Chapter Three #2
His hand remained open between them.
“This is unnecessary.”
“I know.”
The familiar answer softened her resistance.
She placed her hand in his.
His fingers closed around hers, warm and steady and far too comfortable.
Meagan had expected awkwardness. A deliberate adjustment of palms and fingers while they negotiated pressure and distance.
Instead, Aaron’s hand accepted hers as though it already knew how.
His thumb rested against the side of her index finger. His grip was secure without being tight. He did not pull her closer or turn the contact into a performance.
He simply held on.
The kitchen receded slightly.
Meagan noticed the faint roughness of his palm. The heat of his skin. The way her hand fit inside his.
She looked up.
Aaron was watching her.
The amusement had faded from his expression, replaced by something quieter.
Something that suggested he felt the ease of it too.
Her pulse beat hard against the place where his thumb touched her.
Amanda cleared her throat.
Meagan almost pulled away.
Aaron’s fingers shifted gently, not holding her tighter, but making it clear he would release her the moment she wanted.
That made her stay.
“Walk,” Amanda instructed.
Aaron stepped forward.
Meagan moved beside him.
They crossed the short distance from the kitchen into the living room.
He matched her pace without trying. When she slowed near the edge of the rug, he slowed. When she moved around the coffee table, his hand adjusted with hers.
He did not lead. He did not follow. He stayed right beside her.
They stopped near the front door.
Amanda studied them. “You look too serious.”
“We were walking.”
“You’re supposed to like each other.”
Aaron looked down at Meagan. “I can handle that part.”
Her breath caught.
His tone remained light.
His eyes did not.
Meagan looked away. “That kind of comment is exactly why we need rules.”
“What kind?”
“The confusing kind.”
Aaron released her hand.
The loss of warmth was immediate.
Before she could decide why that bothered her, he stepped beside her and placed one hand lightly at the small of her back.
Meagan went still.
His palm rested against the fabric of her blouse, exactly where she had listed as acceptable.
The contact still sent warmth through her.
Aaron leaned closer. “Like this?”
His voice reached her near her ear.
“Yes.”
The answer came out quieter than she intended.
Together, they turned toward the room.
Amanda smiled. “That works.”
“Of course it works,” Meagan said, stepping away.
Aaron’s hand fell.
She immediately missed it.
That was unacceptable.
Meagan returned to the table and picked up the pen.
“Rule four. No kissing.”
Silence fell.
Aaron turned toward her.
Amanda sat slowly.
Jack’s eyebrows lifted.
Meagan kept her attention on the paper.
“This should not be controversial.”
“No one said it was,” Aaron replied.
“Your silence had a tone.”
“I was considering whether there might be circumstances where it became necessary.”
“There will be no reason for it.”
“Then the rule should be easy to follow.”
“Exactly.”
She wrote:
4. No kissing unless absolutely necessary.
Aaron leaned closer. “You added a qualification.”
“To account for unforeseen circumstances.”
“Very practical.”
“It will not be needed.”
“Understood.”
Meagan wrote the next rule.
5. Amanda is not permitted to invent, embellish, publicize, photograph, or otherwise interfere with the arrangement.
Amanda read it upside down. “This feels personal.”
“It is.”
“What about wardrobe consultation?”
“Possibly.”
“Pictures?”
“No.”
“One picture before the gala.”
“No.”
“For memories.”
“They will not be our memories.”
Aaron glanced toward the page. “I’d like a picture.”
Meagan’s pen stopped. “Why?”
“In case the evening goes well.”
“It is a fundraiser, not a vacation.”
“I take pictures at fundraisers.”
“Of table arrangements?”
“Sometimes.”
Amanda pointed toward him. “He understands.”
“He is encouraging you.”
“That is another good quality.”
Meagan added:
One picture. No posting.
Amanda sighed. “Fine.”
Meagan hesitated before writing the final rule.
It was obvious.
A precaution against a problem that did not exist.
Still, she placed the pen against the page.
6. No feelings.
Aaron read the line.
His expression did not change.
That unsettled her more than teasing would have.
Amanda opened her mouth.
Meagan lifted one finger. “No.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“You were about to.”
“I was going to ask whether feelings can read.”
“This is an arrangement. We both know what it is.”
Aaron’s gaze remained on the paper.
“Do we?”
Meagan turned toward him. “It is one gala.”
“I know that.”
“We are pretending.”
“I know that too.”
“Then what is unclear?”
He looked at her with the same direct sincerity he had shown in the driveway.
“Nothing.”
Aaron reached for the pen.
Meagan let him take it.
He drew a check mark beside each rule.
One through five.
At the sixth, he paused.
Only briefly.
Still long enough for Meagan to notice.
Then he checked it as well.
“Agreed.”
Relief moved through her.
It should have felt complete, but it did not.
Amanda sat back. “This is going to go very well.”
“It is going to go exactly as planned,” Meagan corrected.
“Those are not always the same thing.”
Jack stood and began collecting plates.
Tyler carried the empty coffee cups toward the kitchen. Hailey took the pastry box from Amanda before she could claim the final croissant.
The meeting dissolved as quickly as it had formed.
Meagan remained at the table, looking at the rules.
Clear.
Practical.
Temporary.
Aaron sat beside her, his arm resting along the back of his chair.
He tapped one finger near rule three.
“No unnecessary touching.”
“Yes.”
His gaze shifted toward her hand.
“We should probably confirm the practice was convincing.”
“That will not be necessary.”
“You looked nervous.”
“I was concentrating.”
“On walking?”
“On appearing believable.”
His expression softened. “You were.”
“Good.”
Aaron stood and held out his hand.
Meagan stared at it. “What are you doing?”
“Leaving.”
“You do not need assistance.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Then why is your hand there?”
“More data.”
“I told you that phrase belongs to Amanda.”
“She’s influencing me.”
“That is a serious concern.”
He waited.
The others were in the kitchen, pretending not to listen.
Meagan could refuse.
Instead, she placed her hand in his.
His fingers closed around hers with the same easy warmth.
He helped her stand, though she did not need help.
They both knew it.
That was what made the gesture different.
He was not helping because he doubted her ability. He was holding her hand because he wanted to.
Aaron did not release her immediately.
Neither did she.
“This still feels natural,” he said quietly.
Meagan’s pulse moved beneath his thumb.
“That is useful.”
“Is that what it is?”
“For the gala.”
“Of course.”
She looked at their joined hands.
“You cannot say things like that at the event.”
“Like what?”
“That it feels natural.”
“What should I say?”
“Nothing.”
Aaron considered her. “I can do nothing.”
“Good.”
“But I don’t think you’ll believe me.”
Meagan looked up.
His hazel eyes held hers, warm and steady.
“You agreed to the rules.”
“I did.”
“Including the last one.”
“No feelings.”
Aaron’s smile was small.
Almost sad.
He released her hand.
The air felt cooler immediately.
“I agreed not to ask anything from you,” he said.
“That is not what the rule says.”
“No.”
He picked up his keys.
“But it’s the rule I intend to keep.”
Meagan remained still as he walked toward the front door.
She followed because seeing someone out was polite, not because she needed to understand what he meant.
At the doorway, Aaron paused.
“I’ll see you soon.”
“At the gala.”
His mouth curved faintly.
“If that is the next time you want to see me.”
Meagan’s heartbeat stumbled.
Before she could respond, he stepped onto the porch.
She remained in the doorway.
“Aaron.”
He looked back.
She had planned to remind him that this was temporary.
Instead, she asked, “Why did you agree to the last rule?”
His expression changed.
For one second, she saw an answer he had no intention of giving her.
Then the easy smile returned.
“Because you needed me to.”
The words reached her gently.
Meagan forgot how to answer.
Aaron walked toward his SUV.
At the driver’s door, he stopped and looked back.
“For what it’s worth,” he said, “you don’t have to practice making me want to stand beside you.”
Then he climbed into the SUV and drove away.
Meagan remained in the doorway after he disappeared at the end of the street.
Behind her, Amanda inhaled.
Meagan lifted one finger without turning around. “Do not say a word.”
Amanda waited two seconds.
“He has already broken rule six.”
Meagan looked down at her hand.
She could still feel the warmth of his fingers around hers.
“No,” she said.
The denial sounded unconvincing even to her.
“He agreed to the rules.”
Hailey came to stand beside her. “He did.”
Meagan looked toward the empty street.
Aaron had agreed too easily. Now she understood why. The rules were designed to protect her from pretending too well.
They could not protect her from the possibility that Aaron was not pretending at all.