We are sitting at my place having brunch, and I am telling her about the way Keith and his pet skank reacted when Romeo pretended to be my boyfriend.
I snort again, making her laugh harder before falling off the sofa we are sitting on. My stomach tightens, and I am gasping for air.
My cheeks hurt from laughing because come on, laughter is great medicine to help blow away any shitty thoughts that your ex-husband planted in your head.
Fuck that prick.
Oh no, I did that and look where it got me.
“Okay,” I gasp. “Okay.” I try to get my breathing back under control.
I blow out a breath to calm myself and sit upright, trying to get more air into my lungs. Drying my eyes from of my laughter tears, I let out about sigh, then smile seeing Simone compose herself.
“Oh fucking hell, babe, I needed that.” She huffs, chuckling.
Getting back to the sofa, she sits across from me, both of us mirroring each other cross-legged.
“So, this Romeo is hot with a capital ‘H’?” she asks, and I nod.
“Like, so fucking hot. He has dark blond hair that is unruly curly, you know like the blond from that Navy cop show.”
“NCIS LA?” I nod and click my fingers at her.
“That’s the one. Add him in a suit that fit him like a glove. Like it was made just for him.”
“Damn,” she says, looking at her phone. Her eyes widen then she turns the phone around to face me.
“That him?”
There in all his hot glory is Romeo De Massy. My body heats seeing him on the phone but the image does not do him justice.
“He is way hotter in person and damn, he smells good.”
“So, let me get this right. This man” —she holds the phone up for me to see again— “came to your rescue when dick-man and his pet skank decided to harass you. He said that you owe him, so you have to be his date for a family wedding with an all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii, and all you have to do is pretend to be his woman.”
“Yep.” I sip my orange juice, my mouth suddenly dry.
Every word she speaks sends a wave of excitement and nausea through me.
Within seconds of me texting Romeo and agreeing to the deal, my freakout started. What the hell am I doing agreeing to this? I have seen the women he has been photographed with; I did my research before Simone came over.
Romeo De Massy is a womanizer. He dates supermodels, underwear models and fuck, I even saw one article say that he was dating some singer.
If I'm being honest, I know I am going to get my heart broken. But for a man like Romeo, maybe it's worth the risk. Mystupid ex-husband always made me do reckless things I never wanted to do, and now, even though we're not together anymore, I still find myself getting swept up in situations I can't control.
Fucking shitballs.
There is a knock on my door, making us both jump.
Jumping to my feet, I rush to the door, swinging it open to reveal a man dressed in a sharp black suit. He smiles at me warmly, and I see that he is holding a black envelope.
“Nell Bana?”
I nod. “Yes. Can I help you?”
“Just being you is enough, Miss. This is for you, from Mr. De Massy.” Tilting my head, I regard what he just said.
“Romeo send me this?” I ask, taking it from him.
