"You should know by now that I'm more interested in being a human than a brand," I said. "Oh, by the way, I'm bringing a date to the gala."
"What? Who?" she spluttered. "Please, for the love of god, tell me you did not meet her at The Sand Dollar tonight."
"Technically, it was this afternoon."
Lyla sucked air in between her teeth. "Well, whoever she is, remind her that this is a black-tie, formal event. She can't show up in a sundress and flip-flops."
"Nice talking to you." I hung up my phone and swore under my breath. I knew Lyla was just looking out for me, but the idea of her judging Riley made me livid.
I turned around and caught Andrew's worried look from across the room. I shrugged, but he still looked concerned.
Next to him, Riley was shooting me curious glances from under her impossibly thick eyelashes. I should have been jumping for joy. Riley had agreed to be my date and for the first time in the last three years, I was actually looking forward to the gala. I tried to shake off Lyla's call and started across the room to join my friends.
"I know it might not look like it, but Landon's under a lot of pressure. There's a lot expected from him—"
"Thanks, Andrew, but I believe Riley already agreed to be my date to the gala, right?" I asked her.
She gave the semi-circle of curious faces a shy smile. "Yes, I agreed to go with him. But don't worry, I don't expect too much. I mean, I hardly expect you to get up before noon in time to pick me up."
"You know, I'm not the same as that creep that keeps texting you. Because you've got me all wrong," I said.
"Yeah, I think I did get you all wrong," Riley said, her eyes flashing with annoyance. She plucked her bag off my shoulder and started for the stairs. "Thanks for everything, Andrew. Ruiz, the food was wonderful. Nice to meet everyone."
I banged my head on the low ceiling stairwell as I tried to follow her. "Riley, please. I'm sorry. My cousin just got under my skin."
She turned on a higher step and we stood eye to eye. "You were right. I don't know anything about you, so maybe it's better if we went our separate ways."
"Please. I know it's crazy, but you're the only person who can make tomorrow bearable. I'm sorry I snapped at you. I don't know anything about your ex-boyfriend, and I shouldn’t have said anything."
Riley drew a deep breath and let it out on a shaky sigh. "You're right about that, too. Just because my ex-boyfriend acted a certain way doesn’t mean every man is like that. I'm sorry. It's just been a hard day."
I nodded. "Your grandfather. I forgot. I'm so sorry, Riley. You wanted to sit and remember him in private, and I dragged you into a crazy shift at an overcrowded bar."
A smile brightened the corners of her mouth. "I think that was for the best. I didn't have a chance to be sad. And all night I kept thinking how he would have loved to hear the story of my day today."
"Well, I know everyone in Michel's Beach will agree that your bad day turned out to be a great thing for us. You fit in well around here."
Her cheeks reddened again. "So, is there really a Michel?" She glanced out the porthole window in the stairwell and up the dark hills. "I'm imagining him sitting up there like some sort of Gatsby. Does he show up to these things or does he just watch from some high window?"
"You can find out tomorrow when you come to the gala with me," I said.
She laughed and continued up the stairs. I walked her to the door of the small apartment. There she turned and gave me a shy, searching look.
"Is there anything else I should know before tomorrow?" she asked.
"Yes," I said, relieved to have thought of something concrete to tell her. "The gala is a black-tie, formal event." I eyed her small suitcase doubtfully.
"Formal beach wear?" Riley teased. "I'll polish up my flip-flops tonight."
"Sorry, no flip-flops allowed," I said. "Unless you have a real dress in that suitcase, we're going to have to send you to the nearest boutique."
Riley shook her head. "I have a black dress packed and I promise it will be wrinkle-free by tomorrow. It might not be the fanciest, but it's black and no one will notice."
I cleared my throat. "It's formal. Very. As in tuxedoes and floor-length dresses. You know how celebrities rent fancy necklaces and things to impress people on the red carpet? Well, people buy new jewels just for this party."
Riley sized me up. "Are you screwing with me?"
I looked down at my dirty jeans and scuffed loafers. I wasn't even wearing socks. "I'm not screwing with you. You can ask the guys downstairs. Andrew had to learn how to tie a bowtie for these parties."
"So, what? You've rented a tux for tomorrow, and you want to make sure I don't embarrass you?" Riley asked.
I brushed a honey-brown wave of hair off her shoulder. "Frankly, you can wear whatever you want and I'll still be overjoyed that you're there with me. I'm just telling you because you were worried about feeling like an outsider. I'm sure that would feel even more pronounced if you weren't dressed right."
"You think I'm going to back out now?" Riley asked. "Fat chance."
I swooped in and kissed her cheek. "You won't regret it. Believe me."
"I might, but I’m not sure I can trust you. You just said there’s a boutique in town. So far I've only seen four buildings, and we're in one of them."
I laughed. "The boutique is the last building in this row. It has all the windsocks flying around during the day."
"I'm getting a formal dress at a souvenir shop?"
I pulled out my phone and sent a quick text. "Rosalyn owns the shop. She outfits most of the locals. I sent her a message and told her to expect you."
Riley brushed a kiss across my cheek. "Thanks."
"What was that for?" I asked.
"For making a hard day into a fun story." She unlocked the apartment and slipped inside.
I waited until my breath came back before I headed home.
Chapter Five
Riley
I tiptoed down the narrow staircase to the bar. It was strange to see it in daylight. The floor was dark, scuffed hardwood, and the ceiling had original crown moldings. The trendy gaslight lanterns were authentic, as was the glass buoy collection that made the ceiling a bright mosaic. I blinked around at all the details I had missed the night before.
"Hello? Good morning?" I called without much volume.
Luckily, the bar was on the shady side in the early morning because I knew I looked like a zombie. I needed to find caffeine.
I shuffled closer to the bar and yelped in surprise as Andrew appeared with two steaming mugs of coffee.
"Good morning," he said with a bushy smile. Andrew's beard was neatly brushed, his white shirt impeccable, and his smile too bright.
I braced myself to interact with a morning person. "Thank you. I need coffee."
"Bet you thought it was a dream, huh?" Andrew asked. "It's not every day your car happens to fail right in the backyard of someone like Landon."
I sipped my coffee. "So, what's so different about Landon?"