I joined him, looking out at the mountains. For a moment, we stood there side by side, and I let myself imagine this was real, that we really were newlyweds on our honeymoon, with nothing more important to do but snuggle up in the bed together and…
A knock at the door shattered the moment.
"Room service." A voice called out.
Garner opened the door to a server with a tray of chocolate-covered strawberries and two glasses of champagne.
"Compliments of the management," the server said. "Enjoy your stay, Mr. and Mrs. McCrae."
I thanked him and accepted the tray, setting it on the coffee table. "Mrs. McCrae," I mused after he left. "That's going to take some getting used to."
"You'd better start practicing." Garner picked up a strawberry and held it out to me. "Want one, wife?"
I rolled my eyes but took a bite, the sweet juice running down my chin. Without thinking, Garner reached out and wiped it away with his thumb. Our eyes met, and for a heartbeat, neither of us moved.
Then a voice from the hallway broke the spell. "I'm telling you, that was them. Garner and Olivia. They were checking in together."
"Shit," I whispered, recognizing Donna’s voice. She was the receptionist at the Mustang refuge. Why the hell was she at the resort? We weren’t supposed to see anyone we knew. My stomach twisted into a series of knots.
"Guess we really have to sell it now," Garner murmured, his eyes never leaving mine.
I swallowed hard. This fake marriage just got a whole lot more complicated.
CHAPTER 3
GARNER
I knew I was in trouble the second Olivia took that strawberry from my fingers. The way her lips closed around it, the juice trickling down her chin—it was the stuff my late-night fantasies were made of. And when I wiped that droplet away with my thumb, I nearly lost my fucking mind.
Then that voice in the hall changed everything. This wasn't just Liv’s little secret investigation anymore. Now we had a witness. Word would travel fast that Garner McCrae and Olivia Vale were playing newlyweds at some fancy resort.
"What are we going to do?” Olivia said, her cheeks flushed. “It’s not too late to sneak back to Mustang Mountain and put in an appearance at Ace’s so we have an alibi.”
She’d already spent a fortune on the room, and it was too late to get her money back. “Would Sherlock Holmes tuck tail and run at the first sign of trouble? Don’t worry about Donna. We’ll figure something out.”
“Are you sure?”
I wasn’t sure about a goddamn thing, especially how I was going to be able to keep myself under control with that heart-shaped tub mocking me all weekend long. But I’d do anything for her, so I smiled and tried to convince her everything would be fine. “Yeah. No big deal.”
She nodded. “Okay, then. We should unpack. The first session starts at two."
I checked my watch. "That gives us about an hour."
We moved around each other in an awkward dance while we unpacked our things. I tried not to watch as she hung a silky robe in the closet but failed miserably. When she disappeared into the bathroom to change, I sat down on the bed and ran my hands through my hair.
One weekend. I just had to survive a couple of nights in that king-sized bed with her. I could be a fucking adult about it. I’d been through worse.
When she came out, she'd changed into a flowy sundress that accentuated her curves and dipped low in the front. She’d also curled her hair so that it fell in thick waves past her shoulders. I loved it when she wore it down.
"You look nice," I managed, my voice rougher than I intended.
"Thanks." She fiddled with the neckline of her dress. "Is it too much? I wasn't sure what people wear to these things."
"It's perfect." Everything about her was always perfect to me.
I changed into a white button-down and jeans. That was about as close to "resort casual" as my wardrobe got. With my arms covered in tattoos, I probably wasn’t going to fit in with the other guys who'd be at this retreat. Men with clean-cut haircuts and golf shirts who could afford places like this without emptying their savings accounts. For a split second, I wished I’d made different choices or had access to opportunities that would have let me become the kind of guy Olivia deserved. Then I shook myself out of it. No use thinking about things that could have been.
"Ready?" Olivia asked, slipping her phone into a small purse.
