Chapter Eleven #2
“What about your ex?”
Oh, my God. Was he jealous? “Kyle?”
He nodded.
“Not at all. You’re already a better boyfriend to me than he ever was.”
Drew’s chest puffed up and his satisfied hum made me chuckle.
“Now that we’ve established your devotion to each other, there is to be no fighting in public,” Glamma said, pointing at us.
“Unless it’s a sexy, flirty form of fighting.” Goldie piped up. “I remember that one time when Sam and I—”
“Flirty fighting. Got it!” Drew interjected so fast I wondered if Goldie was about to share something more risqué than we wanted to hear.
“Rescue attempts are a must in fake dating,” Gladys offered. “You need a code word so that you know she needs to get out of a situation.”
“Code word?” I asked. “Uh, what’s something that won’t seem weird?” Why was my mind blank? These should be the easy questions to answer.
Drew grinned. “Peony. It’s your favorite flower.”
Giant butterflies swirled in my chest that he remembered my advice when he asked what kind of bouquet to get his mom for her birthday.
“How would we use it so it seems natural though?” I tried to sound normal, but this was getting more serious than I was ready for right now.
Seeming to sense the direction of my thoughts, Drew responded. “You could just tell me you love my big peonies.”
I shook my head and laughed just as he intended. I loved that he’d say something so ridiculous in front of his grandmother and her friends. “We can workshop that later.”
“Pet names!” Goldie yelled.
A mischievous gleam entered Drew’s eyes that looked suspiciously like Glamma. “How about Muffin or Pooky?” he asked.
I glanced at him from under my fluttering eyelashes. “I could see you as Captain Snugglybear.”
Gladys snorted, and the sip of water she’d just taken shot out her nose. “Damn it,” she muttered. “That hurt.”
Drew and I burst out laughing.
“Love Nugget,” he tossed out.
“Honeybutt,” I responded.
A competitive smirk tipped up the corner of Drew’s lips. “I bet I’ll find the right one first.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Oh yeah? We’ll see about that!”
Now that we had set the bar, we started throwing out random names trying to top each other.
“Puddin’.”
“Hot Lips!” he yelled over me and made a pucker face.
“Sugar Booger.” I laughed probably harder than warranted, but this was so much more fun than I thought it would be.
His body leaned into mine as he laughed right along. “Okay, Snookums.”
“Bub,” I added.
“Oh, my God. You two need to stop,” Martha laughed. “I’m going to pee my pants.”
My giggles slowed down. All the nerves that had swarmed my insides were now warm and fuzzy and made me want to run in the other direction were gone. Everything was going to be okay. Drew’s breath hitched again as he tried to stop laughing.
We made eye contact. It was like all those cheesy rom-com moments when the background noise faded and it was just us. He leaned in to rest his forehead against mine. His breath feathered against my cheek, and I had the insane urge to lean in and kiss him.
“Hi,” he whispered and swiped at my cheek where my tears of laughter still lay.
“Hi,” I whispered back. “Thanks for making this so much fun.”
“Anytime.” His wink was like a promise to do just that, and I couldn’t help but wonder if life with him would be full of these types of memories. The two of us laughing and enjoying being together. Never afraid to show our silly side along with our seriousness.
Kind of like how we’d been all along while messaging each other.
Glamma, who’d been watching us with glee, held up her hand to garner everyone's attention. “We need to get your stories straight. How you met, and what you love most about each other. People always want to hear that stuff.”
I leaned back and wrinkled my nose. “We met through work, so that’s easy enough—”
Glamma tsked. “Uh-uh. You’re not getting away that easily. We need to up the romance factor here.”
Well, crap. Glamma, as expected, was going rogue. “When did you know you wanted something more?” she asked.
Dear God. Did I tell the truth? Make something up?
Drew responded first. “That’s easy. It had been about six or seven weeks of us working together. A problem with the acquisition of a new property was not going as planned, and we called it a night.”
Holy snickerdoodles. I knew which night he was talking about.
“An hour after we hung up, my phone rang again. When I answered, I could hear singing.” He nudged me playfully, but I couldn’t meet his eyes.
So I covered my face with my hands.
He tugged my hands away from my burning cheeks and held them.
“A popular girl-power song was on, and Ellie was singing her heart out. When she didn’t hang up and the next song came on, to which she was equally enthusiastic about singing …
I thought to myself, I could listen to this happy, upbeat, off-key rendition for the rest of my life and never grow tired of it. ”
One of the ladies awed.
Drew kissed my fingertips. “That’s when I knew I had to take a chance and tell her how I felt.”
I blinked. Once. Twice. A third time.
“That was the moment?” I asked.
“It was. You were adorable.”
I cringed. “I was so embarrassed.”
“You had no reason to be.”
I’d been mortified to know my phone had butt-dialed my boss. I’d let out a weird squeak-wail, apologized profusely, and then hung up on him. Afterwards, neither of us ever mentioned the incident again. I’d kind of hoped he’d forgotten, but to hear him say it with such affection made my heart skip.
Not only had his words sounded sincere, but the way he looked at me gave me pause.
I’d been studying rom-coms and romance for years, getting ready to write my novel, and in every single one of those moments when the hero realizes he’s in love with the heroine his eyes soften, a sweet smile graces his lips, he leans in, and it’s like the air around them pulse with hope and a little bit of magic.
Just like now.
Was I just seeing in him what I wanted? Unsure of what to do with the conflicting thoughts in my head, I panicked and leaned away.
He squeezed my hands as though reassuring me. For what, I wasn’t sure, but I gave him a tentative smile. “Now how am I going to top that?”
“I’m sure there are so many it’s hard to choose,” he teased, and the women in the room chuckled.
But in all seriousness, he wasn’t wrong. He was driven and a total workaholic, but he was also sweet and kind. And even more important, he made me feel like I mattered.
Drew was everything I’d ever wanted in a partner.
I knew my answer. “The day I tried working when I had the flu.”
He grimaced, which told me he remembered that day, too.
“We’d been working together for a month, and I was terrified that if I took a day off I’d be fired. Not that I thought you were that kind of boss, but in all fairness I was deliriously sick.”
“I felt so helpless being so far away,” he whispered, and I could see the regret in the lines of his face.
I locked my gaze on his. “You did everything you could. You demanded I stop working and go back to bed. Then you stayed on the phone with me and had my favorite foods delivered because I was too tired to cook for myself.”
Drew frowned. “I hated the thought of you having to get up and shop for groceries.”
I nodded and continued. “The cozy blanket you sent became my favorite, and the bottles of water I was able to leave by my bed got me through the next few days.”
“That’s so sweet,” Goldie sniffled.
“And even though I was sick, I looked forward to the texts you sent asking for proof of life until I was better. And I distinctly remember thinking, ‘I don’t know the last time someone had been so thoughtful or sweet to me. This one’s a keeper.’”
Drew kissed the top of my head and tightened his grip. “I wish I could’ve done more.”
“You did the perfect amount.” I was happy I finally got to tell him how much what he did meant to me.
Martha discreetly wiped away a tear. “I’m such a sucker for moments like that. You too need to fake-date forever.”
Gladys cleared her throat. “Okay, lovebirds. Now that we’ve let our guards down, I think it’s time for some pictures. We can’t say that you just met for the first time during this trip. No one will believe that.”
“How can we do that? Take pictures around town?” I looked out the front bay window. “It’s already dark. I’m not sure how many good ones we’ll get.”
“You underestimate us, dear Ellie.” Glamma paused dramatically then gestured with a flourish. “Gladys, get out the backgrounds!”
With a quick grin, Gladys moved into the adjacent study and returned rolling an eight-foot by ten-foot backdrop.
My eyes widened. Holy wow.
I almost couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
The row of tall pine trees interspersed with shrubs and small yellow flowers dotting the bright green grass reminded me of a slightly cleaned-up version of the road I’d been stranded on.
I squinted and looked closer. Was that a deer peeking out from the forest? !
“Up and at ‘em, you two. Let’s take a shot of your first picnic together.” Glamma clapped her hands together. “Martha, do you have the basket of food ready?”
“Um …” I tried to find the right words. “Don’t you think they’ll suspect something when they see we’re wearing the same clothes for each shot?”
Goldie pointed to a large cardboard box I’d missed when I came into the room. “We’ve got that covered too. Martha grabbed her lost and found treasures. I’m sure we’ll find everything we need in there.”
Treasures indeed.
Drew, the braver of the two of us, rose from the couch and opened the box. When he pulled out a mesh shirt that was not from this decade, I burst into giggles.
And I couldn’t stop.
“That must have been from the 80s party we hosted last summer,” Glamma grinned.
I groaned through my belly laughs. “I’m so afraid of what else we’re going to find in there.”
“Come on, you two.” Gladys motioned us forward. “Let’s get started. I’m hungry.”
“Are you ready for this?” Drew asked, holding out his hand.
I nodded and threaded my fingers through his. “As I’ll ever be.”
For the first few pictures, we sat side-by-side, smiling, and by the second backdrop—which had a gazebo in the distance—we’d loosened up. By the third backdrop with an old barn we were pretending to stand next to, we started to throw on clothes from the box.
We probably looked deranged, but the smiles in those photos were real.
Drew pulled on a loud, oversized Hawaiian shirt and tossed a multi-colored t-shirt my way. We took turns changing in the hall powder room before coming out to a new background waiting for us, a tropical island oasis.
I ran my hand down the thick fabric, tracing a palm tree. “When did we go away together?”
“Last month,” Glamma offered with a smile. “I let you use my private jet, and you went away for the night. It was super spontaneous and romantic.”
My gaze flew to hers. “Did you just say you have a private jet?”
I knew the Kingsleys’ had money, but seriously?
“Of course, darling. How else do you think my friends and I travel the world?” Glamma barely glanced at me before she started giving us directions. “Drew, act like you’re leaning against the tree, and pull Ellie into your arms.”
“These shirts are ridiculous. How is anyone going to believe we wore these on vacation?” I murmured to Drew as I tugged at the snug shirt stretched across my chest and abdomen.
Gladys laughed loudly. “They lost your luggage, and this was all you could find on such short notice.”
Drew tugged me closer until my back rested against him.
“Rest your chin on the top of Ellie’s head and then the two of you look off into the distance like you’re watching the sunset.”
“Perfect!” Martha crowed with delight. “Now, Ellie, face Drew and slide your arms up to wrap around his shoulders.”
Drew’s heart beat fast beneath my fingers as they moved up his chest to do as Martha asked.
“Lean in,” Goldie directed. “Now kiss.”
We needed no more encouragement than that. Drew’s head dropped down and I pushed up on my toes. Though we closed our eyes, our lips instinctively found each other.
“Perfect!” Gladys shouted. If she hadn’t voiced her approval just then, I was pretty sure Drew and I wouldn’t have stopped at just a slight peck of our lips.
Glamma tugged on my arm. “Let’s put you in this dress.” She held up a glittery number that, oddly enough, looked like it might be my size.
Goldie handed Drew a button-down shirt and suit coat that, when he put them on, fit him perfectly.
I had a hard time believing that these were from the lost and found.
After we changed, our next adventure appeared to be Paris, if the Eiffel Tower in the background was any indication. Instead of protesting how we’d have had the time to go on another vacation, I let Glamma and the crew position us.
“Yes! The two of you are dancing to music from an unknown street artist. Now hold that pose.” Martha snapped a few shots of me gazing adoringly up at Drew.
If I shut out the directions being tossed our way on how to smile, where to put my arms, and how to tilt my chin, I could almost believe we were exactly where they said.
Being with Drew was easy. There was no one else I’d feel so comfortable doing this with.
And for a few moments while they took our picture, I went along with the fantasy and imagined that he and I were more real than we were pretending to be.
That our relationship didn’t have an expiration date and that I wouldn’t have to let him go when this was all over.
After what seemed like the twentieth background and wardrobe change, we plopped back on the couch, breathless but riding a high that was hard to articulate. It was supposed to be fake, but … was it?
If Drew wasn’t feeling anything after all that, he was a master actor.
Gladys handed us the camera so we could look at the pictures, and I had to admit, most of them were fantastic.
Drew and I looked like an actual couple.
Glamma ushered us into the dining room for dinner, and Gladys promised to edit the photos and get them to us by morning in the event that my family wanted proof.
Or if you just want them to check out his hot body, Bad Eleanor whispered.
This time, though, I didn’t silence her. She was one-hundred percent right. I wanted proof of our time together. Because I had a funny feeling that even after we stopped fake dating, I’d take those pictures out when I was missing Drew or having a bad day.
And I wondered … was there a chance he’d do the same?