“Hello, Blake. Good to see you again.” Akiri’s lip curls up. “Nice of you to make it on time to your own event.”
“Good one!” I say cheerfully, just to see the look of annoyance wrinkling his forehead.
He regroups quickly. “I believe you know Sloane Vanderling.” He gestures at her with a triumphant flourish. “I’ve been getting to know her too. Very intimately.”
The gloating tone in his voice tells me that Sloane’s version of our breakup might have been a little on the creative side. It probably involved a lot of me groveling and pleading and promising the world if only she’d return.
“Wow,” I say, with what I hope sounds like genuine regret. “Well, the better man won.”
“Akiri just took me on the most wonderful Mediterranean vacation on his daddy’s yacht,” Sloane gushes. She smirks at Winona. “How many cruises has Blake taken you on?”
“I’m so sad to say, not a one.” Winona opens her eyes so wide she looks like a Kewpie doll, and purses her mouth in a sad little pucker that quivers with the effort of hiding her laughter. “Well, now I’m tore up like a soup sandwich. I wish I had a man who cared enough to take me on a boat ride.” Actually she’s told me she gets violently seasick.
“He sounds like a keeper.” I smile at Sloane with genuine enthusiasm. Any guy who distracts Sloane from her career as a Blake-stalker is all right by me. “When’s the wedding?”
“Oh, no sooner than next June,” she says, at the same time Akiri squawks, “What? Wedding?”
Her smile turns angry, and he lets out a sudden yelp of pain and tries to disentangle his hand from hers. I glance down at their entwined hands; she’s clenching with a death grip.
“Careful,” I advise her. “That’s his racquetball hand.”
She ignores me. “I was thinking your daddy’s estate on Lake Kawaguchi. What do you think?” she says brightly to him. “Your father said that’s his preference.”
“My father– You talked to him about– Wedding?” Akiri gurgles, his complexion turning the faint green of a man who’s eaten bad shellfish.
Sloane’s bright eyes flash with a murderous intensity. “Well of course, silly, it’s never too soon to start planning! When I told him what our plans are, he said it was about time you settled down before he had to take some serious measures, and I promised him– Hey!” Akiri manages to rip his hand from hers. She immediately throws her arm around his waist. He tries to take a step back; she moves with him.
Given that Akiri’s father controls the purse strings and finances his apparel company, I don’t think he’s going to dislodge that suckerfish grip any time soon.
“Run while they’re distracted.” Winona can’t hide the merriment in her voice. She, Alice and I make a break for it, dodging into the crowd.
“Their kids will be pretty,” Winona muses as we hurry along.
“But badly dressed,” Alice pipes up.
I lead them to the back of the store so we can take a private elevator up to the children’s department.
“So,” I say cheerfully as we pile in to the elevator, “you’re a spontaneous free spirit, right?”
Winona looks at me suspiciously. “I…guess so?”
“And you love surprises?”
Now Alice looks curious.
“What kind of surprises?” Winona asks suspiciously. “I mean, arguably a hockey-masked serial killer popping out of your closet is a surprise. So what kind of surprise are we talking about?”
“If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise, would it?”
This was a good idea. I am an ideas man; ideas are my thing. There was nothing wrong with this idea, I tell myself firmly.
Winona looks at Alice for support. “He’s making me nervous. What is he up to?”
“I have no idea.” Alice skewers me with a suspicious gaze. “You’re not going to publicly propose, are you? I adore Winona, but today would just be a lousy day for it. Too much else going on.”
“Yes it would,” Winona agrees.
“I’m not an idiot,” I say huffily.
The elevator comes to a halt. Instead of answering, I hurry from the elevator, with Winona and Alice hurrying to keep up. This was a good idea, I repeat in my head, as I throw open the door to the children’s department and a scene of semi-controlled chaos.
Kids are swarming the new gymnasium playset that spans the length of the department, scrambling through the interactive play areas, and shrieking their lungs out. Jorge and his friends are standing underneath the gymnasium shooting each other with water pistols. The hell?