Lucy ended up texting Max after she got off the phone with Selene. Max called back immediately and told Lucy that they would have to leave on Friday.
"That's too soon!," she exclaimed. "There is no way they'll let me take a vacation so quickly. I have to give the department plenty of notice first."
Max assured her, "Don't worry about it. Just ask for the time and leave the rest to me."
Lucy's brows furrowed as she asked, "What does that mean?"
After a little laugh, he answered, "I'm authorized to make a donation to the hospital on behalf of UniTech and if we just so happen to mention that we'd like a little favor in return…say, for you to be granted vacation starting this Friday, well…what can I say?"
"What?!," she asked in shock, "How can you just do something like that?"
"It's the way the world work, Lucy," he answered back.
She shook her head in disbelief as she replied, "I guess so."
"Call me tomorrow whenever you get a chance, and I'll fill you in on the details of the trip," Max said, ending the conversation since he knew she was still at work.
They connected the next day over text and then Max said he would meet her for lunch again at the cafeteria. When he showed up, he had a folder that contained all the information she needed for the trip. They would be leaving for Greece first on Friday. They would spend seven days there and then ten days in Italy. All of it had already been paid for. At this, Lucy shook her head and said, "I told you I could pay for myself. I've been saving all my overtime pay for the trip."
"Then you can spend it on souvenirs," Max responded with a smile. "Technically, this is a business trip so don't worry about it." Max didn't mention that since it wasn't a business trip on the books, he paid for everything out of his own pocket, which he didn't mind doing. Ben had offered to pay for it, but Max had told him it was not a big deal to pay for it himself. Plus, if Victor happened to look into the flight and hotel information, him paying for everything would look more legitimate.
"Still," Lucy said with a frown. "Also, I still haven't gotten word that my request for leave was approved."
Max reached over to hold her hand as he said, "I told you to trust me on that. The wheels are already in motion."
Lucy nodded and they spent the rest of her lunch break talking about the trip and all the places they would visit. After she walked him to his car, he turned to look around to make sure they were alone. He said quietly, "There is something else about the trip I didn't mention."
"What?," she asked warily.
"We all think that it would be best if we pretended to be a couple," he explained in a hushed tone. When her eyes grew big, he quickly whispered in her ear, "To make the trip seem more believable, just in case."
Lucy's lips became a think line as she thought about this new development. She signed, "I guess that makes sense. I have to go though so we can talk about this some more tomorrow."
Later that night, the charge nurse said that her vacation request had been approved. She texted both Max and Selene to fill them in on the news.
Selene was shocked that everything was happening so fast. When they talked on the phone the next day, she said, "You're going on this crazy trip on Friday, and I forgot to tell you about the charity gala that's happening on Saturday! You have to help me find a dress!"
Selene filled her in on the details about the gala, and it turned out that Lucy was already scheduled to get Thursday off, so they decided to go dress shopping on that day.
Thursday arrived before either of the two friends realized it. Time went by very quickly that week since both had something to look forward to for the weekend.
Selene had called Peter and the three friends arranged to have lunch together on Thursday at Cancun Fresca before Lucy and Selene went shopping at the nearby mall. The lunch allowed the friends to catch up on each other's lives, especially their love lives, although Lucy insisted that her and Max were just friends.
Peter gave Selene a mischievous look and then teased Lucy with, "We shall see. Who knows what will happen on this trip of yours?"
"That's what I said!," Selene exclaimed with a big smile.
Lucy laughed it off, "What can happen when I'm still getting over The Asshole."
Selene sighed, "You seem to be doing better."
"That's good, at least," Lucy replied, "But I've just been so crazy with work, I don't have a lot of time to think about it."
Peter said, "Now you see the value in being a workaholic! You never have to deal with your feelings." They all laughed.
"Very true," Lucy agreed. "But don't I need to figure all these feelings out before I move on with someone else?"
"Aha!," exclaimed both Selene and Peter at the same time and they laughed again. Selene spoke first, "So you are admitting that Max will be the next person you date!"
Lucy shook her head but couldn't help but smile as she responded, "I never said he was out of the running. I admitted already that I'm attracted to him. But, again, I don't want him to be a rebound."
Peter shrugged, "He won't be. If you like him for him then that's all that matters."
"Wise words," Selene agreed.
"That does make some sense actually," Lucy pondered. "Hmmm…," she said noncommittally.
Then she changed the subject by asking Peter about the murder case he was working on and both Peter and Selene realized that Lucy didn't know about that part of the plan against Victor. A quick look passed between them and Lucy asked, "What?"
Selene told Peter, "You tell her," as she put her palm against her face. Peter proceeded to quietly tell Lucy about how Johnny was helping with the DUI/murder case against Drakos.
All Lucy responded with was, "I'm not surprised by anything you guys tell me anymore." Then she turned to Selene and asked, "But I guess you didn't actually tell me everything the other day."
"Sorry," Selene said apologetically, "I just forgot about that part."
"You? With your amazing memory?," Lucy asked with mock-suspicion.
Selene replied, "There are a lot of moving parts to all this, what can I say?"
Lucy just shook her and said, "Tell me about it. I need a little break from all this heavy stuff."
Taking that as a cue, Selene asked, "Okay then, let's talk about Johnny."
"Excellent change of subject," Lucy grinned. "Yes, tell us."
Peter smiled as he responded with, "There's nothing more to tell. You guys are all caught up."
"I don't know about that," Selene teased. "I seem to recall a text that indicated some…let's say…difficulty in keeping your hands off the guy."
Lucy's face showed surprise. "What's this?," she exclaimed. "This is a new development I was not told of!"
"There's not much to tell," Peter insisted. "He's hot. What more do I have to say?"
"But what does this mean?," Lucy asked. "I mean, you know, considering…"
"Considering my vow to not have sex until marriage, you mean? How long have you known me, geeze. You can say it out loud," Peter replied with a smirk and a roll of the eyes.
Lucy smiled, "Yah. That."
Peter shrugged, "Nothing's changed in that regard, but it's hard, you know?"
Lucy laughed, "I'm sure it is," and Selene just shook her head at the pun.
Peter realized what he had just said and laughed with her. "But seriously, I am worried about what Johnny will say when I tell him."
Selene reached over to touch Peter's hand and said, "I'm sure he will understand. If he really cares about you, he won't push you, you know?"
Lucy nodded, "Exactly. It sounds like he really likes you so I'm sure it will all work out. You just have to be honest with him."
Peter nodded too and said, "But when do I tell him is the question."
"I think you'll know when the time is right," Selene answered.
"I agree," Lucy said in a reassuring tone.
"Okay. Too much serious talk," Peter concluded. So, the friends spent the rest of lunch talking about things not related to anything serious. After they said goodbye to Peter, Selene and Lucy headed to the mall. They spent several hours trying on various dresses from different department stores until Selene settled on one. It was a purple dress with a lighter purple chiffon overlay. A full-length gown, the dress had butterfly sleeves and a sash along the waist that came together in a bow at the back. It was simple but elegant, which Lucy thought was a style that suited Selene best.
The hunt for shoes that matched was equally difficult, but in the end, they found silver, high-heeled sandals that fit beautifully with the dress.
Lucy had also been busy shopping for her trip, buying a couple new outfits and a new bathing suit. They were both so engrossed in their respective missions, that they almost forgot all about the security team that followed them around. At one point, Lucy said, "You know, I thought it would be awkward with all these people following us everywhere and the stares we're getting, but you really do forget about it all after a while."
Selene nodded, "It takes some getting used to but you're right."
Later that afternoon, Selene arrived home and put the dress up outside the bathroom door so she could show Ben as soon as he came home. When he finally saw the dress after he got home for the evening from work, he said that it was beautiful and that she had great taste. But then he hesitated as he looked at the tag.
"Babe, I don't want you to take this the wrong way at all," he said as he took her hand, "But, the place we're going to is going to be filled with certain kinds of people. And while this dress is beautiful, we need to get you something a little more…"
"More?," Selene asked interrupting the flow of his words.
Ben stopped and considered, then answered, "More high-end."
"Oh," Selene said, a little disappointed.
"Please don't be sad," Ben said squeezing her hand. "I should have told you ahead of time."
"No, it's okay," she said with a shake of her head. "I should have asked before I went shopping. I'm just not used to this kind of lifestyle." She smiled diffidently.
Ben embraced her and replied, "Don't say it like that. We don't have to live in that world, but we do have to visit it sometimes."
Selene chuckled and pulled back to look at him. "I get it. I'm okay, really," she smiled.
Ben took out his phone and started texting while Selene looked at him with a perplexed expression. After he was done, he answered her unasked question, "I just asked Max to get you an outfit for the gala."
"Max?," Selene expressed in surprised. "What does he know about fashion?"
"About as much as I do," Ben laughed, "But he knows who to call, just like I do. It will arrive tomorrow."
True to Ben's word, a designer dress arrived at Selene's lab the next day, just before she was about to leave. Selene didn't take a look at it until she got home. To her surprise, it was purple. She smiled to herself, thinking how it was great that it was at least the same color as the dress she had picked out. She wondered if Ben had told them to pick out a purple dress and thought it must be the case as it was too much of a coincidence. She reminded herself to thank him when he arrived home.
Selene was about to call Lucy to tell her about the dress when she remembered that it was Friday and Lucy was already on her flight with Max.
Indeed, Lucy and Max were sitting in first class right at that moment, enjoying the flight to Greece. Lucy had been surprised that they were in first class and had elbowed Max when they got to the check-in at the airport, and she found out. "What?," was the look that Max had given her, smiling the whole time.
Lucy just shook her head and said, "Pfft," under her breath.
She was already uncomfortable with the way Max had insisted on holding hands the entire time they were in public. He seemed to be enjoying her discomfort as he just smiled any time she tried to remove her hand, holding on tighter. The first time she tried to do that, he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Remember, we have to put on a show."
Sitting in first class was too much for her. She wasn't used to this kind of treatment, and it made her feel awkward. Max asked her what was wrong and she told him.
"I understand," he shared, "I too felt uncomfortable with this kind of stuff in the beginning. We both come from backgrounds where these things were always out of reach. But you get used to it to a certain extent."
She nodded, feeling grateful that he understood what she had meant. He continued, "Plus, it's your vacation so just sit back and relax."
At that, Lucy was able to shrug off most of her feelings of discomfort. She didn't even mind when Max reached over, took her hand, and brought it to his lips for a little kiss.