Pranked by Sienna Valentine Read Free Book Online Page B

My assistant… and my friend.”
    I expected a violent reaction. Screaming maybe. For a brief moment, I worried the pepper spray Layla always kept in her silver-studded bag might make an appearance.
    Instead, she looked at me, eyes wide, then at Bennett, then back again.
    And then she started laughing. Layla’s laugh was the sort of laugh I wished I was allowed to have. My laugh was dainty and sweet, conditioned that way through years of coaching by Ken. Layla’s laugh was just like her: brash and loud and unabashed. She snorted a little, and even that was endearing.
    “Good one,” she said, her amusement still echoing slightly in the cavernous lobby. “I'm not falling for the 'married a stranger in Vegas cliché,' it's been done a million times before."
    I didn’t answer. It hadn’t occurred to me that Layla might not believe me, but of course she didn’t. Who would ever believe Ava Cassidy would have a Vegas fling that ended in matrimony. I hadn’t quite reached Britney levels of crazy yet, but it seemed like I was on my way.
    Bennett was quiet as well, as though he were taking his cues from me. I wished he wouldn’t. I was working off-script here.
    Layla must have noticed our silence because the grin slid from her face, and she looked at me sternly. “Shit. You’re serious, aren’t you?”
    Before I could answer, Bennett stepped in. “As cancer,” he said with a nod, but there was a twinkle in his eye that let me know he was enjoying this whole situation. “We’re just on our way off to our honeymoon.”
    Layla’s face seemed stuck in a mask of disbelief. Severely unimpressed disbelief. “Your honeymoon?” she asked, dry as a desert.
    “Yep,” Bennett answered. “Two weeks of blissful solitude just outside Fresno.”
    “Oh, hell to the no,” Layla responded, holding one hand up to Bennett before turning her attention to me. “There is no fucking way I’m letting you run off with a stranger to Fresno, of all places. Married or not.”
    I inhaled. Of course she was right. Of course this was ridiculous. Why did I think this was okay to do? Even if I wasn’t going to be working for the next few weeks, it was madness to run off like this with a virtual stranger. I was about to say as much to Layla when she continued.
    “Clearly, I am coming with you to oversee this,” she made a vague gesture with her hand, encompassing both Bennett and myself, “situation.”
    My mouth dropped open, and I glanced to Bennett, sure he would protest. Instead, he shrugged, grinning at us both. “The more the merrier,” he said. “I’ll call ahead and get you a room set up.”
    Layla moved closer to me, taking my free arm. “You do that, Mr. Campbell. We’ll wait right here.”
    As I watched Bennett move toward the desk to check us out, I felt Layla’s grip on my arm tighten. “Girl, you have got some serious explaining to do,” she said. “Best get started.”

8
    Bennett
    I left Ava to explain the situation to her friend while I finished checking out and made sure my bags were brought down to the car, as well as having Ava and Layla’s bags brought down from their room. Things were starting to get complicated. Now I was fooling both of them, and I wasn’t sure how long I could keep it up.
    I wasn’t sure how long I wanted to keep it up.
    Layla kept her eyes on me the whole time I was at the front desk. I could feel them, like they were burrowing into the back of my skull. If I came clean now, I was genuinely afraid she might beat the shit out of me, and she looked like the type who could manage it. Like the type who had probably beat the shit out of a good number of poor jerks over the years.
    No, I couldn’t fess up now. I had to get Layla on my side, first. If she liked me, she might not kill me. Or even more importantly, if she liked me enough, maybe she’d even help convince Ava not to hate me when she learned the truth.
    Once I’d been assured that we were all checked out smoothly (I covered the