Karen:Are you in a meeting? I have the good bagels, and I’ll leave them on your doorknob if you can’t come to the door.
I trudged over to the door and found Karen just as she was about to run off.
“Hey girl,” she said, smiling as she raked a hand through her short platinum-blond hair. “I was off today and thought I’d take a walk over to Empire Bagels before the line got too long.”
“You’re a good neighbor,” I said, sliding the handle of the plastic bag off the doorknob.
“And,” she whispered and nodded to where Landon’s SUV was parked behind mine in my driveway. “I thought if you had an overnight guest, warm bagels would be nice.”
I laughed when her brows jumped.
“So the bagels were for intel?”
“I’m a nosy neighbor, and I own it.” She shrugged. “Plus, I’ve told you more about Oliver and me than he would ever want you to know. I thought I’d drop the bagels off now and get the scoop later.”
I hadn’t told a soul that Landon and I had gotten married in Vegas for insurance’s sake—or about my avalanche of feelings for him since. Karen wouldn’t judge, and while she knew I had a best friend Landon who lived in Charlotte, she didn’t know how our relationship had changed and progressed into the potential clusterfuck of lust that it was now.
“How about in exchange for bagels”—I held up the bag—“I’ll make you a cup of coffee and give you the short version of it all.”
“The short version?” Her blue eyes lit up. “Lead the way.”
“But we have to be quiet.” I pressed my finger to my lips. “Landon is asleep upstairs.”
“Landon?” Her brows pulled together as she stepped inside. “Your best friend Landon who lives in North Carolina?”
I nodded and shooed her in, shutting the door behind her.
Was a short version even possible? I guessed the main points didn’t need a lot of detail.
Landon and I had been best friends since college.
He’d married me so I could have his insurance.
We’d kissed at an Elvis chapel, and it had unleashed years of repressed desire we couldn’t rein back in.
And now he was staying in my house.
Maybe therewasa CliffsNotes pocket version of it all.
I made another pot of coffee while she set up the bagels, cream cheese containers, knives, and plates. It was eight thirty but seemed so much later after working since six, and I wasn’t sure what time Landon would get up. I hoped a long day of driving would knock him out until at least nine, but I didn’t have much time to spill my guts.
I went through it all as quickly as I could, Karen saying nothing as I went on, and I glanced behind me every minute or so to check if Landon was coming down the stairs.
“That’s…a lot. Are you ready for when all this explodes?” She bunched her shoulders as if she was about to squeal. “This is so hot.”
I scoffed and gulped my last mouthful of coffee. “I’m glad my life entertains you.”
“Oh come on, appreciate this. You love all those forced-proximity books.” She pointed to my small romance novel collection on the tiny bookcase by my desk.
My love of romance novels had gotten me through the worst of my illness when I didn’t have the energy to do anything else but read. I’d found solace in a good love story with a dependable happy ending since I had no clue what reality was going to bring on a daily basis.
“Well,” she said, tapping her chin. “You started out with marriage of convenience, and now you added forced proximity. A twist.”
I kicked her under the table.
“Morning, Jules.”
My head snapped up to the sexy grumble behind me. Landon held his glasses in one hand as he rubbed his eyes. His black sweatshorts clung to his muscular thighs the same way his T-shirt pulled across his chest. His dark hair was tousled all over the place, and my fingers itched to sift through it. That, with the extra stubble dusting his cheeks, almost made me swallow my tongue.
