Not Safe For Work: A Steamy Fake Dating Romance

Chapter 20

Gavin Scott likes to cuddle.

Or maybe he just likes me. Ian always said no men actually like to cuddle. But I’m starting to think Ian was mostly full of shit.

When we slid into bed last night, all I could think about was kissing Gavin again. I wanted his mouth all over me like it was in the pool. His kisses tasted like belonging. Every stroke of his tongue made my heart shimmer.

I hate that I let my insecurities take over. I was just hellbent on not ruining the most perfect kiss of my life.

But Gavin didn’t seem fazed by any of it, like hitting pause wasn’t nearly impossible like it was for me. I started to worry the kiss meant nothing to him, that it was just a way to pass time with the woman he shared a room with. Then he pulled me toward him and wrapped an arm around me. And as far as I can tell that hasn’t changed all night.

He’s holding me like a promise he intends to keep. Which is probably why I wake up with aching cheeks. I cannot stop smiling.

“Morning, Sparkles,” Gavin mumbles, his words muffled by the skin of my shoulder. He lightly kisses the spot and pulls me in a little closer. I love the way this feels. The way he feels. Every time he holds me, I swear it’s like bright morning light seeping into my skin. His touch feels like the safest place in the world.

“Is this okay?” he asks on a whisper, his lips pressing lightly against my shoulder.

“Yeah,” I respond, but it’s so breathless I’m not sure if he hears me. I press my body back into him to make sure he knows I’m in agreement.

His hands start to roam over my hip, his thumb finding the waistband of my shorts. “When do you have to leave?”

“Huh? Oh shit.” I grab my phone off the nightstand to see it’s nine forty-three. That gives me seventeen minutes to get ready for my boating excursion.

I jump out of bed, grab the more conservative swimsuit, and flee into the bathroom. Signing up for a yacht tour seemed like a great idea when Gavin sent me the itinerary options. I knew he wouldn’t be doing it, but Andie begged me to join her. And how could I pass up a free ride on a yacht with my best friend?

But now, I’d give anything for five more minutes curled up with Gavin in that bed.

I throw on the suit and a cover up, and the plain sandals Gavin picked out because they’re easy to walk in. My hair is still a tangled mess, but I really don’t have time to fix it.

“Do you remember if I packed a hat?” I ask, rummaging through everything still in my bag.

He climbs out of bed and grabs the Warriors hat he wore yesterday on the plane. “Here, use mine,” he murmurs, placing it on my head. He pulls down the brim since it’s a little big on me before flipping it around to wear backwards. His eyes roam over my face and I think he might kiss me. Instead, he just pinches my chin between his thumb and forefinger. “You look great, Sparkles. Have fun.”

I may bethe last person to make it to the boat, but everyone else looks tired and hungover. I can smell the alcohol wafting off of them.

Not me. I had the best sleep of my life.

“Why are you so cheery? It’s ten in the morning,” Andie whines, laying her head on my shoulder.

“I don’t think I drank nearly as much as you did. What’d you get into last night?”

“I’m not sure,” she mumbles. “I think we went downtown? I do remember a lot of tequila shots though.”

Our group is run through a safety training before we board the boat and within a few minutes we’re moving. I wish I could have convinced Gavin to come, but after seeing two guys throw up over the side of the boat, I know he made the right call.

Andie tugs me all the way to the bow because she wants to have a private conversation, and because it looks like the best place to sunbathe. Unsurprisingly, everyone else is hanging out by the bar, starting their day with mimosas and bloody marys.

“Okay, so I heard some stuff last night,” Andie whispers.

Shit. “About me?”

“Did you really make Stacey cry?”

“What? No, of course not. I mean, I don’t think I did?”

“Well, she’s not calling you a slut anymore, so that’s a plus. But she did throw around the words ‘stuck up bitch,’ just FYI.”

“Honestly, I’ll take it. She was being rude and I…I stood up for myself. After we heard them talking about me yesterday, I was sick of being a doormat. I’ll be more than happy to be a bitch instead.”

Andie’s eyes widen. “I like this take-no-shit Olivia. If you do it again though, can I be there to see? She’s the worst.”

I think back to Gavin saying Stacy is into him. It’s not like I’m jealous, but I am curious why Andie doesn’t like her. We’ve never really talked about her before.

“Has she done anything to you?”

“Not me, but I think she’s kind of homophobic, or just an asshole. She complained to me a few months ago that Gabby was hitting on her in the bathroom and said it made her uncomfortable, that I needed to talk to her about it. She made a formal complaint.”

“What?” This time I shout because I am outraged.

“Yeah, Gabby said she had offered her a piece of gum because her breath was rank, and that was all that happened. I completely believed her.”

“You should. Gabby loves her girlfriend. She wouldn’t do that.” I pause, letting my anger simmer. “But also, that’s such a double standard. Like, Stacey thinks it’s okay for her to hit on Gavin, but Gabby can’t do the same thing because she’s gay? How is she our people manager?”

“So true. Also, since when is she hitting on Gavin?” Andie asks with a bit too much enthusiasm.

“Oh, I don’t know. He just said she has a few times.”

Andie sits up and squints at me, her eyes roaming my face for a clue. “I knew it. You do like him.”

“Andie,” I argue, but I know it’s pointless, because I still cannot stop smiling. There has been a constant loop in my head this morning of Gavin kissing my neck, of his hands slowly sliding down my bare back. I start to shiver at the thought. “Okay, fine. I might like him. A little.”

She squeals. “I love this for you, for us really. Think about all the double dates!” I eye her with a confused look. I have never even met her mystery boyfriend.

“You know what I mean. Like maybe one day,” she says flipping her hand around like it’s all a hypothetical. “So…did something happen?”

I’m dying to tell her—anyone, really—about the kiss. In a moment of insanity, I almost texted Lucy Gold on the way to the marina. If anyone could understand the magic I felt last night, it’d be her.

But before I can get a word out, Stacey and Marissa join us on the bunny pad.

Once I see them, I shake my head. “I’ll tell you later.”

It’s then I notice that Andie’s been vigorously texting on her phone. The name Kenneth Dane pops up, the one I know to be an alias for her secret man. “Boyfriend drama?”

“No drama,” she replies.

“This resort is so private. Why didn’t you invite him here?” I ask.

“Come on, Liv. You know I can’t tell anyone we’re dating.”

“Who are you dating?” Stacey asks, and Andie gives me a major eye roll.

“I have a boyfriend that’s sort of in the public eye. So we’re keeping things private for now.”

Stacey and Marissa share a look that reminds me of my dogs salivating over family dinner. I mouth an apology to Andie.

“There you are!” Daanesh yells, stepping on to the bow. “I had no idea what you meant by bunny pad.”

Andie looks at me and mumbles, “He should really watch more reality TV.”

“Can I borrow you? Just to go over some of the logistics for tonight?” he asks Andie.

She looks back at me, then him, then me again, then grabs my hand and pulls me off the mat.

“Fine, but Liv’s coming.” She turns to me and whispers, “I will not leave you alone with those vultures.”

I follow Andie and Daanesh to a deck area on the other side of the boat. Most of our co-workers are enjoying drinks out here, but it’s a large enough space to give us some privacy still.

I’m especially glad for this when I see Ian and Vaughn in a fit of laughter, both with a cigar hanging out of their mouths.

My face must give me away, because Daanesh says, “Do you want to go somewhere else? I didn’t realize Ian was over here.”

It’s nice of him to be concerned about me, but I’m done hiding from Ian.

“It’s fine. I couldn’t care less if he’s here.” And it’s the truth.

“It’s easy to get over someone when you’re under someone new,” Andie trills, smirking at me.

“Andie!” I shove her lightly. Not the kind of conversation I want to have in front of our CEO, and one of Gavin’s best friends.

“I’m glad I reminded him to book your flight in time to join us,” Daanesh says to me, eyeing me a little more intensely than usual. “He must have felt pretty bad about it, got obliterated at our game.”

“Your game?”

“We play rugby together in a local club.”

It had crossed my mind a few times what Gavin meant by his “rugby” text. It felt like he was blowing me off to watch TV, but now it makes more sense why he went dark on me that day.

“That’s really cool,” I reply. “I thought all you did together was take romantic walks down Lover’s Lane.”

Daanesh’s jaw flies open and his nostrils flair. “I can’t believe he told you about our spot. That’s sacred.”

Andie and I share a laugh at his incredulity.

“Boys and their bromance,” she muses.

“He didn’t just tell me, Daan,” I continue. Because it’s fun chatting with him like this. It’s fun being his friend. “He took me there on the way to Sausalito.”

“Really?” he asks, and this time he sounds incredulous, like he thinks I might be lying. I nod, and then I catch Andie eyeing me with more suspicion. Her tongue slides along the inside of her teeth.

“Well,” she says. “He really must be in love with you then.”

I endup spending the rest of the day with Andie and Daanesh. I enjoy a mimosa while they talk work stuff, and we stay in our trio when we start the snorkeling part of the tour.

It’s nice getting to spend time with one of Gavin’s closest friends. Deep down, I know last night doesn’t mean we’re together. This is all still pretend.

But I can’t deny this sparkling effervescence I’ve been feeling every time I’m in Gavin’s orbit. It makes me hope that something real could be on the horizon.

Without giving away the whole story, I let Andie and Daanesh know about our surprise upgrade to a beach villa, so once the boat docks, Andie insists she come back with me to check it out.

Gavin opted for the surfing lesson this afternoon in lieu of the boat, so I knew he’d still be gone when we showed up. And I was grateful for it, because once we were alone, I finally got to tell her about the kiss.

She reacted about as calmly as I expected, so not at all. And soon we were jumping up and down on the couch together having a full-on dance party.

I’m not sure when Gavin walks in but it’s to both of us belting out a song I barely remember from high school.

“I thought you only listened to French music,” he says, announcing himself. I hope he’s not mad I brought Andie here. It is technically his room.

“Hey,” I reply with a smile. It’s hard not to grin when I look at him. Especially now, when he’s wearing nothing but swim trunks and flip flops. For all the time I’ve spent today thinking about our night together, this is the first time I really get to look at him.

The man has abs. How the hell didn’t I notice that before? His skin is perfectly tanned, not pasty like mine. Just one day he’s spent in the sun and every bit of him shines like a golden god. His hair looks lighter, like he’s been freshly balayaged. And those eyes. Kill me now. They’re glowing like two pale blue beacons, beckoning me to get naked and climb him.

I swallow and tell myself this is not the time to be having these thoughts. I’m about to apologize about Andie being here but she cuts me off.

“Not with me,” she says, hopping off the couch. “I make her listen to stuff we can actually dance to. Sorry for crashing your suite.”

“Oh, it’s no problem.”

“When Liv told me about the upgrade you got, I had to see it for myself.

That private pool is amazing.”

“It was,” I murmur, not loud enough for anyone to hear.

Or maybe it was louder than I thought. Because Gavin winks at me. “I’m gonna jump in the shower,” he says. “Don’t hurt yourselves.”

It doesn’t feel like he’s avoiding me, but Gavin and I are like ships in the night as we get ready. Andie left when he was showering, and then as soon as he was done it was my turn. I cracked the door to the bathroom once I was decent so that he could move about while I did my hair and makeup. But he hasn’t come in here once.

After everything that conspired last night, I feel like I have a little spring in my step, my confidence blooming like an eager peony in March.

I decide to celebrate the feeling by curling my hair into voluminous Hollywood waves and staining my lips a bold shade of red called dangerous woman.

I like what I see when I look in the mirror.

Gavin’s on the couch watching TV when I grab my dress. I should be happy he’s given me so much privacy, but I’m still wondering how things are going to be between us now that we’ve made out. Don’t overthink it.

I slide on the sequin dress he encouraged me to bring and grab my heels that he begged me not to. They’re incredibly uncomfortable, but they have huge bows on the back of the ankles, and I freaking adore them.

I carry the shoes over to the living room, anxious to finally share some space with Gavin again.

“Hey,” I announce, walking into his line of sight.

His jaw works but he doesn’t say anything. And I quickly realize that I’d be fine if it stayed like that. This dress makes me happy. I don’t need his approval.

For so long, I’ve been concerned with what my outfit said about me, with what Ian or anyone else who shared an opinion on my wardrobe thought. I would stress over if it made me look like I was trying too hard or if it wasn’t perfectly appropriate for the occasion.

But as I wait for Gavin’s response, sliding on my ridiculous six-inch heels and seeing my bright copper hair shine back at me in the window’s reflection, I feel like a siren. And if I do lure anyone to their death tonight, it’s their fault for staring, not mine.

“Jesus, Sparkles. Are you trying to kill me?”

I bite my lip, trying and failing to suppress a massive grin.

He really does get me.