She lifts a brow, and I don’t blame her. I don’t have theright to ask her anything, but she’s the only woman I know semi-well in Beckford, and after our date, I feel comfortable around her.
“You have every right to tell me to shove it and never talk to me again, but I kind of hope you won’t because I like you, and I’m hoping we’re friends,” I ramble, trying to think of a reason for me to ask this of her without giving away my secret.
“You like me?” she asks, amusement coating her tone.
“As a friend,” I confirm, wanting to make sure she’s under no illusion this will become anything more. “A good friend. I’m sorry I can’t give you anything more than that.”
“I appreciate your honesty, and while I won’t lie and say I’m not disappointed, I’d like to be your friend.” Her lips tug into a smile. “Yourgoodfriend.”
Relief floods through me that she’s not mad at me after shutting her down after our date, but I still don’t know how to word my request without offending her.I just want to be your friend, but will you fake date me tomorrow morning to get my dad off my back because he thinks I’m gay?While I like her, I’m not ready to share my deepest, darkest secrets with her yet.
When I don’t say anything, Hannah gives a nervous laugh. “Okay, spill it, Noah. What’s this huge favour?”
“My dad’s in town,” I say, stalling.
“We’ve ascertained that,” she says, nodding. “And?”
I draw a deep breath and let it all out in a single breath, the words melding together. “I need you to be my fake girlfriend to keep him off my back.”
She blinks. “I’m sorry, what?”
I run a hand over my face and repeat the words, slower this time. “Will you pretend to be my girlfriend over breakfast with me and my dad tomorrow?”
She stares at me like I have two heads. “Let me get thisstraight. You don’t want to date me because your life is really complicated, but you want me to be your fake girlfriend in front of your dad?”
“That pretty much sums it up.”
Her face scrunches in confusion. “Why?”
Shit. I need to think fast. It needs to be something believable, but also something that won’t naturally come up in conversation.
“He, uh…” I glance at the television above the bar, seeing an ad for the latest season ofThe Bachelor,and a crazy idea pops into my head. “He wants to marry me off to one of his business partner’s daughters to, um, strengthen the company or some bullshit. I’m almost finished school, and he’s been hounding me about the engagement and moving back to Perth, so I kind of told him I was seeing someone.”
“But you don’t want a real girlfriend?”
I shake my head. “Sorry. Like I told you last night, I’m not in the right headspace to be in a relationship right now.”
At least not the kind my father would approve of.
She bites down on her lower lip as she contemplates everything I’ve just dropped on her.
I sit silently, my knee bouncing under the table as I wait.
“What would this fake relationship entail?”
Hope sparks in my chest.
“You’ll have breakfast with me and my dad in the morning and sell the relationship so he lays off for a while.”
“That’s it?”
I nod. “That’s it.”
She taps her manicured fingers on the table. “How long will this fake relationship last?”
“As long as my dad’s in town.”
“Okay, so fill me in on all the details of our relationship.”
