The Dare (The Bet 3)

"Who told you?" He slammed his fist down onto the table.

"Oh, the captain and I go way back," Grandma smirked.

I hoped to God that Jace wouldn't ask what that meant, because by the looks of the way she was blushing, it probably wasn't appropriate for the general public, or anyone for that matter.

"Now," Grandma sat down at the table, "enough of that. I've set up a few outings for us to go to as a family. Javier will take pictures, and everyone will go home with smiles on their faces. Of course, at the end of the next three days."

"Does that mean I get a new honeymoon?" Jake asked. "Since you crashed this one?"

"Ditto." Travis grumbled.

"Oh, please." Grandma waved them off. "I let you have at least three days. I thought it very generous, all things considered."

"How do YOU FIGURE?" Jake asked.

"Jake stop yelling. You should be thanking me, not scolding me." She waved him off. "So are we in agreement?" Grandma looked hopefully to everyone's faces.

Was no even an option with this woman?

"Question," Jace asked calmly. "If this is all supposed to be a ruse to save my career from tanking, and I'm supposedly at my own destination wedding, wouldn't my parents be here? And what about Beth's?"

Grandma's smile grew. "Perfect timing, wouldn't you say, Your Honor?"

Jace's face drained of all its color as he slowly turned around and swore. "Father."

"Son, we need to talk."

Chapter Twenty-five

"I find it hard to believe that you were able to convince the judge to make an impromptu trip to Hawaii in order to attend a fake wedding for his wayward son."

"Oh, it didn't take much convincing." Grandma laughed. "After all, I told him it was life and death. And when that didn't work, I told the judge that his son had been kidnapped by pirates scouring the Hawaiian islands.

"And he believed you?"

"He had no reason not to."

"Why's that?"

"It's amazing what one can do with a microphone, voice encryption, and email these days. It truly never ceases to amaze me."

"Shall I add that to your rap sheet as well?"

"Genius?"

"No. Lying to a judge."

Grandma sighed. "If you must. But he won't be pressing charges. I hardly think it matters, considering his son's missing."

"The son you kidnapped."

"Details."

Jace

As a child, I'd always hated getting scolded by my father. It was rare when he had scolded me; after all, my entire goal in life had been to make him proud of me. So when I did get in trouble, it had been life-altering.

After the accident, things had gotten worse. I'd woken up with no recollection of how I'd even gotten in the hospital — my parents said a light in my eyes had died. It pissed me off that after all this time, I felt like I was still trying to get the old Jace back. The one who believed in fairytales and magic; the one who believed in optimism instead of cynicism.