“Should I bring it up tonight?”
“And say what? Remember that time yesterday when you kissed me after we had pepperoni pizza? Just be natural.”
“I was natural with Mark.”
Frankie’s eyes softened. “I know you were. But for what it’s worth, I never liked Mark. Even before he dumped you.”
Lola bit her lip. “You mean, before he dumped me for that young twenty-two-year-old.”
“Oh geez, Lola. You sound like you’re an old spinster. You’re only twenty-six. And anyway, Mark was too…” Frankie pressed a finger to her mouth as she considered.
“Too serious?” Lola supplied. “Too reserved?”
Frankie thrust her finger into the air. “Too much of a dick.”
Lola burst into laughter, and her friend joined her. She loved these moments with Frankie. Laughing until their bellies hurt. When they were roommates in college, they’d stayed up the whole first night talking. Frankie had her in hysterics. She knew from that moment that they’d be friends for life.
After a few more moments of giggling, they settled down. Lola couldn’t help it; she grew pensive again.
“Luke doesn’t do relationships. He doesn’t want a girlfriend. This is all pretend. For real. Some guys say no relationships, but I think this guy like literally means it.”
Frankie bit her lip. “Do you want it to be more than pretend?”
She shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant when really she felt anything but. Almost everything she knew about Luke so far turned her on. He was attractive and funny. He rolled with the punches and fit in well with her friends. He was decent at bocce, and man could he kiss.
The only thing that bugged her was the lying factor. It really rubbed her the wrong way that he could so easily fool his family.
“It’s something to keep in mind while we’re faking this relationship.”
Frankie stayed silent for a moment. A very long moment, which was unusual for her typical chatty friend. Finally, she said, “Yes, it is.” She tapped Lola’s heart. “It’s important to protect this.”
The mood had turned solemn, and it was unsettling for Lola. She tried to lighten it. “I thought you wanted me to have fun.”
“Oh, I do. So long as you can remember to only have fun with Luke. Nothing more.”
“Don’t worry, Frankie. I can do that.”
The problem was that Lola didn’t know if she could follow up on that promise. Luke may be lying to his family, but she’d just lied to her best friend. She didn’t know if she could keep herself from falling for Luke.
…
Luke stared at his phone and shook his head. He needed a drink.
He’d officially told his mom and sisters that he was dating someone and that he would be bringing his new girlfriend to the family reunion on Saturday.
This announcement was followed by an insane amount of text messages that contained more exclamation points than he’d ever seen in his entire life. Winnie shot him a bitmoji that featured her avatar pumping her fists into the air. Mia sent him a text with fireworks bursting in the background. He wasn’t sure what his mother tried to say, because it had been autocorrected.
Only his sister Gwen seemed less than enthused. In fact, her response was concise and filled with suspicion.
A new girlfriend? And right before the family reunion. How convenient.
Gwen always was the cynical one. And the perceptive one. And the one who was usually right.
Shit.
He and Lola would have to stay on their toes around her. Speaking of Lola, she was due at his place any minute. They were going to spend the evening getting to know each other on a couple’s level.
Luke didn’t know if their kiss the other day would make that harder or easier. All he knew was that he hadn’t stopped thinking about it since.
The sexy librarian kissed like a dream. It was too good to be true.
Still, Luke wasn’t interested in a relationship. Even though he didn’t know her that well yet, he knew enough to realize that Lola McBride was a relationship kind of girl. Nothing wrong with that. It’s just that he shouldn’t have kissed her.
He wanted to kiss her again.
Damn. Luke tried to run a hand through his hair until he remembered that he’d recently chopped it all off.
He needed to remind himself that this wasn’t a real date. He’d just met Lola not even a week earlier. Plus, he had been honest with her about his feelings on relationships.
But had he been honest with himself?
He shook his head and glanced around his condo. Okay, so maybe he had cleaned up the place a bit in anticipation of his fake girlfriend coming over. And he’d lit a couple candles. So what? They always did that in those design shows his sister Winnie forced him to watch.
It created ambiance. There was nothing wrong with that.
And there had been nothing wrong with that kiss yesterday either. But should he mention it tonight? Would she? What if she did and wanted to like, talk about it in depth?
Better yet, what if she wanted to repeat it? That would be much more preferable to talking.
There was a knock on his door, and he immediately glanced in the closest mirror. He ran a hand over his recently shaved jawline.
What was he doing? This wasn’t a real date.
He yanked the door open, and his mouth immediately watered. Lola stood there looking like sex on a stick in short jean shorts and an, um, flattering, tank top. Very flattering. It showcased all of her curves.
“Hi,” she said shyly.
“Hey, Lola, come on in.” His voice came out huskier than he would have liked. But he ignored that and ushered Lola inside.
“Great place,” she said, setting her bag down and taking a small lap around his condo.
It was a newer building that had been constructed in the last year. Just in time for him to move back to Arlington. It boasted two bedrooms, two baths, a killer balcony that would have a view of the fireworks over the Washington Monument on the Fourth of July. He had granite countertops, all new appliances, and dark laminate floors.
“It’s so grown-uppy,” Lola said. “Kind of puts my apartment to shame.”
Lola lived in South Arlington where the buildings tended to be older than here in North Arlington. Luke was glad he’d bought the place and loved all of the modern conveniences. But he had to admit that his place lacked character. Sometimes it felt like he was living in a Williams Sonoma catalog. Winnie claimed it needed a woman’s touch.
Lola plopped down in his oversize chair and pushed her long hair over her shoulder. All of a sudden, his condo started feeling a lot homier.
“Okay, time for operation get to know each other,” she said with a nod.
“Well, not yet.”
He jogged into the kitchen and returned with two bottles of beer. “You like? Wait, you’re probably into wine, aren’t you?”
“First lesson on Lola McBride,” she said with a smile. “I prefer beer to wine.”
“You’re full of surprises.” He opened both bottles of beer with his trusty bottle opener shaped like the Golden Gate bridge and handed one over to her. “Have you eaten yet?”
She shook her head.
“Let me order us some dinner. I know you like pizza, but since you just had that, do you want burgers, Chinese, or something else?”
“Oooh, a burger sounds great.”
He pulled up his UberEATS app and ordered two burgers from a nearby place, an order of fries for Lola and onion rings for himself. Then, they settled back in to get to know each other.
“I’m not sure where to start,” Luke said.
“You already know I like beer and burgers. Let’s see…” She tapped her finger against her lips, drawing his attention there like a moth to a flame. “My favorite color’s pink. I like to go to the movies.”
“What’s your favorite movie?”
“The Notebook.”
Luke couldn’t help it. His eyes rolled of their own a
ccord. “Of course it is.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
He gestured at her with his beer. “Can you explain to me why every woman in the world loves that movie? It’s so depressing.”
She let out a strangled sound. “What the hell is wrong with you? Number one”—she began ticking off her fingers—“Ryan Gosling. Number two, it’s a beautiful love story. Number three, Ryan Gosling.”
“I think I’m seeing a pattern here.”
“What’s your favorite movie?”
“I dunno. Star Wars probably. Or maybe Goonies.”
She smiled. “Good choices.”
“Even though Ryan Gosling isn’t in them?”
She wiggled her eyebrows. “Young Harrison Ford and young Josh Brolin are.”
“Women.” He threw his hands in the air and made her laugh.
An hour later, their burgers had been delivered and consumed. Luke handed Lola another beer and settled back into his comfy couch with his own. They’d been talking nonstop, and he had to admit that he enjoyed getting to know her.
She wasn’t like other women he’d dated. The night they met he’d thought she seemed more genuine than most people. Tonight only confirmed that notion. She was real and sincere. Nothing phony about her. She answered every question he came up with, giving thought to each answer.
He glanced at her now. She took a sip of beer and then wiped her mouth with her napkin, before throwing it on her empty plate.
“That burger was great.”
She grinned, which lit up her eyes. Luke could tell, even with her glasses on. It was like a fist to the gut. He was so drawn to her smile.
Sitting back against the cushion of the chair, she got comfortable. “So, we’ve covered favorite colors, movies, bands, and foods. Plus, we talked about past vacations and future wish-list destinations.”
“We also know first concerts and first kisses.” He snickered.
“Stop making fun of me.” She threw the cap of her beer at him, which Luke easily caught. “I swear I had no idea.”
“What did the guy say to you again?”
She turned her head and kept her lips firmly shut.
“Oh yes. He said that he loved French things and wanted to show you something from France.” Luke burst out laughing. “That is the cheesiest line ever, and trust me I’ve used some bad ones.”
She joined him on the couch and shoved his shoulder. “Shut up. I was young and impressionable.”
“But you had to see right through his motives for getting you alone.”
She guffawed. “Hardly. He said he needed a French tutor, and I was really good in French class.”
“Apparently your tongue was quite good, too.” He winked at her, and she hit him again.
“Anyway…we need to come up with some stories about our relationship now,” she said.
“What do you mean?”
“Surely your family is going to ask how we met. That’s always the first question when you start dating someone new.”
Good point. He hadn’t thought of that but should have. With his busybody mom and aunts, not to mention his overly curious sisters, they were sure to grill him on Lola.
“Why don’t we tell the truth? It will be easier on us to not have to remember a lie.”
She pinned him with a stare. Even though looks were silent, this one screamed are-you-freaking-kidding-me.
“What?” he asked on a laugh. He couldn’t help but be amused by her.
“Fake relationship or not, there is no way I’m going to tell your family that I met you by dressing all crazy and sneaking into a reunion that I was not invited to.”
He remembered how Lola looked the night they met. He’d thought she was the most beautiful woman he’d seen in a long, long time. “I don’t think you looked crazy that night.”
She jabbed a finger into his chest. “That’s what you get out of my statement. Do you really think I go around dressed like that?”
You should. Luke grinned. “Nothing wrong with a short dress. It was flattering.”
“It was indecent.”
“Not from where I was standing.”
“Men.” She shook her head. “Don’t make me spill Jell-O on you again.”
Luke raised his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. You’re bringing out the big guns. Still, I think my mom would get a kick out of our story.”
Our story. Luke froze at his own words. They sounded so intimate. When was the last time he shared a story with a woman?
“There is no way on earth I’m going to tell your mother about that. ‘Hi, Mrs. Erickson, so nice to meet you. I crashed an event in a ridiculous outfit, spilled Jell-O on your son, and stole a prize basket from an actual alum when I first met Luke.’” She blew out a breath, which caused her bangs to flutter.
“Okay, fine. If we can’t go with the truth, what do you want to say?”
She twirled her beer bottle in her hand as she considered. “Why don’t we say we met online? Isn’t that how most people meet now?”
He supposed it was. He had a ton of friends who met on Tinder and Bumble. Still, he’d never actually signed up for any online dating sites or apps. One of his sisters—probably Gwen—was sure to call him out on it. But since Lola didn’t want to tell the truth, he’d go with it.
“Fine. We met online. Not that exciting, but hopefully it will suffice.”
Lola was staring at the door to his balcony. A dreamy expression crossed her face. The setting sun was streaming into his condo. She was aglow with the light from the sunset.
“That’s beautiful.”
So was she.
Luke shook his head. He had to stop. He couldn’t keep having thoughts like this about Lola. Not while they were pretending to be dating for his family’s sake.
Still, he couldn’t take his eyes off her. When was the last time he’d felt such a strong physical pull toward a woman?
“Come on,” he said suddenly. He rose and crossed to the balcony door, sliding it open and waiting for her to join him. “I have to admit that the view and the balcony sold me on buying this place.”
He led her outside where he had a small table and two chairs. In one corner, his grill sat, cover on. At the other end of the space was a small herb garden. Flowers bloomed from boxes hanging over the ledge. All of the plants were a contribution from his sisters. Winnie often stopped by to make sure he was watering them.
Lola sat in one chair, and he took the other. Their beers were on the table. A mixture of smells wafted up to them from the restaurants below. Between the Indian place, the all-American pub, and the Thai restaurant, his nose was assaulted with a bevy of aromas.
They sat in comfortable silence, observing the changing sky. A large red orb held court in the middle of orange, pink, and yellow streaks across the sky. It made for a gorgeous end of day and beginning of night.
“I would spend all my time out here,” Lola finally said.
“It’s great.” Unfortunately, he didn’t use this space as much as he should.
“Do you barbeque often?” she asked, gesturing toward the grill.
“Sometimes.” Again, not as often as he should. “I haven’t lived here all that long yet, though.”
“I can’t believe you own a place. That’s wild. It’s so expensive around here.”
“True, but not as expensive as Manhattan.”
She nodded, as if accepting the validity of his statement. “Which neighborhood did you live in there?”
“A couple. But most of my time was spent in Tribeca.”
“I like that area,” she said. “Are you happy you moved back here?”
Luke had mixed feelings. He liked the D.C.-area. But there were demons here he wished would hide. Unfortunately, he’d found that running away hadn’t helped.
He didn’t want to get into all that with Lola though. “It’s been pretty uneventful. Well, until last Saturday when I met this person who’s subjected me to reunion crashing and runaway dogs.”
She laughed and took a sip of beer. “Should we go over more personal questions?”
He choked on his beer. “More? How could you have more? I think you know everything about me. More than my best friend. All my deep, dark secrets.”
“Hm.” She tilted her head. “What size shoe do you wear?”
Luke was torn between rolling his eyes and letting out a chuckle. Lola was nothing if not thorough. “Do you really think my family is going to care—or even wonder at all—if we know each other’s shoe sizes?”
She nailed him with a solemn stare.
“Okay, fine.” He gave in to the eye roll. “I wear a thirteen.”
She did something he didn’t expect. Her eyes widened and immediately flicked down to his lap.
What?
Then it hit him. The old adage of big feet, big…other parts. His face felt hot. Holy hell, was he blushing now? He snuck a glance at Lola. Her eyes were still clamped on his lap, and her cheeks were redder than the setting sun.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to ask that.”
“Uh, that’s okay. No big deal,” he said.
“Great. Cuz, you know what they say?” She groaned.
“Yeah, I know. And I do.”
“Do what?” Her eyes flipped up to meet his.
“Have big feet. And, you know…”
“Oh. Oh! Um…well, great. That’s good to know.”
He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I’m not trying to brag, but I just mean, well, if we’re dating, we’ve surely…” He moved his hand back and forth between them.
“Right,” she said quickly. “We would definitely have done that.”
“So you would know about my, uh…”
“Shoe size,” she finished for him. If it was possible, the color on her face grew even brighter.
Luke took a long—very, very long—swig of his beer. The cold liquid did nothing to extinguish his boiling libido. Suddenly he felt incredibly uncomfortable, especially in the pants area.
Great. Now all he was thinking about was his big feet. And sex. Sex with Lola. Sex on the balcony. Sex on the balcony with Lola, his big feet planted firmly on the concrete as he took her from behind.
Her Super-Secret Rebound Boyfriend Page 6