Chapter 4
JAKE
You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.
This was my match?
If I was looking for a real date, she’d definitely tick my boxes. She was tall, had a killer body, sparkly chocolate-brown eyes, brown skin and shoulder-length curly hair, which was a kind of cinnamon shade with flashes of golden highlights.
And her nails were fire. They matched that pretty orange dress that she was wearing which clung to her long, toned legs and every delicious curve.
Yep. The way she looked definitely wasn’t the problem.
But the deal was that I’d get matched with someone used to being in the public eye.
I was supposed to be set up with someone with the same objective as me: to get exposure to revive their career. So considering I had no idea who she was, it didn’t matter that she was as fine as hell, because she didn’t fit the brief.
‘This way, please,’ the server said, signalling for us to follow her to the table.
‘After you,’ I said, allowing Halle to pass me. Not because I wanted to check out her butt. Like I said, my presence at this hotel was for purely professional reasons.
I blew out a breath, trying to calm myself down.
Maybe I was overreacting.
Just because I didn’t recognise this Halle woman, it didn’t mean that she wasn’t famous.
She could be a reality TV star or a social media influencer.
It was fine.
I needed to chill.
Once we started talking over dinner, everything would become clear.
‘Allow me,’ I said, pulling out her chair. Just because this wasn’t a real date didn’t mean I was gonna forget to use basic manners.
‘Thanks,’ she said flatly with her gaze fixed to the crisp white tablecloth.
She seemed… pissed off.
Not that I wanted to toot my own horn, but normally when women saw me, they’d act all gushy and flirty. But this Halle woman looked at me like I’d just bathed in dog shit.
Maybe she just wasn’t a fan of my music. Or maybe like most people, she hated that goddamn commercial I did.
‘You’re welcome,’ I said, settling into the white leather chair.
I’d been to a lot of fancy hotels in my time, but I had to admit that this one was up there with the best of them. It had a minimalist style, y’know, white walls and flooring, but the blue and gold accents and quirky beach art made it feel luxurious without feeling too snooty.
We were seated right next to floor-to-ceiling sliding glass patio doors which gave us impressive panoramic views of the ocean. Watching the waves crashing against the shore was one of my favourite things to do. I couldn’t wait to get out on the beach tomorrow.
Roger had offered to drop me here and the traffic was crazy, so I’d arrived later than planned. I’d had to rush to check in, shower, dress and get to the restaurant on time, which meant I hadn’t had a chance to take a look around the resort, but there’d be time for that tomorrow.
‘You’re British?’ I said, breaking the silence.
‘Ten out of ten for observation,’ she replied, still avoiding my gaze.
Ooof. She was a prickly one.
That was okay. I was out of practice, but if I dug deep enough, I could still find the charm that used to get the ladies eating out of my hand.
‘Thanks for the compliment!’ I replied. ‘What part of London are you from?’
‘Why do you assume that I’m from London? There are other places in the UK, you know. Just because you lived there before doesn’t mean that every person from Britain is from there too.’ She rolled her eyes.
‘Hmm, so you know I lived in London. Interesting…’ I smiled.
‘It’s public knowledge. Unfortunately, I already know a lot about you.’
‘Is that right?’ I smirked. ‘Care to share?’
‘Not particularly.’ She crossed her arms over her chest and I noticed, not for the first time, how good it looked in that dress.
‘Unbelievable!’ She shook her head. I hoped she hadn’t seen me checking her out.
‘Thanks, sweetheart. Careful. With all these compliments you keep giving me, I’ll get a big head,’ I joked.
‘I wasn’t calling you unbelievable. Well, I was but not in the way you’re thinking. Forget it.’ She huffed as the table fell silent again.
Damn. This was gonna be a lot harder than I thought.
As I scanned the room, thinking of something to say to relieve the awkwardness between us, I saw a couple posing for photos, then remembered that I was supposed to be taking pictures too.
My whole body stiffened. All I wanted to do was to try and enjoy this dinner and work out the strategy with Halle to help us make the most of this arrangement, but instead I’d have to take a billion photos of my food and fuck knows what else.
Reluctantly, I slid my hand in my pocket and put my cell phone on the table. If it wasn’t right there in front of me, I’d forget. Seemed kind of rude, but Halle was in the same business, so she’d understand why it was important.
When I looked at the screen I saw two missed calls from Wilma. Shit.
Just as I was about to pick up the menu, my cell rang again and Wilma’s name flashed up.
Halle’s eyes darted to the screen and she glared at me before looking away. I hit the ignore button, then picked up the menu.
My cell buzzed again.
‘Do you want to get that?’ Halle snapped.
I looked down at it, weighing up my options. If I ignored it, I’d piss Wilma off.
She probably just wanted to check I’d arrived safely and confirm I was taking photos. All I needed was to quickly reassure her and she’d stay off my back.
‘Yeah…’ I said. ‘I probably should. Sorry. This will only take a minute.’
I stood up, slipped outside, then answered the call.
‘Aren’t you there?’ Wilma bellowed.
‘Yeah. I’m in the middle of dinner with my date. Not that she’s my real… never mind.’
‘So why haven’t you posted anything yet?’
‘I was running late. I didn’t have time. I’ll do it, okay. Just give me a chance.’
‘You’d better. There’s a lot riding on this. I had to pay upfront to secure your place at the hotel, so you owe me. If you want to save your career and make sure I get a return on my investment, you need to follow what I say to the letter.’
I swallowed hard.
I’d agreed to do this because I thought it was a way to get my career back on track without selling my soul.
But as Wilma reeled off her list of requirements for what felt like the hundredth time, I realised it was too late.
I’d already sold out. Big time.