Her mouth dropped. How did he know her name? He waved his phone and she saw his Tinder profile. Kelvin. The hot stranger was her Tinder match. “Sad lady waiting for her prince charming, remember? Well, I’m here now. Be sad no more.” Leila laughed. That line sounded so much better on text. “Red looks really great on you, Leilani. Is this seat taken?”

He sat down before she replied and she stifled the urge to roll her eyes. Up close she could see his eyes were grey and his lips more pouty than they looked from afar.

“I feel like I should know you,” she muttered. Kelvin quirked a brow, she roamed through her purse till she found it. Leila dropped the wallet beside his phone. “Looks familiar?” He opened his mouth but she beat him to it. In a voice that barely resembled his, she said, “Step aside lady. I don’t have time for this.”

Kelvin snorted. “That was you?” She nodded, his head fell back with laughter and her lips twitched from fighting off a smile. “I’m so sorry. My sister was ripping my head off for not being here early. Thought you were one of...”

“One of what?” she asked, clearly interested in what he didn’t say.

“Never mind, Leilani.” Leila raised her brows. She minded. A lot. Her curiosity was piqued but the young man said nothing. Kelvin pointed at his wallet on the table. “Can I have this?”

“Of course, you can. It’s yours.”

They had only spoken for a few minutes but Kelvin seemed like a better company than Carlson. Maybe Freya was right. Carlson was just one guy; a liar. It didn’t mean all men on Tinder were liars.

“Thanks.”

Without meaning to, Leila’s eyes trailed to his chest hidden under his tux. “Can I ask a question?”

“Sure,” Kelvin replied.

His grey eyes noted every movement she made and Leila was acutely aware how handsome he was. But she had to ask. She opened the Tinder app and tapped on his profile picture.

“Is this your cousin?”

Kelvin’s brows furrowed. “I don’t understand.”

“Is this you or your cousin?” His frown deepened and she lost her train of thoughts. “I mean, this is not your cousin. It’s your body, right?” Kelvin’s mouth opened but no word came out of him. She was making their meeting awkward and Kelvin made it worse by undoing the button of his suit jacket. Leila flushed. “What are you doing?”

Kelvin shrugged off the jacket and undid the top button of his dress shirt. “Showing evidence.”

“No.” Cheeks burning hotter than an oven, she shook her head. “No need. Thanks. I believe you.”

“Are you sure?” he asked, laughter colouring his voice. She relaxed when he pulled on his jacket.

Leila laughed freely for the first time. “Very.”

The duo fell into a companionable silence. A waitress came close to their table and Kelvin accepted a glass of sparkling wine from her. Leila was still nursing her first glass so she was stunned when he downed the content of his glass in one gulp and requested for another.

“You shouldn’t be drinking so much,” Leila said.

“I shouldn’t.” But he called a new waiter over and requested for his third glass. “But I am.”

“Tough day?” she asked.

“Yeah.” Kelvin cradled his glass, taking slow sips from it. “Where’s your best friend?”

“She left,” Leila replied.

They sat in silence for a while and she fiddled with the strap of her purse. “Do you want to leave?” he asked.

She couldn’t possibly leave with a stranger so she shook her head. Inviting him over had sounded pleasing on the phone, a good way to forget about the disaster that happened earlier. On another look at him, he was above her league but Freya would approve of him.

“I think I’ll stay here for a while.”

Food and snacks went round the tables. Her mouth watered at the delicacy placed on her table. The band was playing a slow song to match the mood. She dug into her canapés but Kelvin’s plate remained untouched.

“Have you ever wondered why people get married?” he asked as she munched on her snacks.

A lot of times. “Yes. It’s a beautiful thing.”

But she couldn’t say for sure she would experience it. Marriage and love was a fairy-tale that didn’t exist to Leila. She sipped from the glass of wine used for the toast and took a good look at Kelvin. He massaged his jaw and his head turned slightly so he could wink at her.

Heat crawled up her neck and she used her hair to cover the evidence of her embarrassment.

“What do you think about marriage?” she asked.

“It’s cool.” His fingers drummed on the table. He picked a diced apple from the fruit tray and returned it. “I don’t see myself getting married.”

She didn’t either. “Why not?”

Kelvin finally ate the apple and took another slice. She finished the rest of her canapés and he pushed his to her front. Her lips pulled into a smile of gratitude and he smiled back.

“I don’t know, Leilani. Finding the right one is harder than it seems. I kind of miss the old days when parents found partners for their kids.”

“You could bring it back,” she said to cheer him up. He looked better when smiling or smirking. “You could find yourself a partner you don’t know. That was how it worked.”

The older methods were awful. Kids were betrothed to people they didn’t know. It was a no from her but Kelvin’s eyes crinkled with a smile that told her he liked what she said.

“Do you want me to bring it back?” His tone was as light as hers, full of teasing and mischief.

“Sure. Why not?” Leila downed the rest of her drink and shuddered. Emboldened, she said, “Who doesn’t want to marry a stranger?”

Kelvin straightened up in his seat. “So if a stranger asks you to marry him, you will say yes?” Her smile fell off. He was taking the joke seriously. Kelvin’s eyes darted around the garden and he scratched the back of his neck. For the first time since his arrival, he looked nervous. “I’m about to ask you for something crazy, Miss Leilani.”

“How crazy?”

“Very crazy.” She cocked her head and sized him up from top to bottom, then gave him the go-ahead to speak. “Marry me, Leilani.”

“What?”

Of all the crazy things she had heard this year, this was the craziest. And the fact she was thinking about it made her crazier than the man proposing to a total stranger.

“We will have rules. There will be a contract.”

Eyes widened in shock, she muttered, “You want me to be your wife? A contract wife?”

His Contract Wife. Surprisingly, Leila wasn’t appalled by the idea. Heck, it was a good one. But marriage? Straightaway? He was still a stranger, handsome but still unfamiliar.

“I’m kind of lonely,” Kelvin confessed with a sad laugh that tore open her heart.

Laughing to mask her words, she admitted, “Me too.”

Kelvin leaned forward to take her hand. Their gazes collided and she forgot everything she should have said. His tongue swiped over his bottom lip, he swallowed. “Then marry this stranger.”