“It’s a pleasure to meet you, darlin’.”
The way he says darlin’ in a southern accent has a shiver rolling down my back so I pull my hand from his and look up to Tate.
“I think I’m going to head out. It’s been a long day.”
Tate smirks and shakes his head. “Not yet, baby girl. We still have a show to put on.”
I can feel my cheeks heat up at the casual way he calls me baby girl and when I remember that he said we would make out here in front of everyone to sell the lie. I swallow hard as my eyes flash to Beckett and Jude and see the amusement on their faces.
That’s nice, what a bunch of jerks! This is a big joke to them. I’m a joke to them. Angry at myself for getting into this I snap at Tate, “Fine, let’s get this over with!”
Tate’s arm tightens around my shoulders and his brows go up at my tone but he just chuckles. “Relax, Savy, I promise this won’t hurt a bit. You might even enjoy it if you let yourself.”
I huff out a breath and give him a sharp nod. Yeah, that might be the biggest problem with all this. My head might know that everything he’s going to do to me is for a show, is fake - but my body doesn’t seem to care. I let him pull me over to where the room is cleared for a dance floor and he positions us right in the center for maximum exposure. His hands land on my hips and he pulls me right up against him and starts to sway us to the beat. I don’t know what to do with my hands so I end up just placing them on his chest and right away my fingers want to travel. The hard ridges and planes that I can feel under his shirt make me wonder what he would look like without it on.
Fake, this is all fake and I need to remember that or I’m going to end up crushing on this guy and making a fool of myself again, so I pull back slightly.
Tate makes a noise of frustration and grabs my hands and drags them up and around his neck. His hot breath hits my ear as he whispers, “Savy, you have to make a little bit of an effort here or this won’t look real.”
I groan and huff out, “I don’t know what to do. I’m not exactly experienced in these kinds of things!”
He chuckles against my neck and it sends goosebumps all over my skin.
“Just follow my lead. Do what feels natural. You need to help me sell the fantasy.”
And that right there is exactly what I needed to hear to let go and do this. I might not have my wings and mask on but I’m an expert at selling something that’s not real. I push Savy to the side and let the Butterfly out to dance.
I let myself melt into him. Slowly, I drag my hands down over his chest and then back up to circle his neck and slide into all that thick dark blond hair. One of my thighs slides between his and my hips rock and grind against him. I keep my eyes down, fixated on his chest, and dance like I’m behind bars. Judging by the way he groans, I’m doing just what he wanted.
The fingers of one of his hands dig into my hip while the other slides down to cup my ass and pull me even closer. His hard thigh is between my legs and there’s no way to stop my traitorous body from grinding down on it. It doesn’t matter that my skirt has ridden up; it doesn’t matter that there are too many judgmental eyes zeroed in on me. All that matters is the glorious friction between my legs and the way it makes my whole body shudder with pleasure. My head falls back as I gasp out a breathy whine of need and they meet Tate’s surprised gaze.
“L-like this?” I ask in a whisper.
The hand on my hip travels up my side until it reaches the back of my neck to hold me still. His head drops down so our mouths are a breath away from touching.
“Fuck, you’re good. It’s like you just flicked a switch and became someone else. Don’t stop, keep going, Savy.”
His lips take mine and I’m gone. I couldn’t stop if I wanted to. I thought the way he kissed me before was hot but this is next-level heat. An inferno. He doesn’t wait for me to open my mouth for him, he invades it and then conquers it, kissing me ferociously, like he will starve without my mouth. I feel his lips, his tongue…teeth that nip my bottom lip and it does wicked, wicked things to my core. My panties and tights feel soaked with wet heat as his thigh grinds hard against my pussy and I’m seconds from coming right here in a packed room full of people watching us. My fingers make a fist and pull at his hair and the moan that I make is borderline obscene when he finally pulls back. I blink up at him through slightly fogged-up glasses and all the heat I was just feeling turns to ash at the laughter I see in his eyes.
“That was perfect. Now we can hurry out of here and everyone will assume it’s so we can go fuck. Let’s go.”
I’m still dazed as Tate drags me from the dance floor toward the front door but I’m not so far gone that I don’t hear the whispers and insulting jokes from some of the people we pass on the way out.
TATE
Holy shit, for a mousy little thing that’s never had a boyfriend, Savy sure stepped up tonight. When I told her to sell the fantasy she did not disappoint. It was like she became someone else for a minute and it was kind of hot. Scratch that, not kind of hot…it was hot. I glance over at her in the passenger seat as I drive her home. She’s been quiet and staring out the window ever since she gave me directions to her place. It’s almost like she’s embarrassed. I park in front of her building and turn to her.
“Hey, you okay? You did great tonight. I know it’s out of your comfort zone but you really came through for me and sold it, so thank you for that.”
She slowly turns to face me but doesn’t say anything for a few moments and then sighs.
“Listen, I don’t think this is going to work out. I really don’t fit in with your crowd, Tate. Even your friends thought it was a big joke.” She rubs her forehead frowning. “You have to understand, I’m…I’m a nobody. People don’t notice me and I’m okay with that but being out there as your girlfriend? That puts a huge target on my back that I really can’t handle. I…I don’t have friends like you do. You have people who have your back. I don’t and that means when this all falls apart, I’ll be left to face the backlash and ridicule all on my own. I’m sorry. I can’t do this.”
I get where she’s coming from and I feel a tiny bit bad for her but fuck no. I have too much riding on this year for me and I need her to go along with this whether she wants to or not.
“I hear you but it’s too late now. We just put on a show in front of all those people. I know how those dicks work. If you stop this now, you’ll be labeled a slut and your sister will have all the fuel she needs to make your life miserable. Or, you play along, be my fake girlfriend, help me with tutoring and we ride this out till the end of the season and go our separate ways.”
She gapes at me while shaking her head. “I’m screwed either way, aren’t I?”
