10
On Sunday evening, Emme and I are watching reruns of The Big Bang Theory and eating Ben and Jerry’s when my phone buzzes. I grin when I see its Miles.
Miles : You were an absolute hit with my mother. She’s just spent an hour telling me how happy she is that I found you.
I chuckle and hit reply.
Delaney : You are a very lucky boy. Most aren’t so lucky.
The typing bubbles appear and I watch them in earnest until his reply pops up on the screen.
Miles : I know. You would win all the fake-girlfriend awards.
I grin again and go to respond when Emme’s deafening eye roll distracts me.
“What?”
She snorts, “You’re grinning like a kid,” she says, “Is it Miles? ”
I nod a little embarrassed.
“Have you asked him out on a fake date to meet your entire past yet?” she asks.
“Not yet,” I say, “Still not sure how it would work, you know,”
“You forget that you live with a marketing expert,” Emme says, one eye back on the TV.
I raise an eyebrow, “How is your marketing expertise going to help me?”
“Well, I’ve been thinking,” she says, still half-watching the TV earnestly. She’s doing it to pretend she’s not super-excited about whatever thought she’s had, but she isn’t fooling me, “We could come up with a marketing strategy to make it seem more real. Post some pictures to garner interest, leak a few bits of info to some close friends,”
I laugh, “It’s a fake relationship, not a new perfume,” I say.
“I’m serious,” she says, now turning to me and grinning, “It could be my side project—making your respective families believe that you are, in fact, in love. Though, with the way you’re grinning at that phone, I doubt I’d have to do much,”
I roll my eyes at her and go back to my text thread with Miles.
Delaney : So, I’ve been thinking about your proposition. It wouldn’t be an absolutely terrible idea to be each other’s fake dates for these two weddings.
I hit send and then immediately regret it. I am typing out a message claiming to be joking when his reply flashes up.
Miles : Omg, are you serious? Yes.
I grin and then hit reply again.
Delaney : Emme thinks she can ‘market’ us enough to make it seem believable.
Miles : Tell her I am open to anything if it gets me through Julian’s wedding with even one less pitying stare
Delaney : She’ll be ecstatic.
I turn to Emme and grin. “He’s in,”
Her face splits into an incredible smile and she grabs her tablet from the table beside her, “Oh my god, I’m going to come up with my plan now,”
I laugh and sit back, grabbing another spoonful of cookie dough.