9. Xander
When I make it to the café, I see Sophie sitting at a small table in the corner with a giant mug of coffee and a plate of pastries.
I still can’t believe she asked me to be her fake boyfriend. It makes sense though, after how she explained it. Her dad does seem pretty protective of her. I don’t really blame him. She’s an only child. I’m an only child too and my parents were protective of me too.
And I especially don’t blame him for not liking the two of us together. I mean, my nickname is panty dropper. I can’t blame any dad for not wanting his daughter to be with a guy who goes by that name.
As much as I’m still shocked, I’m excited too.
That probably sounds weird. But it’s the truth.
I wasn’t lying when I told her that she’s out of my league. She is, by a million miles. A woman like her wouldn’t normally give me the time of day. I mean, she’s a fucking genius. While I spent my childhood and teenage years smacking around a hockey puck, she spent hers studying to become a doctor. And she’s not even twenty-five. No one I know—no one I’ve ever met has accomplished something so impressive.
And she’s hot too.
Yeah, I know I sound like a fucking caveman focusing on that, but I can’t help it. Sophie is beautiful.
I’d never have a shot with a woman like her in real life. Fake dating her is the closest I’ll ever get.
I walk up to the counter, order a drink, and join her. I gawk at the massive croissant sitting between us on the wooden tabletop. “Wow. You sure you can eat that? It’s half your size.”
She chuckles before taking a big bite. I smile watching her chow down, her cheeks full as she chews. God, she’s adorable.
She wipes her mouth with a napkin. “Croissants are my comfort food. They always calm me down when I’m nervous.”
“Why are you nervous?”
She looks down and fiddles with her napkin. “I mean…this is kind of weird. I’m asking you to pretend to be my boyfriend.”
“I’ve been asked to do weirder things.”
“Really?”
I nod.
“Like what?”
I rest my hands in the front pocket of my hoodie and lean back in my chair. “One time, some of my teammates asked me to ice skate naked on a frozen pond.”
Sophie”s blue eyes go wide. “Are you serious?”
“Yup. It was technically a dare. We were kind of drunk.”
She bites her lip, the corner of her mouth hooking up in a sweet smile. She laughs. Her expression is instantly more relaxed now.
“Okay, you’re right. That’s definitely weirder,” she says.
I feel a small burst of pride at easing her nerves by sharing a silly memory.
She takes another bite of croissant and the barista drops off my coffee. I tell him thanks.
Sophie folds her hands on the table. “So. I think we should fake date for the next two months. We’ll end it right before playoffs. That’s a good length of time, I think. Long enough for people to see us together and think that we’re a real couple.”
“I’ve never been with anyone for longer than a week, so seeing me with you for two months will blow people’s minds,” I joke.
She smiles before focusing again. “Okay, so the rules. We can’t tell anyone that this is fake.”
“Right.”
“Except my friend Dakota. She’s the one I was with last night.”
I’ve never formally met Dakota, but I recognized her right away. She’s Del Richards’ little sister. I remember seeing her around when he played for the Bashers.
“She’ll know right away that this is fake because I told her about how you and I…first met.” Sophie’s cheeks turn pink, like she’s embarrassed. She clears her throat. “I won’t be able to lie to her. But she won’t tell a soul. She’s my best friend. I trust her with my life.”
“You sure? Her brother hates me. And she’s not my biggest fan either. I don’t think she’s gonna be too eager to keep a secret on my behalf, even for her best friend.”
“I promise, she won’t say a word. She’s the most trustworthy person I know.”
“Yeah?” I start to smile. “I feel like there’s a story behind this.”
Sophie’s cheeks flush. “Okay, so when I was eleven I was being bullied by this girl in my figure skating class for having braces and glasses and terrible hair.”
I frown. “You have beautiful hair, Sophie.”
“Thank you. But back then I had an awful haircut. It was way too short.” She winces. “She used to refuse to call me Sophie because she said that name was too pretty for a girl who looked like a boy. So she called me Ralph and got all her friends to call me Ralph too.”
“Shit, that’s messed up.”
“Yeah. It was. And she acted like a perfect angel around all the adults and teachers, so whenever I would tell on her, they wouldn’t believe me. It really sucked.” Her shoulders sag as she sighs. “Anyway, she had a big competition coming up, so on that day I hid her ice skates. She didn’t get to compete and had to drop out of the competition.”
“Damn. That’s some hard-core payback.”
Sophie frowns like she feels bad. “I still feel awful about it. And I’d never, ever do anything like that again. I remember seeing her sobbing in the halls during the competition. It was wrong, no matter how you look at it. I was just so fed up from being bullied by her and that was the only way I could think to get back at her.”
I shrug. “Yeah, maybe it wasn’t right, but it sounds like she kind of deserved it.”
“Dakota found her ice skates in my locker and figured out what I did. She promised she’d never tell anyone, and to this day she hasn’t.”
I nod once. “Okay. You convinced me. If you say Dakota’s trustworthy, then I’m fine with her knowing about us.”
Sophie’s quiet for a moment. “If your teammates ask about how we got together, do you think you can convince them?” Sophie frowns like she’s worried.
“Yeah, easy. I’ll tell them that after they all left the bar last night, you and I ran into each other, I apologized for being a jackass when we met, and then I charmed you over drinks. You were smitten instantly.”
Her frown fades, replaced with a flustered smile. “Really?”
I shrug a shoulder, grinning. “What, you don’t think that’s believable? I’m pretty charming.” I tease.
She laughs. “You really think that would convince them?”
“Yeah.” I grin.
Sophie rolls her eyes, but she’s still smiling. “How about you say that you apologized profusely and that you begged me to give you a chance? And tone down the smitten part?”
I chuckle. “Fine.”
“We have to act like a couple in public when we’re around people. That means we’ll have to do things like kissing and hand-holding.”
The thought of getting to kiss Sophie again drives me wild. That will definitely be a perk of this whole setup.
“Yeah, I’m good with all that,” I say.
She pauses and clears her throat. “No sex though.”
“Of course. This is fake.”
“And um, if we want this to look real, we can’t date or hook up with anyone else for the next two months.”
“That’s fine.”
Her strawberry blonde eyebrows furrow. “Really? You don’t have a problem not…being with anyone else while we’re together?”
“Nope.” I sip my coffee and lean back in my chair, the rickety wood squeaking under my weight. I take in the surprised look on her face. “Why does that shock you?”
“Well, I mean…it’s just…you seem to date a lot.” She clears her throat and traces a finger around the rim of her coffee mug. “Can you really go two months without…you know…hooking up?”
“Uh, yeah.” I almost laugh. “I mean, do I really come off like some maniac who needs to have sex constantly?”
“Yeah.”
I burst out laughing.
“Well, I mean…your nickname is the panty dropper.” She swallows. “I just figured you were always hooking up with someone.”
I smile at how cute Sophie is. She’s curious about my sex life but doesn’t want to be rude.
“You want the truth?”
She nods.
“I’m not always hooking up with someone. I go with the flow. If I meet someone and we hit it off, awesome. If a woman I’ve been with in the past calls or texts me for a date or a hookup and I’m available, then I meet up with them.”
She chuckles. “You make it sound so simple.”
“It is.” I take another drink of my coffee.
She makes a scoff-laugh noise.
“What?”
She tilts her head at me. “The fact that you’re a hot, famous, and rich athlete helps a lot too, you know.”
I shrug and smile at her. “Maybe.” I lean over the table and drop my voice. “But I earned my nickname for a reason.”
“Because you’re good in bed. Or that’s the rumor, at least. Who knows. A lot of pro athletes have wild reputations that don’t hold up in reality.” Her tone and expression are teasing. She’s joking, but I can tell by the flash of curiosity in her eyes and the deepening blush on her cheeks that she’s intrigued by all this.
“You think it’s just a rumor?” I can’t help but grin.
I was going to leave it at that, but I see the way Sophie’s eyes dilate at what I said. The flush on her skin turns from pink to red.
God, I love making her blush.
Is it just her face that blushes? Does her chest blush too? My eyes drop to her neck and upper chest. She’s wearing a sweater so I can’t tell, but that doesn’t stop my brain from imagining her peaches-and-cream skin glowing pink.
And then my brain takes off from there.
Does the rest of her body blush? How about when she gets turned on? Fuck, I’d love to find out.
I watch a swallow move down the length of her delicate throat.
I should probably stop. I should probably lean back in my chair and drop this. But I want to make her blush again. She’s fucking beautiful when she blushes.
“What do you think, Sophie?” I ask, my voice soft and low. “Do you think I’d have that nickname if I wasn’t good in bed?”
Her eyes widen and she licks her lips. Just seeing that candy pink tongue has my dick aching.
“You two doing okay over here?” the barista says, interrupting the moment.
I clear my throat. “Yeah. Thanks.”
“You done with that plate?” he asks Sophie, who doesn’t say anything. She just nods.
The barista grabs our empty dishes and walks off.
Sophie clears her throat. “Okay. Well,” she says, her voice higher than normal. I hold back a chuckle at how flustered she is.
“Those are all the rules I can think of,” she says. “Do you have anything you’d like to add?”
“Yeah, actually. I have two. We go out on one public date a week so that people see us out and about as a couple.”
“Sure, we can do that.”
“And I want you to wear my jersey during all the games you’re at.”
She blinks at me. “But I’m the team physician.”
“It’s not like you have to wear a uniform.”
“Well, no…but don’t you think that would be weird?”
I shake my head. “You’re my girlfriend. You gotta wear my jersey.”
Heat flickers in my chest. Sophie isn’t even my real girlfriend. She’s sweet and innocent and a genius, and her one and only ex is a doctor. Never in a million years would she choose a guy like me.
But that’s why the thought of her wearing my jersey, showing everyone that she’s mine, sets off something in me.
Yeah, this is fake. But I want to show Sophie that I can treat her the way she deserves to be treated.
The corner of her mouth quirks up like she’s trying not to smile. I think she’s into it too.
“Okay. I’ll wear your jersey.”