"What day is it today?" I ask Chester.
We just finished a business meeting with the Winery team from Italy and are now having lunch in a restaurant downtown. The end of spring is falling upon us and I can feel the promising heat of the nearing summer.
"19 May," Chester replies with a mouthful of food.
19 May huh?
"Leilani's birthday is happening in a week and a half from now," I mumble before Chester chokes on his spaghetti.
Turning to face him, I laugh whilst handing him a napkin before slapping his back hard. He topples over, glaring at me from the corner of his eye.
"Fucking stalker!"
"Shut up. You haven't told me who you're crushing on but I've seen you stalking her Instagram a while now."
"I don't!" Chester tries to defend himself.
"Dude, you have a mirror behind you in your office. I can see what you're doing on your phone when you angle it just good enough for me to see. Like the last time you were watching anime during—"
"Okay, okay, I heard you motherfucker. Sheesh, I'll have to remove that mirror today," he cuts me off, angrily shoving spaghetti in his mouth and making me chuckle.
So childish.
"So, about Leilani's birthday..." he tries to change the topic.
"Right, 31 May," I mumble.
"You've kept it in your head all this time too?"
"She's my first love," I reply shamelessly.
"Wow. If only she knew how much she's got you whipped."
If only...
"What're you planning to do then? Visit her house with a teddy bear and an apology card?" Chester jokes when his phone suddenly chimes and he pulls it out of his pocket.
I look out the window, noticing a group of teenage girls passing by the restaurant already dressed in their short summer dresses. "Wouldn't that be unthinkable of me? I mean, I did leave without notice. Suddenly acting like we're best friends when I ghosted her would be a dick move on my part."
Chester doesn't respond like I thought he would and I turn to face him, only to see his eyes growing wide as they dart back and forth reading whatever message he received.
"What is it? Something happen to the company? My resorts? Bad news?"
"Worse," Chester mumbles to himself, shifting in his seat as he turns to face me. "My source says Leilani agreed to go on a blind date with Chester."
"What?!" I stand from my seat, pushing my chair and making it rasp on the tiles irritatingly. Everyone in the restaurant looks in our direction, some already frowning and looking as though they're ready to curse at me.
"Sorry," I bow to each of them before sitting down, pulling my chair close to the table, and snatching away Chester's phone. He tries to snatch his phone back but I'm one step ahead of him and the next moment, I have my eyes on his screen.
To my surprise, his "source" is Manon. I glare at him and he raises his hands in the air. He knows she's off limits. I can't let her fall into the hands of a man who's never been serious with any woman before. She's too good for him. Too bright a light for his dark heart.
Turning my attention back to the message, I read it in silence:
Manon: Yep. She's going on a blind date soon because of her grandma. I can't tell you more than that. Anyways, why the hell are you curious about Leilani's life all of a sudden? You like her or something?
I'm about to scroll through the phone to see if she said anything else when Chester snatches his phone back.
"I know you're my boss but mind your manners, please. I deserve some privacy too."
That son of a...
"She's off limits," I remind him.
"And I know, now will you focus on making a plan on how you're going to stop your brother from stealing Leilani from you or are you just going to sit there and watch him win her over?"
Right. If she meets with him and does the love at first sight thing like mom and Dad then what? No. I can't let that happen. Though I'm sure I'm more handsome than Calvin and more fitting of that overused cliché.
"Do you know when they're going to meet?"
"Check your family group chat. Your grandma must have sent a text message by now since you and Calvin's eyes are set on Leilani and it's confirmed she's agreed to go on blind dates."
"Right." Not wasting any time, I pull out my phone and head over to the family group chat. Sure enough, Grandma has already sent us a message.
Grandma: Calvin, your blind date with that beautiful girl is set for tomorrow at 2PM. Location: The Lopez Room. Don't be late and be well-mannered.
Calvin already replied to her. I grit my teeth and grip my phone. She's doing it. Leilani is going on blind dates. Is it because of her situation at home? Do they treat her that badly even when she's now a grown woman? Man, the way I just want to swoop into her life like Superman and carry her away from her problems...
"What did she say?" Chester asks.
"Tomorrow at 2. The Lopez Room," I reply, rubbing the back of my neck and closing my eyes.
What now? How do I get Leilani away from Calvin without pissing off Grandma?
A notification rings from Calvin's phone and I ignore it. I'm too stressed thinking about my already doomed love life right now to care about his business.
"Fuck!"
"What now?" I groan raising my head and finally facing Chester.
"Calvin did research on Leilani like you said."
I knew it!
"Did your lead finally get something on her?" I ask getting anxious all of a sudden. If I know why Leilani is agreeing to this then maybe, just maybe I can snag her away.
Chester shakes his head, looking at his phone as if to say he hasn't gotten anything yet. But then he clicks his tongue pitifully and speaks. "It's her grandma. Leilani's under the same conditions as you guys—get married or you don't get grandma's shares. But her condition is worse. She needs to get married before her birthday."
I freeze. All the blood drains from my face as I stare at Chester. "T-then that means she's so desperate she might fall into Calvin's lap. Shit. He's good at manipulation. If he got his hands on this information then he'll definitely use it on her no doubt."
I rub my temples, frustration cracking my head and threatening to start a migraine. What now? If Leilani meets Calvin tomorrow and he does end up manipulating her then he'll ruin both her and me in an instant. Fuck!
"What if you go to the restaurant tomorrow?" Chester offers and I snap my head at him. "We'll arrive before they do and wait for their arrival, or we wait for Calvin to sit before you choose a table next to him so you can listen in on their conversation."
"Keep talking," I urge him on, liking wherever this is going.
"You dress up unlike your usual self of course so Calvin doesn't notice you and the moment he slips up even a little and Leilani looks uncomfortable, that's when you swoop in like her savior and snatch her attention away," Chester adds, his eyes twinkling with hope.
Me too. His idea fills my raven heart with beet red blood ready to be pumped. But then I pause. "But she hates me..." I mumble under my breath.
"Don't worry. This is the only time we get to appreciate Calvin being an asshole. He's bound to sound like a dick to her one way or the other now that he has some dirt on her. If you patiently wait for him to make even one mistake that'll make him look like an asshole and suddenly offer Leilani a better alternative, you're bound to look like a knight in shining armor in her eyes I'm sure...well, to some extent."
This. This is why I hired him. Calvin is a fucking genius. If he was me, I'm sure he'd have handled Calvin a long time ago.
Too bad his family was in a bad financial state back then and he had to rely on a scholarship to finish college. Not that I'm complaining. Having him around to assist in business whilst helping him support his family made us the best of friends, and we've developed some kind of loyalty to each other I'm sure not even the devil can break.
"You know you're a fucking genius right?"
"You're lucky I'm your friend or I'd have been your adversary in business by now."
I laugh at him. "Don't get too smug dickens. I remember switching first place with you every term and semester both in high school and college. You don't get to claim all the credit here."
"Yeah, and I remember winning all the academy prizes back then too."
Tsk!
"Whatever. I'm your boss now and that's all that matters. Set up whatever plan you cooked up right now genius. We're getting me a wife!"
"Right away sir," Chester salutes me as the women sitting next to us giggle at our stupid act. "Yeah, we need to leave. It's getting hot in here," Chester winks at them and they cover their lips and look away. Such a flirt.
"Marriage before Leilani's birthday, huh?" I mumble to myself, standing.
If it's her I can even get married today. That's how hard I'm crushing on her. But it all comes down to one thing:
Is she willing to marry me as fast as I am?