9. Chapter Nine
Chapter Nine
Aaron
I lean against the driver side door, the bright sun shining down on the sidewalk. My palms are starting to get clammy, and he’s not even out here yet.
Christ, Aaron, how the hell are you going to make it through the damn party if you can’t get a grip now?
I let out a frustrated sigh, not wanting to think about the alternative. This has to work. It just has to. There’s no other option.
It’s one night. One appearance. All I need is to give my parents the illusion they want, and they’ll give me what I want. And once I have it?
I’ll never have to see Jacob again. I can’t help but feel like some Bond villain, scheming in a nice suit.
But my parents have given me no other choice.
If I want the coveted spot my dad’s giving up, and I want to keep Evermore and the company itself in the family, this is a sacrifice I have to make.
A little lie never hurt anyone, especially in the jungle of corporate hospitality.
I swear, the air changes the minute he walks out the doors, and my heart stops.
Jacob strolls out wearing a hot pink button down and dress pants. His golden hair is slicked back and his bright blue eyes capture my gaze. My heart skips a beat, because fuck…
He’s so damn pretty in pink.
He looks up, catching my gaze and gives me that devilish smirk. The one that caught me from the photo Chris sent me.
“Well, don’t you clean up nice?” I say with a smirk of my own as I push off the driver side door, strolling towards him with more confidence than I actually have.
Fake it til’ you make it, Aaron. My mother’s most trusted advice. The woman wouldn’t know a thing about being genuine if it came wrapped in a silk bow.
“Thanks,” he says, and I note the faint tinge of pink in his cheeks again. This man’s going to kill me with those damn cheeks, I swear.
I let out a chuckle as I slide my hand down my silk tie. “We match.”
Jacob nods, standing straighter. His expression is different. Stern, confident. Though his cheeks still have that faint tint that tells me beneath his facade, he’s just as nervous as me.
And I’m not sure how I feel about that. He’s supposed to be the professional here, right? What reason does he have to be nervous?
I mean, you did book him on short notice, and he said usually he has time to do a trial date before…
Trial date. Right, dinner’s the dress rehearsal. The party’s the show.
I clear my throat as I lead him to the passenger door and open it for him.
“Thanks, baby,” he says, the words so smooth and warm it makes my insides melt a little.
It’s not the endearment as much as it is the way he says it. Plenty of men have called me baby. But the way Jacob says it is like a damn prayer.
I’d love to hear him call other names.
Sir. Daddy.
Mine.
I shove the thought aside because immediately my cock responds, and while I would love nothing more than to press Prince Charming’s buttons and find new ways to make his cheeks blush, we have work to do.
But I also can’t resist taunting him, just a little bit. It’s not very often I meet a man who can challenge my self-control.
So I grasp his jaw carefully, tilting his head up so he has to look at me. I hold him, not harshly, but with stern force so he can’t move. There’s nowhere to look but at me.
Into my steady gaze.
“Anything for you, Cinderella.” I smirk. “Go easy on the horses, though. They used to be mice.”
Jacob laughs, shaking his head as I let him go. I can’t help but laugh, too, as I round the BMW and head for the driver’s side.
“Feel free to put on whatever you want,” I say as I turn the car on. I glance at him, noting how perfect he looks right now. The sun lighting him up through the window, his piercing blue eyes catching my steady gaze. Those perfect, pouty lips.
Lips I’ll know what it’s like to kiss, soon enough. I know it’s coming, though I don’t know when.
Technically, I could kiss him right here.
Right now. Something tells me with the way he’s looking at me that he wouldn’t object.
But I also know I’m not the one calling the shots here.
Yes, I hired him, but he’s the professional here.
I’m following his lead. Especially if I want this illusion to hold up.
Jacob looks at me curiously. “What kind of music does Prince Charming listen to?” he asks.
I twist my lips. “Anything but country,” I say with a laugh as we pull out onto the road.
“Noted,” he says as he starts clicking through the stations, until he settles on one playing some pop song I don’t know. The singer croons on about driving in a sports car in between what sounds like a heart attack. I shake my head.
“What’s wrong? Not a fan of Tate?” Jacob asks, and I can hear the humor in his voice. The taunting.
“I mean, she kinda sounds like she needs a hit of oxygen,” I say honestly. Jacob laughs.
“You’re not wrong, but—” Jacob chuckles and the sound is smooth like silk. “I think that’s part of the appeal.”
I pull up to a red light, stealing a glance at him.
“Maybe to the oxygen-deprived,” I say with a smirk.
Jacob leans forward and changes the station. I watch as his fingers gently move the dial. The music filters through, until he settles on a song I do know because Chris’s little sister, Lola, is obsessed with Taylor Swift.
I glance at Jacob as I dramatically serenade him and repeat Taylor’s words about knowing a guy is trouble when he walks in the room.
I don’t miss the wide-eyed expression or Jacob’s mouth as it falls open.
“What, not a fan of Taylor?” I taunt. He shakes his head, seemingly at a loss for words, but he doesn’t change the station.
“That depends,” he says, shaking his head, that smooth, warm voice returning. “Is Prince Charming a fan of Taylor?”
I twist my lips, thinking about the question.
I know what he’s doing, trying to add up all the little details to create what he thinks he’s supposed to be for me.
I appreciate it, and while I do want him to be perfect—perfect enough that he’s believable to be my boyfriend for the evening, anyway—part of me is intrigued by him.
I want to know about Jacob, not just the Prince Charming.
“What about you?” I ask, turning the corner and heading down the street to Callahan’s.
“What about me?”
“What do you like?” I ask as I slow on the brake. Jacob is quiet for a moment.
“You can be honest, you know. I know we’re playing a game here, and we have our roles.
I know the rules,” I tell him as I pull into a space on the side of the street, in front of the restaurant.
He doesn’t say a word, but I can feel his gaze on me.
I lick my lips once the car is parked, and turn to look at him.
“But you don’t have to be Prince Charming when it’s just the two of us.” I lean closer, noting the way his bright blue eyes fall to my lips for a fraction of a second. I make no move to hide the way my own gaze falls to his perfect mouth before I meet his eyes.
“You want me to be comfortable, right?” I ask, my voice somehow darker than I mean it to be.
Jacob nods, swallowing before he speaks, his voice deep and wistful. “Yes. Of course, I want you to be comfortable.”
“Good,” I say, clearing my throat because the air feels hot all of a sudden. “I hope you’re hungry, baby,” I say, smiling slyly.
He nods, smirking at me.
“Fucking starving.”
I don’t waste a second as I unbuckle myself and get out, hurrying to his side before he can open his door, and he cocks his head, shifting some golden hair out of his eyes.
I settle my hand on the small of his back, gently guiding him forward.
He doesn’t jump like I expect him to. Instead, he leans into my space, and I get a heady whiff of his cologne.
He smells like vanilla and musk; spicy and sweet at the same time.
I like it more than I should. I like him more than I probably should.
Dinner goes well, as I knew it would. Callahan’s isn’t my favorite place in the city, but I can’t deny they have some badass burgers here, and I’m a sucker for a good burger.
Jacob opts for a bowl of carbonara and the conversation is so smooth and easy, I almost feel like he is my boyfriend.
Yeah, this guy is worth every fucking penny.
“So,” he says as he twirls a piece of pasta on his fork. “I have to ask, even though I don’t have time to do it—”
“What?” I ask, between bites of my burger.
“One of the things I always ask my clients upon booking, apart from their basic info—” He looks up at me. “Is what their idea of a perfect date is.”
I blink as I swallow my bite.
I think about his question, unsure how to answer.
I’ve been on plenty of dates with guys—and even some girls when I was in middle school—but I’ve never really thought much about what a perfect date would be.
And honestly, until this moment, no one’s ever asked me what I wanted.
I was always the one focused on giving and making sure everything was perfect.
And look what good that did me.
“I don’t know,” I say, stealing another bite of my burger. “Guess I never really gave it much thought.”
“Bullshit,” he says, shoving a forkful of pasta into his mouth. He slurps the noodle, and I can’t help watch as his cheeks hollow and my damn cock voices its opinion of what he thinks a perfect date would be.
“Everyone’s given it thought.”
I shrug. “Have you?”
Jacob swallows his pasta. “Of course.”
I say nothing, waiting for him to continue, but he doesn’t.
“Well?” I gesture to him with my hand and he blinks.
“Oh, you want those kinds of details? That’s extra, baby,” he says with a wink, and for a minute, I think he’s serious before he busts out laughing and takes a sip of his wine.
“I’m just fucking with you,” he says, laughing lightly. I’m not sure if it’s the wine, the dinner, or just Jacob, but I’ve never felt so on the spot before. I laugh because people rarely get one over on me, but Jacob just did.
Little asshole.
I open my wallet, pull out three one hundred dollar bills and slap them on the table in front of him. He looks at the bills then at me.
“Three hundred for your thoughts, Cinderella.” I lean back in my seat, meeting his gaze.
“There’s more where that came from, you know,” I say with a grin. “You can joke with me all you want, but I put my money where my mouth is. Always.”
Jacob looks at the bills before him, then back at me.
“So, tell me.” I motion for him to continue. He carefully picks the bills up and folds them, sliding them into his pocket. His demeanor shifts a fraction, and I wonder if I did something wrong, but before I can ask, his smile and enthusiasm returns.
“Promise you won’t laugh.” He raises an eyebrow.
“I’d say scout’s honor, but I have no honor and I’m not a scout,” I say. “But I give you my word, baby, I will not laugh at you. Ever.”
Jacob drains the last of his wine. “It’s kind of impossible to pull off.”
I lean forward, imploring his gaze.
“Try me.”
Jacob lets his fingers dance along the base of the glass. He looks at it then to me and shrugs.
“Eras Tour—”
I raise an eyebrow. “Seriously?”
He shakes his head. “I told you you’d judge me—”
“No, no I’m not judging, I just—”
Jacob sighs. “I mean, I just think it’d be epic, you know? Singing and dancing and just… vibing. With the right person.”
His eyes go soft and he looks away. “Dancing in the refrigerator light and all that.”
I realize that the sliver of his bright, vibrant facade has shifted, and for the briefest moment, the man behind the mask, behind the computer, pushes through.
But that moment disappears too quickly.
“And you know… the tour’s over, so kind of impossible to pull off.”
That’s the moment the waitress brings our check, and before I can swipe it from her, Jacob’s hand flecks out and he grabs it.
I watch as he quickly tosses the three hundred dollars I slid him into the checkbook. He glances up at the girl with a smile that could melt the polar ice caps.
“Keep the change,” he says, his voice sweet and soft. Charming, even.
“Oh, thank you!” she says with a bright grin of her own. He casts me a knowing glare. I can’t deny the sight of him doing so makes both my cock and my palm twitch.
Because that glare, that cockiness…
Fuck, I love a brat, and right now Jacob is playing one perfectly and I don’t even think he knows it.
Jacob two.
Aaron one.
Jacob gets up, and I follow without a second thought, finding my way next to him almost immediately.
I settle my hand on his back again and he leans into my space.
The heat between us radiates as we head outside, where it’s raining.
Fuck, I didn’t bring an umbrella, and it’s raining pretty hard.
We’re going to have to make a run for it.
“You know what I think?” His voice cuts through my thoughts. I turn, realizing he’s closer than he was a moment ago.
“Mmm?” I ask, sliding my hand around his waist. He doesn’t push me away, and I glance at that perfect pout once more before meeting his piercing blue gaze.
“I think you have thought about it,” he says carefully. “I think you know exactly what you want.”
I lick my lips as he shifts his position towards me. The rain patters off the awning as we huddle together, staying dry.
“Is that so?” my voice is dark, dominant. Jacob leans in just a fraction as he places one hand on my chest. His palm is warm against my shirt and I can feel the heat on my skin even through the barrier that separates us.
He nods, licking his lips, and I pull him by his waist closer to me. Close enough I can feel the weight of his body against mine.
“You know what I think?” I ask. Jacob’s gaze holds mine. His blue eyes are dark, like stormy skies.
Like deep, uncharted waters.
“What?” his voice is barely a breath, a whisper.
Whatever I was going to say dies between us as I bring my mouth to his.
Jacob startles, but only for a second. I settle my free hand on his neck, feeling his racing pulse beneath my palm and my cock twitches knowing it’s because of me.
The rain falls, echoing around us as his body relaxes in my hold like Jell-o.
I squeeze his neck just the slightest, and a soft moan escapes his mouth, causing me to grin.
“I was right,” I whisper, pulling away with a satisfied smirk.
“About what?” he asks, licking his lips. His gaze glistens with interest.
My hand on his neck slides back into his golden hair and I grip the locks, pulling on the edges just enough to force him to look at me.
“You’re worth every penny.”
Something shifts in his gaze, something I can’t quite place. The rain slows and he steps back.
“We should get going.”
I nod, my hand still settled on his back. “You’re right. We need to get you to the ball before you turn into a pumpkin.”
Jacob grins, and all the strange tension disappears.