Perfect Strangers

“I’m here for a wedding,” he stated matter-of-factly. He brought his pint to his lips and took a gulp.

“Oh, is it your own?”

Kai let out a bellowed laugh and he shook his head vehemently, ‘I don’t think I’ll be lucky enough to find a wife.”

She reared her head back, her bright blue eyes widened and her sepia black lashes reached right up to her eyebrows, “Are you insane? You’re handsome, and you seem a real sweetheart, I’m sure you have women throwing themselves at you!” She exclaimed.

He shook his head as he looked at her, “Not the woman I want though,” he said with a shrug.

“Did she leave you for someone else?” Darcy quietly asked.

He furrowed his eyebrows as he cradled his pint. “No, it’s …our situation …it’s complicated.”

“They all are, honey; everyone’s situation is complicated. Come on, I’m a great listener, they say a problem shared is a problem halved,” she said with a wide smile and a raised eyebrow.

Taking another swig of beer, he mulled it over. What harm would it do to tell her? I’ll never see her again after this. “Okay. I applied to an advert online, the woman was looking for a fake fiancé for a week to attend a family wedding,” he started.

“Oh, my word! Seriously?” She scoffed in disbelief.

“Do you want me to carry on, Darcy?” He snapped and gave her a dirty look.

She gulped and lowered her eyes to the table. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have mocked,” she whispered.

He instantly felt bad at his tone. Reaching out he placed his hand on hers, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped,” he said, then pulled his hand away.

There was an awkward silence between them for several minutes before Darcy spoke. “Kai, please carry on.”

Slouching back in the chair, he chewed the inside of his mouth before responding. “I’ve never met a woman who is so fucking infuriating, so annoying and so acid-tongued in my life, she drives me completely up the wall,” he said, unaware of the lazy smile that had spread over his face.

“She sounds like someone I used to know,” she mumbled.

“I’m sorry, Darcy. You don’t want to hear about my issues. Tell me, you said you used to live here? What’s brought you back?”

Bringing her pony tail over her shoulder, she began to nervously play with the ends of her hair. “My estranged husband has come back here, I’m trying to track him down, he left me unexpectedly and I want an explanation.” Her luminous eyes filled with water. With a small gasp of embarrassment, she tried to stem the pearl-shaped tear from sliding down her cheek. “Still, you cannot escape the consequences of one’s actions, eh?” She said with a little laugh. She patted along her eyes with the corner of a tissue.

“What do

you mean?” He asked with a raised eyebrow at her turn of phrase.

“Oh nothing, but you do a wrong turn to someone it comes back to bite you right in the ass,” she said with a wave of her hand and an eye roll.

“You’ve lost me,” mumbled Kai running his hand over his jaw in contemplation.

“I did something bad to someone a long time ago, and now I suppose this is my payback,” she shrugged and slugged back the rest of her lemonade.

Placing her glass down on the table, she watched Kai continue to rub his chin as he slouched in his chair. He seemed lost in thought. “You know, Kai it’s obvious to me how much this woman means to you, even though you’ve not known her long. When you find that special someone you seize the day, you grab hold of her and hold her tight, don’t let her go,” she said firmly.

“What, are you my voice of reason here?” He replied with a deep laugh.

“Well, you saved me earlier, now I’m saving you. Go and tell her how special she is to you, if you let her slip away without ever telling her, you’ll regret it. She may surprise you and like you just as much,” she winked then laughed as she stood up. She flicked her pony tail back over her shoulder and ran her hands over her dress. “I have to go, I’ve somewhere to be. Can I drop you somewhere, Kai?”

Placing his hands behind his head he flashed her a wide smile. “You know what, I’m good, I’ll run back from here, but thank you for the offer.”

“No sweat. I hope it all works out for you, you’re a decent man, they are hard to find these days. Take care of yourself.” Bending down she placed a kiss on the top of his head.

“I hope you find your husband,” he hollered over his shoulder as she walked away.

“Oh, I’m sure I will.”