Chapter 27
He’d kissed her like he didn’t want to stop. What the hell had that been?
She gave her head a good, firm shake and forced herself to focus on the two black dresses hanging on the closet door. Both dresses were black, yet each gave a completely different vibe. One was sexy and the other more classic. She felt torn.
While she wanted to knock Derek’s socks off, she didn’t want to WANT to knock Derek’s socks off. And she didn’t want him to think she was trying to knock his socks off. What did it matter what she wore?
She reached for the demure dress, but her hand hesitated. This conflicted feeling had been with her all week, ever since the karaoke contest that they had won!
Karaoke had seemed like a good idea when she signed them up. The number one reason: she couldn’t miss the chance to defeat Maisie Whyte. Number two: no way was she missing an opportunity to annoy the hell out of Derek. He despised karaoke. And number three; the reason she was fake dating Derek; to get Lance Roman’s attention.
She hadn’t been able to gain the paramedic’s attention all night. Begrudgingly, she had to admit Derek may have been right. Lance would have gotten the wrong impression earlier when she’d been ‘hustling’ the two paramedic students. ‘Hustle,’ was Derek’s word. She had not been hustling them. It was not her fault that men naturally assumed she couldn’t play pool because she was a woman. They had been proven wrong.
She had been guilty of assumptions herself. Just because Derek hated karaoke, she’d believed he must not be a good singer. She’d been proven wrong as well. The man had a deep, low, completely in tune sexy voice. And he’d worked the crowd right beside her.
Wow, what a kiss at the end! Her toes had curled. What exactly had prompted that?
He’d helped her gain Lance’s attention and secure the win against Maisie. But the kiss hadn’t been necessary, unless he’d wanted to kiss her. No. He was up to something.
Derek Brennan always did what he wanted. The only reason she’d been able to coerce him into karaoke was by threatening to pull the plug on their arrangement. Derek’s limbs and career were on the line. He had significantly more at stake than she did. Sure, she wanted Lance like she’d never wanted a man before. But she’d survive if it never happened. Derek’s career might not be so lucky.
Was the kiss his way to get back at her? Or was it his way to take control of the situation? Maybe he was trying to get her to fall for him.
Oh, he wouldn’t stoop that low, would he?
Of course he would. What an ass!
“Hold them both up. I can’t see,” Jessica’s voice interrupted from behind.
Turning, she stared at the computer monitor on the desk and held up the classy black dress in front of her. “This one or...” She lowered the first dress and then held up the black dress that would drop jaws and socks.
“Oh, that one,” Jessica’s sigh vibrated through the speakers. “Definitely the second one.”
How she wished her friend was sitting on her bed. With Jessica still in Sierra Leone, video calls were the next best thing.
“Who is the date with tonight? You never go to this much trouble.”
Jayna turned her back and cringed. Obviously, Jessica had not spoken with Jamie recently. Perhaps Jamie could be trusted with secrets.
She spun back around. “Um, it’s with Derek Brennan.”
“Derek Brennan?” Jess’s eyes grew large, her voice echoing .
Normally, Jessica was her conscience and Jamie was her confidant. These two women kept her grounded. Jamie had a built-in bull shit detector and Jessica had no patience for bull shit. It was impossible to lie to either woman.
“You have a date with Derek? There has to be static in the line. No way, that’s what you said. I must have heard wrong!”
“Nope. You heard right.” She set the dresses on the bed and pulled out the desk chair, sitting down. “But it’s not what you think.”
“I don’t know what to think. I’m shocked, dumbfounded, close to speechless.”
“Speechless? You really must be shocked,” she joked. Jessica always had lots to say about everything. And she prayed that when she told Jess about what she was doing with Derek, her friend didn’t have an entire lecture for her. “We’re not really dating.”
Jessica blinked. “Not really dating? What does that mean?”
“Fake dating.”
“Fake dating? What the hell is fake dating?”
“We are just pretending to date. Exactly like it sounds.”
“I know what fake means! What I am asking is why would you be FAKE dating him?”
“Because I want to date Lance Roman like I have never wanted to date a man before. I mean, I want to SERIOUSLY date him.”
“Well, you should have said that in the first place. Now I completely understand. NOT!” Jessica threw both her hands up in the air. “If you want to date Lance, then why are you fake dating Brennan?”
“Because,” she began again, speaking slowly. “Lance thinks that I’m a trollop who can’t be in a serious relationship. He isn’t interested in casual dating.”
Jayna frowned. Trollop was the old-fashioned term Derek had used. “And if Lance sees me seriously dating another man, then he will see me in a different light.”
Jessica leaned closer, her face growing large on the screen. “You need to keep explaining. I am not following. ”
Jayna blew out a long breath. “It’s not that complicated. We date for a few weeks, then have a bad breakup. One that Lance will have to console me over.”
Jessica blinked again. “Okay. I get it for you. But why would Derek agree? What’s in it for him?”
“He gets to retain use of both his legs.” At Jess’s continued look of confusion, she elaborated. “Derek went out with his boss’s daughter without realizing who she was. He was his normal sleazy self.”
Jayna leaned back in the chair. “It’s safe to say that his boss was far from pleased. And this boss is well connected with questionable people on his payroll. Derek is pretending that we got back together because I’m pregnant.”
“You’re not pregnant, are you?”
“No, of course not.” Why did everyone keep asking her that question?
Jessica rapidly shook her head back and forth, her voice laced with sarcasm. “Well, it sounds like a really solid plan. I can’t see how it can go wrong.”
“It’s working, Jess. Tonight, I’m attending a work function with Derek, so we can sell our relationship to his boss. Last week we were at Patty’s and sang karaoke together. Lance was paying attention.”
“Whoa, back up. Derek sang karaoke with you?”
“Yeah, he’s pretty good. And a great kisser.”
“Kisser? You kissed him? Thought it was fake?”
“It is only fake. He kissed me.” Her brows furrowed. “Honestly, I’m still trying to figure that out. I think he may be messing with me.”
“No, not Dare Brennan!” Jessica laughed, but then her face turned serious. “You don’t need Derek to win over Lance. It’s a lie and lies never end well.”
“Well, Ms. I-Never-Tell-A-Lie,” she chirped back. The nickname was accurate. Jessica was honest to a fault. Jayna leaned back in her chair, preparing for the lecture that was about to come. “How would you propose I win over Lance? ”
“You just need to smooth the rough edges.”
“Rough edges?” Jayna sat forward again.
“You are intimidating,” Jess told her softly.
“Intimidating?” she repeated Jessica’s words again. Wow, it wouldn’t hurt her friend to be a little less honest sometimes.
“I’m not trying to insult you, Jayna. But...”
“But,” she repeated yet again. “Buts are always followed by an insult. That word is only used to soften the blow.”
“True,” Jess giggled. “BUT,” she emphasized. “You are intimidating, Jayna. You have so much confidence. And you’re gorgeous.”
“That is true on both accounts,” she agreed, pumping up her chest.
“You also have a smart mouth, and you take pleasure in showing up men.”
“What? How?”
“At playing pool, cards, drinking, telling dirty jokes.” Jessica raised a finger for each item she listed.
“Okay, okay. It’s just so much fun to beat them at their own game.”
“Men don’t like that.”
“My perfect guy would,” Jayna said wistfully and immediately frowned.
“If Lance was your perfect guy, then none of this would be necessary,” Jessica spoke softly again.
“Ah, BUT,” Jayna’s mouth twisted into a sad smile. “There is no such thing as the perfect guy. Just close enough.”
“That, my friend, is just about the saddest thing I’ve ever heard.” Jessica shook her head, then sucked in a breath. Her hand raised, and she pointed. “Your window. I saw a face!”
“What?” Her back tensed and she spun around, staring at the bedroom window. No one was there.
She turned back around, her scalp tingling, goosebumps covering her arms. This wasn’t the first time she had the sensation of being watched. “No one is there, Jess.”
“I swear I saw a face,” Jessica let out a nervous chuckle. “Guess it was just a shadow or the monitor playing tricks on my eyes.”
“Okay, I better finish getting ready. You’re sure about the second dress?”
“It’s a showstopper,” Jess told her, and then her face grew serious again. “Please be careful.”
“I will.” She hit the disconnect and sat for a moment, staring at the window. Had Jess’s warning been about Derek, or the possibility that someone was watching her? She stood and walked to the window, pulling the curtains shut.
Be careful . She swallowed hard and rushed to shower before Derek showed up at her front door.