11. Noah/Macey
NOAH/MACEY
Noah
By the pool, we had time to do nothing. Unfortunately for us, that meant catching up with work. I was editing video footage from this morning as Macey frantically typed on her laptop next to me.
I glimpsed yet another look at Macey out of the corner of my eye.
One navy blue bikini was enough to send me to an early grave.
I didn’t know what was appropriate for a fake boyfriend to say or do, so I settled onto my own lounge chair, and she did the same.
We were close enough that I could smell the coconut sunscreen on her skin, mixed with the vanilla orchid oil from the massage.
Macey lifted her head from her laptop. “Sometimes I don’t understand how Victoria graduated with an English degree. She used the wrong version of your versus you are again.”
“Victoria?”
“My boss.” She shut her laptop and placed it into her bag. “She can be difficult to work with, but at least with her I have a path at Roamer’s Digest .”
I paused the video. “Do you guys not get along? ”
“It’s complicated. She’s tough on everyone but only ever rude to me. I know she’s made me a better writer, but sometimes I wonder if it’s worth it.”
“No job is worth losing your sanity. If you learned what you can learn, why stay?”
She stared at me, pensive. “You’re very good at simplifying things.”
“Life’s complicated enough already.”
“True.” Macey pushed her sunglasses up to the crown of her head. “I don’t know why romance books make fake dating out to be this big deal.” She laughed. “All we have to do is hold hands and make moony eyes at each other.”
“Moony eyes?”
“You know, like the I-want-you-so-bad eyes that you toss at me every few minutes.”
I didn’t know how to tell her that was just what happened to my eyes when I looked at her.
No idea when it happened or even how it happened. But whenever she smiled at me, all I wanted was to lean forward and capture those lips in a bruising kiss. It was more than that, though. I wanted to be the reason she smiled in the first place.
Fuck, what was happening to me? Just weeks ago, we both pretended the other didn’t exist in public, and now I wanted to stake a public claim on her.
A waiter paused in front of us. “Can I get you two anything to drink?”
Macey, with her cascading braid and warm eyes, smiled at him. “Could I have a diet coke, please?”
The waiter turned expectantly at me. My eyes caught on the smile still pasted on Macey’s face. “Coconut water.”
After, Macey commented, “Coconut water is severely underrated. Good choice.” The waiter returned a minute later and handed us our drinks. “So what do you do when you’re not posting shirtless selfies?”
“I know you claim I only post shirtless selfies,” I said as I sipped at my water. I wondered if Macey’s skin would taste as sweet. “But I share other content, too.”
I wouldn’t say I had a particular “brand” on social media other than being an attractive guy who got famous. My content was lifestyle focused, and while there wasn’t a typical day in my life, my posts usually focused on gym workouts, food, and activities happening locally.
National events or press trips were included too, just less frequently. If an event wanted to cater to mid-to-late-twenties men, there was a chance I’d be on the list.
“Like your nerdy LEGO collection?”
Daphne spilled that secret to her so easily. I glanced around us, thankful there was no one in hearing distance. “Don’t talk about that.”
“God forbid I ruin your image,” Macey said, equal parts amused and offended.
“That’s all it is,” I insisted. “An image.”
“Really?”
I ran my tongue over the inside of my teeth.
My profile had started real and authentic—it began with Daphne posting daily clips of me working out in the front yard.
Later, when I moved to Chicago, I admittedly had a late-stage rebellious spurt.
My content changed with my lifestyle: breaking into abandoned buildings, throwing wild parties, skipping responsibilities.
That content, plus the famous food blogger fight, continually went viral.
Now I was attempting to keep up the cool guy image without actually doing any of the rebellious things.
Which was tiring, to say the least. I was sick of sharing half-truths about me. It felt like I was becoming only half a person, the other half some kind of doll stuffed with views and like count.
“Really. It might have been true once, but it doesn’t reflect who I am now.”
She leaned closer to me. “And who are you now?”
“An average guy who likes to build LEGOs and who has more followers than the average person.”
“Who do you want to be?”
I paused. “I’m…not entirely sure.”
The sun was warm on my skin, and I shut my eyes for a minute.
In the near distance, waves from the ocean crashed onto rocks.
In front of us, the resort pool was a destination in itself.
The water was a crystalline blue, so clear that I could see the mosaic tiles at the bottom.
Palm trees bordered the pool, their fronds casting playful shadows across the surface.
At the edge, a waterfall tumbled over a rocky ledge, leading to a shallow wading area where children splashed and played.
Paradise.
But then the public relations team ruined the paradise.
“Don’t you two look cozy!” a familiar voice trilled.
Fucking Jennifer.
“How has your day been so far?” Jennifer leaned against the palm tree that shaded our lounge chairs.
Macey lifted the Canon that had been sitting in her lap. “So great. I got some amazing pictures today.”
“Great!” Jennifer clasped her hands together. “Speaking of pictures, can we get one of you two together?”
“Of course.” Macey placed the camera in her tote, then turned to face Jennifer.
Jennifer let out a high-pitched giggle. “I meant, like, together .”
What did that mean?
Macey and I stared at each other for an indeterminate amount of time before something lit in her eyes. “Right, of course.” She cleared her throat before joining me on my lounge chair.
Her thigh pressed against mine, warm and sure.
She grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers and holding them on her lap.
I let out a shaky breath and reminded myself that this was nothing but a gimmick.
But my body didn’t listen, leaning in closer to her.
I very carefully did not show on my face what the electric touch of her so close to me did to my insides.
“You guys are the cutest.” Jennifer swooned and lifted her camera to her eyes. “Smile!”
I thought that would be all, that she’d be happy with that picture and walk away. I should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy.
“Okay, now one of you kissing!”
Macey let out a sound that could only be described as a cross between a whine and a sigh. Neither of which did anything to appease my insides.
I grimaced. “We’re not really PDA people.”
“Just one kiss. It doesn’t have to be anything sensual.”
If she said the word sensual to describe me and Macey again, I’d have to excuse myself and my hand from the pool area.
“It’s fine,” Macey whispered under her breath. “Just one kiss. It’s not a big deal.”
A prickle of irritation shot up my spine. Not a big deal?
It wasn’t a big deal to kiss someone who slithered unwelcome into the depths of my mind? It wasn’t a big deal to kiss someone who saw beyond my fame and called me out on my bullshit? It wasn’t a big deal to kiss someone who I was at present dreaming about doing way more than kissing?
Maybe it wasn’t a big deal to Macey, but it was to me. And I hated it.
“Pass,” I said .
“ Noah .” Macey wheeled back, looking disappointed. She turned to Jennifer. “He’s just nervous.”
Admittedly, I’d never felt nervous around a girl before Macey. With most girls, I was confident, but apparently, when Macey showed that she cared about me, I froze. Now that I could acknowledge we cared about each other, the nerves had relented.
Besides, I didn’t get nervous in the bedroom.
Soft hands squeezed my cheeks, and Macey brought my face closer to hers. “But there’s nothing to be nervous about, right, honey?”
Before I could answer, she was pressing her lips to mine.
The gentle brush of her fingertips caressed my cheek, then unfolded over the angle of my jaw.
They stayed there for—for however long we kissed.
Hell if I knew. Time had completely escaped me.
We could have stayed there for minutes, hours, days.
I should have pulled away the moment I heard the click of Jennifer’s camera. But I didn’t. Instead, I leaned into Macey’s touch like a man lost in the desert, finding not just water but the purest oasis—something I hadn’t known I craved until now, and in impossible, unmeasured amounts.
My blood thickened, moving slowly through my veins like molten honey, every sensation heightened by the warmth of her skin against mine. Yet my heart betrayed me, pounding with a rhythm that threatened to give everything away. And then, just as quickly as it had begun, Macey pulled back.
Her expression flickered for a moment, eyes wide and pink lips swollen, as her confidence in her decision simmered.
Well.
Fuck me.
Jennifer let out a sigh of envy and glanced down at the screen of her camera. “We definitely got the shot. I cannot handle you two, seriously. See you on the cruise!” She waved and strutted off to find some other poor souls to photograph.
Macey’s hands, which were still on my cheeks, dropped suddenly. “Um,” she stuttered.
Who’s the speechless one now?
“That shouldn’t have happened,” I started.
Macey jerked up and reached for her tote. “You’re right, it shouldn’t have.” She tucked a spare tendril of hair behind her ear. “I’m sorry.”
“No, I didn’t mean?—”
“I’m going to go set my camera up for the sunset photos.”
Then Macey ran off, leaving me alone with thoughts that screamed for her to come back.
Macey