“I’ll have a black coffee.” He looks at me, tipping his chin toward the glass case filled with the delicious baked goods, which put Darcie’s on the map. “What’s your favorite sweetheart?”
“Oh, everything’s amazing, but if I had to pick, I’d go with the lemon huckleberry bars.”
“Sounds good to me. We’ll take four of those and an assortment of items of your choosing for an even dozen. A donation for the auction would be great as well. The moneyraised will go toward helping fund the new search and rescue team.”
Darcie shakes her head with a smile. “Well, how can I say no to a plea like that? Alright, order coming right up, and of course, I’ll donate to the auction. In fact, I’ll do two items. An assortment of baked goods and a gift basket with a gift card, and I’ll make a cash donation as well. Can’t have lost tourists, that's certainly not good for business.”
My eyes widen at her generosity.
Archer gives her a face-splitting grin as if she’s just offered us a million dollars. “Well now, that’s mighty generous of you. We’ll be sure to make sure your name is right at the top of the donor thank you board.”
The rest of the morning and afternoon goes this way, with Archer charming everyone into donating double what I’d probably have gotten from them. He also announces to everyone that we’re together. It causes a thrill to run through me each time, which is irrational because this is one hundred percent fake.
What’s worse is how he touches me at every available opportunity. I eagerly await each and every moment of it, instead of putting a stop to this whole thing. I keep telling myself it’s only for appearances and to keep Gary away from me. Archer is only graciously playing the part I pulled him into without his consent, but in reality it's unnecessary.
It’s certainly not necessary for him to make such a production out of the farce, but he does. So I enjoy the attention from him. What’s the harm in basking in his annoyingly charismatic, stupidly attractive existence while I can?
I find out exactly what the harm is as we wrap up canvassing the town. The attention from him has scrambled my good sense, and the desire to climb him like the tree he is can be the only explanation for what happens next.
Chapter Six
Archer
“You must be a really great teacher,” I observe after having listened to yet another student stop and talk with Sage.
There have been several who have approached her today as we make our way around town. She stops and gives every single one a smile and attention, making sure they are heard and seen. The kids are excited to see her, sharing stories and asking questions about schoolwork and assignments.
I’m not sure who was looking down on me when I got blessed with this opportunity, but it’s turning out to be the best job of my life. Not only am I getting paid a shit ton of money, but somehow I also landed in the sphere of Sage. Getting to play her boyfriend and know her better is the best perk I never would’ve dreamed of.
You can bet your ass I’m taking every advantage of the situation. I don’t let any opportunity pass that will allow me to touch her. I don’t miss how she no longer tenses when I do, but melts into me as if it’s right where she belongs. Which I’m becoming more and more certain isn’t far from the truth.
She shrugs. “I don’t know about that. I try my best to encourage them and foster their strengths.”
“Well, from what I’ve seen, you have to be one of their favorite teachers. Did you always want to be a teacher?”
She looks away as she shakes her head. “No, I wanted to join my family’s company like my brothers, but my father wouldn’t allow it because it wasn’t appropriate for a lady. So I gave in and got a degree in something he considered suitable. Not that it mattered, because he still disapproves of everything I do, including participating in the lumberjack show.”
A frown pulls at my lips at her admission. “I’m sorry to hear that. It’s tough when we don’t see eye to eye with our family.”
Her eyes jump to mine. “That almost sounds like you have experience with it.”
“Unfortunately, I do. My father, the doctor, doesn’t approve of my career choice. There was no way I could be a doctor or lawyer like he wanted. A degree in forestry certainly didn’t meet his approval.”
My phone rings, and I pull it from my pocket to see the Twilight Inn flash across the screen. “Hello?”
“Mr. Fenton, this is Blair Wheeler at the Twilight Inn. I’m sorry to say I have bad news. A pipe has broken and your room is now flooded. Regrettably, I have no other rooms available.” The poor woman sniffles, sounding ready to burst into tears.
“Well, that is unfortunate. I’ll come by to get my things and find other lodging,” I rush to assure her, having no clue how I’ll manage to do so, given this was the last room available in the area when I booked.
She sniffs. “Thank you, and again, I’m so sorry for the trouble.”
“What happened?” Sage inquires with pinched brows after I disconnect the call.
“My room got flooded at the inn.”
“Oh, no.”
“Yeah, and everywhere else was booked when I got that room. Don’t suppose my girlfriend has room for me?” I grin, only half-joking.
