Reality—a bully who’d been hiding in the fucking shadows like a coward—chose that moment to jump out and sucker punchStone, wiping the grin from his face and the joy from his heart. “Your plan doesn’t keep Sophie emotionally or physically safe. As much as I like your plan, I’d rather die alone and unhappy than to be the reason one hair on her head is ever hurt.” Which is why he’d spent the last three months miserable.
“That’s the beauty of the plan, “Clarabelle said. “She’ll be protected by fairy magic. The same as any Fairy Godperson.”
“Why all the hoopla? Why can’t I just go to her tonight, and tell her?” Stone asked.
“Because Sophie deserves a grand gesture,” Clarabelle said.
Fuck. “What am I supposed to do for a grand gesture?”
“You’re getting up on that stage—all in the hopes the girl you love will bid on you—will be your grand gesture,” Clarabelle said. “It’s lowkey, and she might not get it at first, but when she does, it will seal the deal.”
“Are you sure she’ll get it? Because I don’t,” Stone said.
Clarabelle gave him a sad shake of her head. “Darling, the mere fact you don’t is why you need that girl in your life. If I recall, you mentioned she once said your fatal flaw was your unwillingness to ever lose control. Thus, your getting up on that stage, hoping for a certain outcome, but having no control over the actual way it turns out, is you losing control for her.”
“He always was the dumb butt in the group,” Ryder said, under his breath.
Stone flipped him the bird. “And if that’s not enough?” he asked Clarabelle.
“Honey, I have faith you’ll figure that one out when the time is right.”
“The way I see it, there’s an eighty-eight percent chance she’s going to tell you to go hump yourself,” Montgomery added.
“The math genius is right,” Stone replied. “Sophie won’t know what I’m hoping for when she sees me on that stage, so she won’t see it as a grand gesture.”
“As I said, darling,” Clarabelle said. “She probably won’t see it as a grand gesture until it’s all over, and that’s okay.”
“If she doesn’t see it as one, why would she bid on me?” Stone asked.
“Because she loves you,” Clarabelle said.
“Yeah, keep up, bro,” Ryder added. “Weren’t you paying attention at the beginning?”
“Why would Ms. Birdie be willing to get involved in any of this, let alone match the highest bid on Sophie’s product?” Stone asked.
Clarabelle’s cheeks went deep pink. “Because she’s a lovely person.”
Stone studied her. “The two of you are in fucking matchmaking cahoots, aren’t—”
A bar of soap in his mouth kept him from finishing.
“That is for me to know, and you to never find out,” Clarabelle said primly.
Chapter 30
Three months had passed since Sophie had told Stone she wanted more out of their relationship—a connection beyond their fake-couple adventures. During that time, she had tried to find the joy in living the life of a professional daydreamer, but the magic had started to wane.
Book boyfriends no longer sparked her the way they had. While they were great as a fantasy, they were unobtainable outside of the page. Sure, she’d scouted real-life versions of men who fit the mold of playboys to grumpy billionaires, from heartthrob celebs to those fixer-upper types you just can’t help but root for, but none fit the bill of a man with dark secrets nor a man with a murky past willing to bare his soul to a lucky auction winner. And Frankie was breathing down her neck to finish the lineup.
Just as Sophie was cataloging another dud, Ms. Birdie fluttered into the doorway of Sophie’s cluttered office, a smirk playing on her lips.
“Do you have a minute to chat?” Ms. Birdie asked.
Sophie beamed up at her, pushing aside a stack of romance novels. “For you, always.” In the past three months, they’d formed a bond. One that started the day Ms. Birdie walked in on Sophie crying and Sophie had spilled her heartache to the woman.
Mischief twinkled in Ms. Birdie’s blue eyes. “Still hunting for a bachelor with a secret?”
“I am,” Sophie admitted, her interest piqued. “Desperately.”
