Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
SPENCER
T he front door slammed shut as I put on the third sport coat and stared at it in the mirror, wondering if I should go back to the first. My second date with Eve was coming up in less than an hour, and I was more nervous than I had been before the first one.
This should be easier. We’d swept aside the weird social obligations. She’d agreed to keep dating me for as long as I needed.
Maybe that was why. Maybe her graciousness was making me nervous. I felt guilt for taking advantage of her.
I bobbed my head, convincing myself that was it as footsteps pounded toward me. With a furrowed brow, I adjusted my lapels again, still trying to decide which jacket was best.
The door to my bedroom burst open, and Louise hovered in the doorway.
"Louise! Ever heard of knocking?"
She waved dismissively as she stormed into the room. "Oh, please, Spencer. Whether you're dressed or not is the least of my concerns. We need to talk—now."
She stormed over to my bed and collapsed onto it.
“Okay?” I asked, wondering if I’d have to cancel my date. A pang of sorrow shot through me if that was the case. Ridiculous, of course, since we were fake dating.
Louise exhaled deeply, her hands massaging her temples. "You need to step things up with Eve."
I blinked in confusion, sinking onto the edge of the bed. "Lou, we've only had one date. What's the rush?"
Her shoulders slumped as she slid her eyes closed, her jaw clenching.
“And let’s not forget…you haven’t even been on a date yet. You still have to–”
“Stop, Spence, I’m serious.”
Louise wasn’t taking my good-natured ribbing, and that was a clear sign that she was distressed by something.
“What happened?” I asked, reaching for her hand.
She leapt from the bed and paced the floor. “It was awful.”
Visions of Eve telling her how boring our date was danced through my mind. Had she cried on Louise’s shoulder, begging her to let her off the hook?
My lips tugged into a wince as I wondered if she’d told Louise about my request.
“I went to Eve’s…”
Here it came. Eve told me you said…
My stomach twisted into a knot as I tried to figure out a way to explain it away.
"And her unbearable sister was there," Louise groaned, raking her fingers through her hair in frustration. "I've only met her twice, but that's enough to know she's outright cruel to Eve."
“Oh, that’s a shame,” I said, my forehead pinching.
“It’s more than a shame. It’s a travesty . Her sister told her off for dating you. And then, do you know what Eve told me?”
I braced myself for what was coming next. “No?”
“Poor Eve said I shouldn’t have told her sister that she was dating you…and do you know why?” Louise twisted to face me, her hands on her hips.
His mind filled in the blanks: because we aren’t really dating . Poor Eve probably didn’t want anyone to know about the fake relationship so she didn’t have to explain it later.
The guilt I’d felt earlier roiled inside me again.
“She said that I shouldn’t have said anything because her sister stole her last boyfriend, and she’d try to do the same with you. Can you believe this woman?”
I shifted on the mattress, relieved to not have my secret out. I didn’t need to face the wrath of Louise right now. Apparently, though, Eve’s sister had managed to poke the bear.
In front of me, Louise continued to amble back and forth. “I mean, first, she says Eve has stooped pretty low to date a married man, and then Eve confides to me that her sister has stolen her past boyfriend and will try to do the same with you.”
I reveled in that fact that Eve hadn’t given our plan away, making a silent note to thank her when I saw her later. As I glanced up from my introspection, I found Louise glaring at me, her foot tapping the floor. “Spencer…why are you not outraged?”
“I am…completely outraged. Super, super outraged,” I answered with a bob of my head.
My weak agreement didn’t seem to help matters. Louise’s features twisted more, her nose wrinkling. “Spencer Whitaker, you need to make it clear that Eve is the only woman you are interested in. And if that trampy sister of hers comes sniffing around you, I expect you to tell her where she can stick it.”
I offered a mix of a head bob and shake, not certain what I should do. “Absolutely. I will…be certain to tell the sister where she can stick it.”
“This isn’t a joke, Spence.”
I leapt from my seat, returning to the mirror to adjust my jacket. “I’m not laughing. I’m not interested in any other women. I’m not going to date…whatever her name is, okay?”
“You had better not. I know her type. She’s your typical sly little vixen. She’s going to come slinking up to you with her sultry stares and her too-tight clothes, and she’s going to say, ‘Spencer…’”
I grimaced as Louise sauntered to me and slid her hand onto my shoulder, batting her eyelashes.
“You’re so handsome and rich. I just want to show you how much you mean to me and make you forget all about Eve.”
I shook my head. “Not going to happen.”
“It had better not,” she said with a wag of her finger at me. “Now, you had better get going.”
She glanced down at my jacket. “Why are you wearing this one? No, wear the light blue.”
“Right,” I said with a nod as Louise retrieved it from where I’d tossed it earlier and thrust it toward me.
I changed jackets and, after another reminder from Louise about my duty to my newfound girlfriend, left the house.
As I drove to Eve’s, my mind went back to Eve’s statement about being unlucky in love. Had her sister’s stealing of her boyfriend been what soured her?
Whatever had made her say those words made me feel extremely guilty for using her. But I couldn’t call it off with her because Louise would have me drawn and quartered.
Plus, we needed to be on good terms when we went to Savannah next weekend.
Too many things burned through my mind as I knocked, rocking on my feet as I waited for her to open the door.
It opened seconds later, and my breath caught in my throat as I spotted Eve in a pink sundress. And then, like a complete idiot, I stood there staring at her like a predator.
The grin she’d sported when she’d pulled open the door slowly slid away, and she glanced down at her outfit as though something was wrong.
“Hi,” I finally managed.
“Hi,” she said, “uh, is everything okay? You seem…upset.”
“Everything’s fine, I just…you look really beautiful.”
“Oh,” she said with a fleeting smile as though she hadn’t expected the compliment, “thank you. Ah, just let me grab my purse, and we can go.”
Within a minute, we were on our way to my private portion of beach where I’d already had a picnic set up.
I led her down to the sand, and we settled onto the blanket already laid out for us.
The sun lowered in the sky behind us, painting the waves with a reflection of the orange and red sky forming in the west.
I poured champagne into the flutes and handed her a glass before unpacking the food.
She accepted, her features pinching as she said, “So, I’ve been putting some thought into finding someone for Louise, but I think we may need to rely on an app. I mean, unless you have someone in mind… I just don’t know very many people.”
I slid a plate closer to her, my features pinching as the guilt roiled in me again. This poor woman was stuck on a date with me after being taunted by her sister about it, and still she plowed ahead, trying to help me.
Maybe it was best to get it out of the way first, though, and then we could actually talk.
“Oh, uh, yes, I agree. I actually wrote a little program that will go through and collate information from all the dating sites out there and pick the best selections.” I pulled my phone from my pocket, and showed her my custom-built app.
“Oh,” she said with a chuckle. “MatchMerge, that’s cute.”
Heat rose in my cheeks at the compliment before she glanced at the first few matches. “Oh, this second one doesn’t look so good. Louise hates tattoos, and he’s proudly showing a few in his photos.”
“Good catch,” I noted, reaching over her shoulder to tap the note functionality I created. “You can just put a note here for future reference, and then tap the red X to dismiss him as a match.”
“Okay,” she said, typing in the note before she saved it and dismissed the tattooed man.
I leaned away, our close proximity making me nervous.
“Done. And the first one looks like a good option.”
“I’ve already set something up with him for Tuesday. Uh, with Louise and him. Not me and him. That sounded weird.”
“I knew what you meant,” she said, handing my phone back. “That sounds perfect. I hope it’s successful.”
Did she mean because she wanted to ditch dating me as soon as possible?
“Uh, I wondered if you were busy then because we could…maybe monitor it and take some notes on what’s working and what isn’t to help us in the future.” I shifted on the blanket, wondering if she’d turn me down. After all, dating me was likely enough time spent together.
“Sure, I’d be happy to help.”
I grinned at her in a silent thank you. “So, uh, I heard Louise pressed you into service to travel to Savannah with us.”
With a smile and a nod, she answered, “She did, though, I wouldn’t say pressed. I…agreed to go. She really struggles with her relationship with her mother, it seems.”
“Oh, yes. Constance is…a…she’s not very nice.”
“That’s a shame. Louise is so kind. It makes you wonder how she could turn out so sweet with that sort of mother.”
I studied Eve, her skin painted from the setting sun as she slicked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. Her affectionate words and sympathy toward Louise impressed me. Most people found Louise overbearing or annoying.
I disagreed, having become fast friends with her, but she didn’t have very many female friends.
“Anyway,” Eve continued, when I didn’t, “I hope I’ll somehow make the weekend easier.”
“I’ll be glad to get through it.” We fell into silence for a bit again, though it wasn’t uncomfortable. Still, I didn’t want her to think I was ignoring her.
As I searched my mind and the beach for something to say, I spotted a glint in the distance. I narrowed my eyes, my shoulders slumping as I spotted Louise. “Seriously?” I muttered.
“Hmm?” Eve asked, peeling her eyes from the waves lapping at the sand. She followed the direction of my gaze, her features pinching. “Is that…”
“Louise,” I said as I stared at her in her big floppy hat and oversized sunglasses.
“Does she have binoculars?”
“I’m afraid so,” I answered.
I knew why she was here. She wanted to monitor my date to make sure things progressed nicely and Eve would have a good story for her sister. But I really didn’t want an audience for the awkward interactions I’d inevitably have.
I dusted my hands off after finishing the last bite of my sandwich and scrambled to my feet, extending my hand. “What do you say to a change of venue? Maybe one with a smaller fan club?”
She slid her hand into mine with a nod. “Sure.”
I led her from the beach to a nearby arcade. We disappeared into the darker space, lit mostly by the bright lights on the games.
“Oh, I haven’t been to one of these in years,” she said with a smile.
I’d fully expected her to be upset with the change of venue, but she seemed delighted. She really was an interesting woman.
“I used to go to the arcade a lot more when I was younger. I set the record on Street Fighter once.”
“Remind me not to challenge you at that one.”
I bought a cupful of tokens, and we selected one of those side-by-side racing games. As the timer counted down to our race, Eve shot me a coy glance, revving her engine.
“Really?” I asked, shooting my eyebrows up with an amused grin.
When the green flag waved, she peeled out of the starting line, showcasing some impressive moves.
“Are you sure you haven’t been here recently?”
“I’m just having a stroke of luck,” she answered as she took the bend on two wheels, darting around a robotic player.
She beat me twice at the game before she twisted to me, her features serious. “Are you letting me win?”
“I’m not,” I said with a laugh. “I promise. This is really demoralizing. I can’t believe I bragged that I’d set a record on Street Fighter.”
“Do you want to try something else? For your ego?” she teased.
“I might,” I answered.
We spent the next hour playing a variety of games. I hadn’t laughed that much in years, and at least I didn’t lose every single round of every game we played.
Finally, I convinced her to try Street Fighter, promising we’d play the computer, and I’d help her. I took two buttons, and she took two.
The game counted down to our fight, and we commenced slapping buttons like crazy. With her working the center buttons, I wrapped my arms around her to play the two ends, peering over her shoulder at the display.
“Uh-oh,” she said as our on-screen avatar took a few too many hits.
“Faster on your right,” I encouraged.
We managed to pull it out, slamming the opponent to the ground just before we ran out of energy.
“Ha!” She hopped in the air, spinning to face me to celebrate our collective achievement.
But I hadn’t stepped back yet, so we came intimately close, our faces a hair’s breadth from one another.
This was one of those moments in the movies where the couple usually kissed, caught up in how much they liked each other, but I was completely overwhelmed by the sudden proximity.
With the atmosphere charged between us, I felt the heat rising in my cheeks and the trembling in my hands before I stepped back, running a shaky hand through my hair.
Eve flicked her gaze to the floor, and I, again, felt sorry for her being involved in this ridiculous situation with me. She really deserved so much better because she was a nice person.
“Ah, we probably should go,” I said, my voice a low whisper.
“Right, yeah,” she said with a nod.
I hesitated, wanting to be the guy who said something profound, but I simply wasn’t. Instead, I just motioned to the door like a complete loser and walked her back to the car in relative silence.
When we arrived at her apartment, I said, “Well, that was fun.”
“Yeah,” she agreed, her voice soft.
“And, uh, I’ll text you about Tuesday. You know, a time and where to meet and all of that.”
“Great, sounds good.” We reached her door, and she unlocked it, stepping inside. “Good night, Spencer.”
“Good night,” I said before she closed the door.
I slid my eyes closed, a mix of guilt and frustration washing over me. I wasn’t being fair at all to her or myself, probably.
I could have kissed her, maybe, I thought as I made my way to my car. “No, you couldn’t have,” I said with a shake of my head as I aimed for home. “Because you’re fake dating her, dummy. You had to tell her it was all fake. And now she expects it all to be fake. You can’t go around kissing your fake girlfriend, especially when no one’s watching.”
I smacked my hand into the steering wheel.
“Who says she even wanted to be kissed?” I countered. “She’d probably slap you. She’s just making the best out of a bad situation.”
I, on the other hand, was making a mess out of every situation. I hoped that when I arrived home, I wouldn’t have to talk to Louise. I wasn’t sure I could handle it.
My own emotions were all over the map, and I wasn’t certain I could clearly articulate anything to her or even cover my feelings with a lie.
I hoped to slink to my bedroom and lock the door behind me to try to get a hold of myself. Feelings were growing that shouldn’t be, and I wasn’t at all certain what I was going to do about it.