“You’re myfakegirlfriend. There’s no shirking your responsibility,” I took pleasure in reminding her, “so you’ll be on your knees…weeding. And when you make it real, you’ll be on your knees forme,” I deadpanned
She burst out laughing. Her carefree laughter evaporated the heaviness inside me like fog in sunlight. At least she hadn’t saidin your dreams,giving me the smidgen of hope I longed for.
“Here’s what I propose. We stay here—”
“War—”
I held up a hand, stopping her. “Look, all this traveling takes up time, too. This is where I’ve been living for several weeks. I only go to the city to get in time with my coach and trainer and practice twice a week. And the rest of the days, I’m here, working on the place. There’s food, internet, and you already have your clothes with you.” Before she found another loophole, I added, “You can have my room, do your work. It’s the only room with a bed, anyway. I’ll take the couch. When the weather’s good, you can weed.”
Her jaw dropped, then snapped shut.
I bit back my smile. I didn’t care about the damn weeds, but her reaction was worth it.
She scowled. “If that’s the way you treat your girlfriend, we won’t last very long. But for now, fine, I’ll stay here. Can I have your truck keys, please? I’ll need my things.”
“I’ll go get them.” I strode past her, out to the landing.
“War, wait, wait.” I glanced back. Laughter brimmed in her eyes. “You aren’t really going outside in your underwear, are you?”
“Who’s gonna see me?” I asked, tone nonchalant, when I wanted to grimace. “It’s private property. The place’s massive, full of trees, and fenced off. Total seclusion.” I jogged downstairs in my boxer briefs.
Damn. This girl. She twisted my insides into a mess of knots so complex that I couldn’t even think clearly. But more, she made me smile.
CHARLI
A little while later, showered and changed, I sat on the bed and pulled on socks to warm my chilled feet, so glad the cold shower had cooled me down after having a conversation with War in his underwear and with his arousal visible…
God! The guy was temptation personified.
It had been damn hard to concentrate on our convo and pretend I wasn’t in the least bit affected at the sight of all that hotness in front of me. Thank God I was a woman. I let out a heartfelt sigh.
The double glass doors leading to a wooden deck overlooking the backyard drew my attention. Despite the rain and gloomy day, the glorious stretch of the moody gray-blue sea drew me. It must be a wonderful sight on a sunny morning.
I rose and finger-combed then parted my damp hair, pulling the pieces into twin knots on my head and securing each with hairgrips, taking in War’s spacious bedroom. The walls were painted in a neutral shade of…I tried to think of a color… icy fog—yes!—that was it. It offset the white ceiling trims and deeper gray marble floors in a soothing harmony.
War was a neat freak. Not a thing was out of place. Even his covers were military crisp, except for the minor creases from when he’d dumped me on it earlier. Just thinking about him, and my heart clopped faster. Jesus, I was his girlfriend!
In name only, sure, but still.
How could I have been so wrong thinking he only wanted to hook up?
Grimacing, I shut out thoughts of what a tangled web I’d fallen into and unpacked my stuff, using the space he’d given me in his dressing room. My things put away, I removed my laptop and tablet from my duffle and left them on the bed, then set my novels on the bedside table.
Smiling at the sloth’s head poking out from my tote, I rescued him and crawled on the mattress. “You, Sid, stay right here, next to me, no climbing anywhere…” I leaned the sloth against the pillow then stopped, arching an eyebrow at the creature. “What am I saying? By the time you do come to my side, I’ll be done with work.” I snorted-laughed at my own joke and piled the pillows behind me, still trying to come to grips with the fact I was girlfriend to the worst of the players in San Francisco.
I shook my head. This was all my fault, so no point in crying about it now. I just had to suck it up and keep my attraction—heck, my feelings—under lock and key. And I was good at that, at shielding myself.
I dug into work. The notes and story from the author downloaded forLaye’s Starflight Adventuremade me smile. Man, to be so young again, living in the utopia of a child’s world without a care. I had that for a brief moment when Dad was alive, and Mother actually acted like my mom.
Shutting it all out, I got cracking, jotting down notes of what I needed from the author’s specifics in his email. Then I did a brief sketch of the first few pages of the scenes on my drawing pad for myself. Tablet connected to my laptop, I flipped on my stylus and started working on the roughs—imaging scenes and the layout for approval…
It was the tightness in my shoulders that finally had me stopping. I set my tablet and pen down and stretched, popping my stiff spine. A quick glance at my phone showed it was almost three. I’d been working for four hours straight, and War hadn’t disturbed me once?
My cell beeped with a text.
Ila.Don’t forget my gallery showing in a few days.
I snorted. As if I could.Yes, Friday.I’ll be there bright and early. Or late.I hit send.
