: Husband Material

"Oh, my god! Three o'clock. Stalker alert!" Kenzie warned as she pretended to look down at the menu, ready to order for her meal.

Earlier, before entering the restaurant, they still found Madelyn waiting for them. They flashed their wedding rings and had to deal with a few nasty exchanges before they went inside to have their dinner.

To Kenzie's shock, the brunette took a table not too far from them, clearly observing how they acted together.

Andrew just shook his head, saying, "I'm sorry. I'm too gorgeous for my own good. Just ignore her."

"Whatever." Kenzie rolled her eyes, but at the same time, she could not agree more. Someone like Andrew probably has more than one stalker in his life.

She also had a few, but her father and her brother took care of them.

"You are just lucky that with the way she judges me with her stares, I want to stay married to you just so she would bleed with envy," she added as she continued to scan the menu.

Andrew chuckled and said, "Excuses. Excuses. You know you are falling for me already."

"Dream on," she countered, but smirked at the end.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you it's not good to lie? How about the saying follow your heart? You should try it some time," he teased and winked.

When the waiter arrived to take their order, Andrew offered, "Let me guess. You'd like a Ceasar salad?"

"Ah, how do you know?" Kenzie asked with a frown before looking at the food attendant and confirming the request.

"Most girls eat only that," Andrew thought.

"And I'll also have one five hundred grams of this lemon butter snapper, please," Kenzie added with a smile.

"Oh, no, sweetheart. I like my shrimps. You don't need to order for me," Andrew cut her off, assuming the fish was for him.

"No, Andrew. The fish is for me. And yes, I eat green salad, but I also need my protein," she explained. "I don't starve myself to death eating just grass. What's the fun in that?"

For a second, Andrew paused. It took him that long to recover before clarifying, "You can eat an entire five hundred grams of fish? How do you get to look like that?"

"I work out and I eat fewer carbs," she said as she handed the menu to the server. "I know how to take care of myself. It's one of those life lessons from my parents."

While waiting for their food, Andrew took the chance to get to know more about her now that she was sober. "So... about your ex - "

"I don't want to talk about him. He and my friends broke my heart - more like used me to get what they want, and that's the reason I left my hometown. I don't want to see them ever again," she briefly explained. "I want to start anew. Meet new friends - "

"And now you have a husband... a fine one at that," he inserted himself, smirking at the end.

When she just snorted, Andrew continued with his probing, "So... tell me about your family."

'Oh, no.' These were the type of questions Kenzie was avoiding. Telling the truth would go against her goal of starting fresh... at least... she feared that it would.

She took her time, but when she saw how Andrew was lowering his gaze at her, waiting, she spoke, "Ummm... Well, my mom is a cook. And my dad, he... Um."

Kenzie was trying to find the right way to explain to Andrew who her father was, but it was because she needed more time that she tried to change the topic. She blurted out, "I like your shirt, by the way. Really nice material."

"This plain white shirt?" He glowed as soon as she nodded. "You know what it's made of?"

"No." She shook her head and asked, "What?"

"Husband material," he was swift to reply.

Kenzie wound up shaking her head, beaming at his words. She heard the man say, "avoiding the question, I see."

"Fine!" She cleared her throat and started to say, "Well, um... My dad, he... he does a lot of things."

For a second, she pouted her lips, and she explained, "Sometimes, he would venture into... real estate... Ummm.... hospitality. Really, just whatever he thinks is good for the moment. He is kinda good at that."

"I get it... And I have high respect for those who have to work multiple jobs for the family. Your dad must be really hardworking," Andrew supplied, nodding his head in genuine admiration.

"You... you can say that again," Kenzie softly returned.

"Any brothers and sisters?" Andrew resumed his probing.

"Two brothers and one sister." Kenzie smiled, somewhat being sentimental at the mention of her family and revealed, "Actually, part of the reason why I approached you was because you gave me the feel similar to that of my twin brother, Kyle."

"You were in a formal suit, you are tall and you have dark hair - but yours are darker - "

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, sweetheart, but I'm not for brotherly love." He placed a hand on his chest and resumed, "For you, I'm the real thing. Husband material, remember?"

Kenzie tried to hold down a giggle. She warned, using the pointed ring on her finger, "Stop that or I'll kill you with my murder weapon."

"Hell, no! That guy was crazy, but if you are in it to commit a crime, how about we agree on a perfect crime," Andrew said, leaning forward, his eyes glistening in Kenzie's direction.

"What crime?" Kenzie asked, utterly curious.

For some strange reason, Kenzie felt something off. It was with the way he grinned that she was sure it was yet again another one of his provocative ideas.

"How about... I steal your heart and you steal mine?" He revealed.

Kenzie burst out laughing in her seat, snorting while she was at it. Her face turned crimson red as she said, "It wasn't what I expected, but... I kinda think that was cute."

"So you think I'm cute?" He asked, giving a sly grin.

Kenzie: "I said what you said was cute, not you! You are obviously not cute - "

Andrew: "You think I'm hot - "

Kenzie: "Yeah, sure - wait! You are putting words into my mouth!"

Andrew: "You think I'm sexy?"

Kenzie: "Stop it."

Andrew: "I've been called many things but definitely not cute."

Kenzie: "Fine! You are sexy and hot!"

Andrew: "Husband material."

Kenzie sighed and surrendered. "Husband material. Happy now?"

Andrew's lips curved into a sexy smirk, letting Kenzie know that he won again.

***

Later that evening, Madelyn still followed the couple to Andrew's suite. The two frequently peaked through the door, checking if she was still around the corner.

After seeing that Madelyn was going nowhere at eleven in the evening, Andrew suggested, "Sweetheart, looks like you are sleeping in my bed again."

"Make me!" It was Kenzie's way of disagreeing.

"I probably will."

: Make It Real

"Are you ready?" Andrew asked, placing a hand behind Kenzie's waist.

Kenzie gulped, looking down at the water slide snaking down to the ship's deck. Andrew had convinced her to take the plunge after three days of putting it off.

Yes, they have been out in the sea for four full days, and going down the famous slide was one of Andrew's bucket lists for Kenzie.

"I can't do this." She shook her head and repeated, "I just can't!"

"Oh, come on, Kenzie. Live a little," Andrew urged.

She found herself looking at the deep blue ocean and added, "Andrew, I am definitely in for living a little, but this is just not what I expected. I can see the ocean from here, Andrew! I can't do this!"

From behind her, Andrew chuckled and said, "Sweetheart, you aren't jumping into the ocean. You'll just land in the landing pod below, right on the ship's deck. Trust me when I say you aren't escaping me that easily. Now, go on. I'll follow."

She thought about it again but decided against it either way. She swung around and said, "I am usually adventurous, Andrew, but I have not been to an amusement park for so long and this? This is just not what I expected! I am literally standing what? forty or fifty feet above the ship."

Holding on to Andrew's muscular arm, Kenzie told, "I really can't, Andrew. I really can't."

They were two godly frames, standing at top of the cruise ship's water slide, wearing nothing but their sexy swimwear.

Gasping in dismay, Andrew gave up, raising his hands. "Alright." He looked at Kenzie's blue eyes and said with a concerned face, "It's okay, sweetheart. I don't mind that I married a wuss."

He took her hand and added, "You are still beautiful, anyway - "

"What did you just call me?" Kenzie's nose flared, realizing how Andrew had called her a coward.

"Ah. I may have exaggerated a little, but I get that you are scared - "

"I am not a wuss, Andrew! Fine! I'll take the slide and prove you wrong!" She was clearly upset, turning red as she shifted back to the slide.

She gasped and gulped, giving one last look at the obstacle course beneath her feet. 'I can do this! This is totally the same as a roller coaster, right?'

Kenzie gave one last glance at Andrew and heard him say, "Go on, sweetheart. I'll follow you."

She crossed her arms against her chest and took a deep breath. Then, she took two steps forward and from there, there was no turning back. She screamed the second her body started to go down... fast. "Aaaahhhhh!"

To Kenzie's surprise, she enjoyed taking the drop!

When Andrew followed after her, they went at it again and again. They ended up spending the rest of the afternoon at the ship's water park.

Already covered in a second layer of summer wear, Andrew and Kenzie grabbed some snacks at the bar by the water park. They were laughing their hearts out, recalling the excitement at the slides.

With gleaming eyes, Kenzie revealed, "I have never had so much fun in years. Seriously! I mean... I was just so occupied with getting a career that I had probably forgotten to have fun."

Andrew smiled in satisfaction at her words. He said, "I am glad I am here to witness your smiles. I vowed to make you laugh till death do as part, remember?"

"Yeah." Chuckling, she replied, "Yes, you did, husband."

"Oh, hi! You were that married couple who had an encounter with a stalker at the "SEA" restaurant a few days back, weren't you?" Out of nowhere, a woman in her late thirties with black hair approached them, together with her husband.

"Um." Kenzie frowned and studied the couple. It looked to her that they wanted to make acquaintances, so she wasn't sure if she should be honest with them or not. She ended up explaining either way, "Um. Well. We aren't really married."

From the corner of her eye, she sensed Andrew's disapproval, but since he did not object, she continued, "It's really a long story. You see, the stalker lady was following him too much and since we were hanging out together, we sort of just made her assume that we were married. You know, just to get her off his back."

She was almost out of breath as she described.

"Oh, such a shame," said the woman. "So you aren't really a couple?"

Kenzie shook her head.

"Wow, you look really good together," remarked her husband. "We could not tell. Did you come on the cruise together?"

It ended up being a lengthy explanation for Kenzie while skipping a few private details.

When the other couple left, Andrew finally gave his piece. He said, "Was that really necessary? They don't know us. We don't know them and we will probably not see them again. The same could be said with the other people out here who will most probably try to make friends with us."

Bemused, Kenzie lowered her gaze at him, asking, "What do you mean?"

"We could simply say we are, in fact, married. Simple. Easier to explain to new acquaintances and easier to get Madelyn to leave us alone," Andrew pointed out.

Somehow, Kenzie understood where Andrew was coming from. Before she could respond, another couple came to introduce themselves.

"Hi, I'm Janice and this is my husband, Rob. We have seen you around. Are you guys married?" Said the woman with red hair.

One second and then another second passed. It would seem to Kenzie that Andrew wanted her to make the decision. She smiled at the woman and said, "Yes, we are married. This is Andrew, my husband and I'm Kenzie."

"Great!" The red-headed woman answered. "We approached you because we wanted to invite a few couples to our private party over at the lounge next week. We were hoping you could come. You guys look like a really nice couple to get to know."

They sat on Kenzie and Andrew's table, exchanging pleasantries and talking about the first stop on the cruise. Soon, they finally left to find another couple to invite to their party.

When Kenzie and Andrew were alone, the man finally spoke. He said, "See what I mean? Wasn't that much easier?"

"Pffft! Yeah. Haha! That was a lot shorter." She sneered and clarified, "I mean, saying how I had to rescue you from a stalker brunette and how we ended up helping each other, pretending to be married and object to their opinions because we look like we are married."

"Haha! It's such a mouthful!"

"Mouthful, indeed," Andrew agreed before letting out a set of laughter himself.

***

The next day, the cruise made its very first stop, and while going around Lisbon, Spain, Andrew and Kenzie met another family. Same as the last, they were asked if they were married.

"Yes, we are married," Kenzie acknowledged to the family of four, a couple, and two teenage kids. "I'm Kenzie and this is my husband, Andrew."

After parting ways from making another friend, Andrew said to Kenzie as they stood in the middle of the streets of Lisbon, "That wasn't so bad, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, I could get a hang of it." She shrugged and joked, "Getting married, I mean. Haha!"

Andrew took Kenzie's hand, and as they walked together back in the direction of the ship, he said in passing, "If you are up to it, we could make it real."

At his words, Kenzie swore, she felt her heart flutter.

*** AUTHOR'S NOTES ***

My lovely readers,

Thank you for following my stories; from Sam and Ethan to their kids. This novel is a sequel to "Mommy, Where Is Daddy? The Forsaken Daughter's Return."

"Flash Marriage: A Billionaire For A Rebound" is the story of their daughter, Kenzie Wright. Hence, you can read this story as a stand-alone. However, if you are up to it, you may start with the abovementioned novel, featuring Kenzie's parents.

You may also want to check the story of Kenzie's brother, Kyle. It is entitled "I Kissed A CEO And He Liked It."

The series is exclusively available on goodnovel.