“Then let’s see how tonight goes, and if we can skip the brunch.”
“Fat chance of that—don’t get your hopes up.”
I should just let all hope go at this point….
The signing went smoothly this afternoon. It lasted long enough to review the documents, sign along the dotted line, and make it official. We parted ways so we could prepare for the evening and pack overnight bags. We’re staying at the hotel where the party is being hosted to fit the narrative of a couple in love and excited to celebrate. What a fucking joke. However, I’ll probably be ready to blow off steam by the end of this anyway.
The car I hired until tomorrow parks alongside the curb in front of Rebecca’s house. Unlike my brother, who enjoys being chauffeured everywhere, I prefer to drive myself. Though tonight, I thought it best to play it up for the paparazzi and give them what’s expected. There’s also a part of me that doesn’t want to share my personal pleasures with Rebecca. Those are reserved for special people in my life, and she doesn’t qualify.
This happens to be the first time I’ve seen where she lives since we’ve always met on location. It’s not terrible, but it’s also not great, so I can understand why she pushed so hard for us to move in together before the wedding. It was one of my sticking points during our talks that I didn’t budge on in order to support the boundaries of this arrangement. I won’t dangle any carrots for her to grab onto.
Sustaining the precedent I’ve set, I type a quick text telling her to come on out. Fuck. I’m aware that I’m being a complete asshole, but it’s one of the few things justifying this whole situation to myself. I can’t give her the best of me—it doesn’t feel right. She may not be the one to blame and doesn’t deserve this treatment, but if I behave any other way, then I’ll sacrifice my last ounce of self-preservation. There’sonly one person the real me is reserved for, and since my last shred of hope refuses to snap, Rebecca gets what I’m willing to give her.
The front door opens, and Rebecca emerges looking at ease for the engagement party. She resembles the right amount of sexy and class in a tight green dress that stops just above her knees with a modest neckline. It’s sleeveless and showcases her attractive shoulders.
The driver rushes to take her bag before opening the back door.
I smile as she settles in. “You look lovely.” I’m not a jerk all of the time.
“Back at you. Thanks for the ride,” she says demurely.
“It’s the least I could do for our big night.” I wink. “Speaking of which….” I reach into my pocket and pull out a box, handing it to her. “It would look odd if my fiancée didn’t have a ring, so I picked this up today.” I’d asked her size this morning, so I’m sure this isn’t a surprise, but she looks excited nonetheless.
Opening the box, her hand flies to her mouth as if it’s the most beautiful thing in the world. “Oh my gosh, Eli, it’s gorgeous.”
“I’m glad you like it since you’ll be wearing it for the next couple of years.” It’s not anything extraordinary for my level of wealth, but I do have standards to live up to and reasoned a three-carat solitaire would suffice.
“I love it. Thank you. Really, it’s… perfect.” She stares in awe until I suddenly do something unexpected.
“Here, let me help.” I take the box and remove the ring, reaching for her left hand to slide it onto her finger until it stops. She takes over, pushing it the rest of the way, then holds it out to admire it.
“Wow. This is really happening,” she says in wonder.
We ride in silence for a while as she stares at her ring.
It’s important we arrive in good spirits, so I go with a peace offering. “I’m sorry this isn’t quite how you pictured things between us. Even though I’m not interested in more than our arrangement, I’mgrateful to spend the next couple of years with someone who’s not a stranger. There may not be love, but I’d like to be friends.”
She beams at my words, then adds, “Friends with benefits.”
I chuckle. “Yes… that.”
“And since we’re staying overnight, we’ll be able to take advantage of those benefits again, right?” Her voice becomes seductive as her hand slides up my thigh toward my crotch.
“No reason not to,” I respond as her hand tightens around the unavoidable bulge in my pants—sex is sex, and he’s eager at the prospect. However, I can’t be altering the rules on day one and allowing anything out of the bedroom. Grabbing her wrist, I remove it from my crotch and place it back into her lap.
“But let’s wait until later. We have a show to put on first. Are you ready?” I gesture behind her toward the sidewalk we’re pulling up to with a jerk of my head. Various reporters are already loitering along the front of the building, anticipating our arrival.
We alerted the media about the party so they could take pictures and ask questions all at once, hopefully getting it over with and avoiding any gossip or speculation. Rebecca and I devised a plausible story of our courtship that isn’t too far from the truth. No one needs to know that every “date” consisted of meeting in a hotel room for sex. In all honesty, the amount of talking we’ve done over the last few months was minimal. In fact, we knew very little about each other before last week when we decided to do a crash course on our lives.
We needed enough familiarity with each other to at least make it through tonight with all eyes scrutinizing our previously unknown relationship. To most, it will be a surprise to say the least. Our story is that we wanted time outside the public eye to date and enjoy our time together, so we decided to keep it under the radar until necessary. And here we are.
“I am,” she says assuredly.
My eyebrows go up in skepticism, and she laughs.
“Come on, this’ll be fun. Think of it as an acting gig with some improv. And the good news? We both have rewards to look forward to.” She seductively tilts her brows.
“Is that so? Well, in that case, let’s put on our best show.” I wink.
