“I’m serious. I’m seeing someone.”
I do my best to keep my expression serious, despite how unnatural it feels to lie to my teammates. They’re my closest friends. I’m always honest with them. But I can’t tell them the truth, that this thing with Poppy is fake. Poppy and I agreed not to tell anyone about our arrangement, and I don’t want to betray her trust.
The three of them stare at me for a solid ten seconds with the most confused expressions on their face.
“You have a girlfriend? You? The guy who hooked up with two women on our couch the other night? The guy who is known for never, ever wanting to be in a serious relationship ever?” Blake’s tone drips with disbelief.
“You’re fucking with us. There’s no way,” Travis says.
“I’m not fucking with you. Poppy Wylder is my girlfriend.”
Blake and Leo burst out laughing.
Travis raises an eyebrow at me. “Your sister’s best friend who hates you? The girl who only dates smart guys?”
“Now we know you’re fucking with us,” Blake says.
“No way would Poppy Wylder ever go out with you,” Leo says.
I grin and shrug. “Hate to break it to you guys, but she’s absolutely going out with me.”
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Travis mutters.
As if right on cue, Poppy walks into the diner and glances around. I wave at her, then flash a smug grin at Travis. “You’re about to see it right now.”
I stand up right as Poppy walks over to the booth. I slide my arm around her waist. She instantly stiffens, and her eyes are big as she looks up at me, as if she’s silently saying, “what the fuck are you doing?”
I kiss her cheek. “Guys, you remember Poppy, right?”
They all nod with bewildered looks on their face. They’ve all met Poppy over the years since she’s best friends with my twin sister.
I grin down at her. “My teammates don’t believe that you and I are dating.”
The surprise fades from Poppy’s expression and she aims a pointed look at me. She quirks an eyebrow. “I can understand the shock.”
She turns to them and attempts a smile. “But it’s true. Nick and I are dating.”
Now the three of them are gawking at her in utter disbelief.
“No way,” Blake murmurs.
“Way,” I say through a chuckle. “I snagged my dream girl. Now if you guys will excuse us, I’d like to spend some alone time with my girlfriend.”
“Uh, yeah. Sure,” Travis mumbles.
He, Blake, and Leo walk out of the diner looking confused as ever.
Once they’re out of sight, I pull my hand away from Poppy and slide back into the booth. She sits across from me.
“That little show of PDA was a bit much,” she says. “This is exactly why we need rules.”
I frown at her, confused. “What, that hug I gave you? Or the kiss on the cheek?”
“Both.” Her lips scrunch like she’s annoyed. I can’t help but smile at how cute it is.
“Oh, come on, Poppy. If we’re going to pretend to be a couple, we need to act like it. Otherwise, no one is going to believe this thing is real.”
She sighs, and her expression eases. “You’re right.”
