by Claire Adams
I shook my head and contemplated ordering another drink. It wouldn’t make me feel any better, but maybe it would make me forget about the dinner for a while. The waitress returned saying my date had paid the bill at least. It was a surprise to the both of us.
I decided against ordering another drink and readied my stuff to leave. A man with a balding head and dark blue eyes approached me as I slipped into a leather coat, and introduced himself politely.
“I just can’t believe any man would be dumb enough to walk out on a woman like you,” he said. It was a compliment that any other day would have made me blush, but tonight it only irritated me.
“A woman like me?” I asked. “What does that mean?” He had no idea what a woman like me was capable of.
“Oh,” he stumbled, “I just meant that you’re beautiful. Definitely the best-looking woman I’ve seen in a while.”
“So, he should have stayed just because I was beautiful?” I knew I was being unfair to this poor man who had just wanted to pick up a woman who had been abandoned by her date, but the drinks had made me bold, and my own actions made me angry.
The man held up his hands. “I didn’t mean anything by it, I swear,” he said. “I just wanted to compliment you.”
I opened my mouth to tell him to save his compliments for someone who cared, but I remembered that I needed to add more followers.
“I’m sorry,” I said and lowered my tone of voice. “It’s just been a rough night. Can I buy you a drink?”
He smiled and relaxed. “I’d love that.”
We spent the better part of an hour chatting at the bar and enjoying the jazz band. He placed his hand on the upper part of my thigh, and I decided against moving it. Nancie always explained that we were technically selling ourselves while looking for potential followers and that every once in a while, it wasn’t a bad idea to let them a little closer than I’d like.
He wasn’t so bad, to be honest. His eyes were captivating, and while he wasn’t as muscular as Gavin, many guys weren’t; he at least had a good body with a great smile. Gavin made him look like a has-been, but my handsome sugar daddy did that to most men. He was gorgeous, rich, and hated me. I let out a soft sigh as I thought about it.
“There’s something about jazz that really lifts the spirit,” he said as the band finished a song. He glanced at me. “Hopefully you’re feeling better now, right?”
“I am, thanks,” I said. “I barely even remember the guy’s face.” It was a blatant lie. It would be impossible to forget Gavin’s face.
“I can’t believe the asshole,” he said. I frowned; it wasn’t fair to Gavin that he was known as an asshole.
“I wouldn’t really blame him,” I said. “He said he had something important to take care of. And it was just a first date; I don’t expect him to tell me private matters.”
“Look at you, making excuses for him.” He shook his head. “The guy is an asshole; you can say it.”
“No,” I said sternly. “I really can’t. Look, I should probably get home.”
“But you haven’t even taken a sip of your drink,” he said and gestured at my full glass. I had only ordered it to make it look like I would be drinking. “I won’t talk about your date, I promise.”
“Thanks, but I need to get home,” I said and swung my purse over my shoulder.
“Well, here’s my number,” he said and handed me a piece of paper. I wondered briefly if the number on a napkin trope would ever die. “Call me if you’re ever feeling lonely again.”
“Thanks,” I said and pocketed it. As I was leaving the restaurant, I realized that I didn’t even know his name.
A shadow hung near my car, giant and tall, and I looked for my miniature can of pepper spray buried deep within my purse.
“Maddie,” Gavin said and walked out of the shadows. I gasped and pulled my hand out of my purse.
“You scared the shit out of me,” I said with a slight chuckle.
Gavin didn’t laugh, didn’t even crack a smile. He had his hands stuffed into his pockets, with sleeves rolled up to the elbow and a shadow beneath his eyes. He hadn’t had a good night either.
“I’ll do it,” he said. There was a single light on the street that illuminated his face with a golden hue. It made his blue eyes even brighter and showed off the muscles where his sleeves hugged his arms. “I’ll do it, for a half million. But half of that up front, and the rest afterward.”
“Afterward?” I asked, but a single grimace from Gavin was my answer. After his mom died, of course.
“But if you violate any of my rules, and I mean any of them, you don’t get the money. I’ll sue the shit out of you if you break a single one. Understood?”
I gulped; it was a big agreement. A huge decision that would affect the rest of the year.
“You can’t tell anyone about it being fake. Not a single person,” he reminded me. I realized that I had told Nancie about the deal, but she wouldn’t be too difficult to convince.
“Okay,” I said after a moment’s hesitation. “Agreed.”
He nodded, and said, “I’ll draw up an official agreement and contract, and I’ll send it to your email. Text me your email when you get home.”
“Okay,” I said, unable to say anything else.
“Dinner with me and my mother on Saturday,” he said. “I don’t want to see you until then.”
“Saturday, dinner, got it.”
He nodded and turned away. “Half a million,” he mumbled with a shake of his head and walked away.
I bit my tongue to keep from screaming, but my nerves were on edge, and my heart was thumping so loud that even he probably could have heard it. Half a million dollars! Never once in my life did I ever imagine I’d have so much money. Half now, half in six months. I thought about everything that I could do with it. Move to Hollywood, start a new life, build a better career. Start with modeling and move to being an actress, maybe.
But waiting the six months would be hard for so many reasons. The guilt worsened, eating at me as I slipped into the car and turned the key. The engine stalled for a moment before roaring to life; just another reminder of how desperate for money I was. I was a terrible person. I would get the rest of the money after his mother died.
I was more than just a terrible person. I was a greedy piece of shit.
Nancie was still awake when I arrived at our apartment, sitting on the couch while munching on salt-free and butter-free popcorn. She turned to me briefly with a subtle wave and returned her attention to the TV.
“What are you watching?” I asked and sat my purse on the counter. A plate of black bean brownies sat beside the sink. I tore off a piece and chewed on it. It had been a gift from one of Nancie’s admirers, a teenager who knew she was attempting a gluten-free diet. I had been given a handful of gifts over time as well, a few free books from fans and several coupons for free candy. Nancie always tried to throw out the coupons before I could redeem them.
“Some documentary about serial killers,” she said. “It was the first one on the recommendation list, and I didn’t feel like browsing.” The TV had been depicting a gruesome death that occurred in the hills of Hollywood nearly 20 years prior, with a couple hanging over the signs and a man in the shadows watching. I shivered, remembering Nancie’s offer to move to California. A part of me secretly hoped she wouldn’t go.
“By yourself?” I sat beside her. “I don’t think I could ever watch a scary documentary alone in an apartment.”
“It’s a safe neighborhood,” she said. “Plus, I figured you’d be home soon from your date, or whatever you call it. How did it go?”
She knew I had a meeting with Gavin about the proposition, and I realized I might have possibly made a mistake in telling her. I didn’t want to lie to her; I didn’t want to lie to anyone. But Gavin had a point. If we were going to lie to his dying mother, we might as well lie to the whole world.
“I took the offer off the table,” I said. She whipped around to look at me.
“I was going to go through with it, but we ended up talking all night about our lives, and what we want in the future, and really about everything. I just couldn’t do it.” I wished it was the truth.
Nancie paused the movie and looked at me.
“What?” I asked as she shook her head. The disappointment in her eyes was obvious. I knew she would have gone through with it herself, and it was so hard to keep the truth from her.
“You were going to get a big chunk of change from a hot, rich billionaire, and you just took it off the table? Are you fucking with me?” She had the smile of someone who wasn’t sure if they were being tricked or not.
“I’m serious, Nancie. I just couldn’t take the money from him. He’s sweet and kind, and actually cared about what I was saying.” I realize that I was thinking about our first dinner date when it truly felt like there was something between us. “No guy has ever listened to me the way he did. He’s special,” I said honestly. “Not to mention my parents both think he’s the second coming of Jesus.”
“Maddie, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you actually have feelings for him,” Nancie said. “Please tell me you don’t.”
“I don’t,” I said immediately, and then realized that I had grown defensive for no reason. I was supposed to tell people about our relationship. “I mean, maybe? I don’t know. I think I do. He asked me out on another date this weekend.”
I winced as Nancie’s eyes bulged out of her head.
“Maddie! You’re being ridiculous! You and I both know that having a boyfriend while modeling is impossible. It would be jealousy from both sides! Men have to think that you’re always available, not tied down to some rich guy.” She had a point; I had to admit it.
“You know I’m more interested in acting,” I said. “And no one cares who you’re with when you’re on stage or in front of the camera.”
Nancie rolled her eyes. “Yes, but right now you’re a model and promoter. You can’t post pictures of you cuddling up with some guy and expect to gain more followers. If anything, you’ll lose them,” she said.
I hadn’t considered that. One of Gavin’s request had been to post pictures for his mom to see, but I didn’t expect to lose followers because of it. Still, half a million dollars was worth it. But I needed Nancie to believe that Gavin himself was worth it.
“You should meet him,” I said. “I think you’d understand.”
“I wouldn’t even if I could,” she said. “Which brings me to another point: what are you going to do when I’m in Hollywood and you’re stuck here playing girlfriend to this guy?”
“Hollywood?” I leaned forward. “Are you going?”
“Oh.” She pursed her lips. “I forgot I hadn't told you. I accepted the offer today. And I was hoping you would meet me out there within the next year or two.”
I sat against the back of the couch and closed my eyes. One deep breath. Two deep breaths.
“I’m sorry, Maddie. I know it’s your dream as well,” Nancie said in a whisper. “I’m leaving at the end of the week, though.”
“So soon?” I asked.
“They need me ASAP,” she said and stood. “You should watch the documentary from the beginning; it’s really good.” She left me alone in the living room with a movie about serial killers. I sighed and started it from the beginning. Might as well watch it while I still had a roommate.
I hadn’t expected Nancie to move so soon. I knew she would eventually accept the offer, but it still felt like a blow. I needed time to process it, but I also had so many other things to worry about, mainly my half-million-dollar scheme.
I ended the night beneath several blankets with a scary documentary and tried forcing my brain to stop processing and stop thinking, but it was useless. I couldn’t stop.
Chapter Thirteen
Gavin
The whiskey swirled in the glass as I sat at my bar waiting for the door to ring. Dinner was starting in a little more than an hour, and I told Maddie to arrive early. She was already getting on my nerves, and our pretend relationship hadn’t even started yet.
Mom was ecstatic when I asked about dinner later that night. I told her I was planning a dinner with Maddie and wanted her help, and she insisted on having it at her house. According to mom, Maddie and I were practically in our honeymoon phase already, and I knew I would have to act the part. Still, I sent over the first half of the money the day after I received Maddie’s signature on the contract, and while it hardly made a dent in my various bank accounts, it still stung nonetheless. It was the principal of the matter.
I didn’t want to even be in the same room as her.
But mom was so happy that she made the dinner menu herself, and decided on cooking everything from scratch. I begged her not to. I offered to hire a top chef from one of her favorite restaurants to come over and cook in her own kitchen, but mom had gotten offended and asked if her cooking wasn’t good enough.
“Of course it’s good enough,” I said. “I just don’t want you getting tired.”
“I’m always tired. If I did nothing while I was tired, I wouldn’t ever do anything again.” she said and went back to her menu planning.
All I knew was that it would be a night of Italian cuisine, mom’s specialty. I wasn’t sure where she got her energy from, but something about dinner with Maddie and me gave her such a boost. Even Karen had noticed and had commented on how alive mom was acting. She had even eaten more than a pudding cup mixed with protein powder.
My stomach rumbled at the thought. I’d had a double workout earlier and had time to enjoy only an extra-large protein shake before meeting Ron on my boat. The lake hadn’t given him a bucket full of fish, and he was upset at his takeaway. I offered for us to grab lunch together, but he refused and said he was meeting with a woman from the other night.
My mind had been too full of thoughts that it wasn’t until the early evening I realized I hadn’t gotten lunch myself. A single protein shake later, and I was desperate for food.
But I still had to wait on Maddie.
I finished my drink just as she knocked on the door. I opened it and returned to the bar without a single glance her way.
“Hey,” she said as she followed me. “I’m sorry—”
“You’re sorry you’re late,” I finished for her. “I’m sure you are.”
There was no point in acting the part until we had an audience. She sat beside me, and I took in her outfit for the night. A tight, red dress that practically molded to her tiny waist and hung in loose waves around her thighs. Her off-the-shoulder sleeves hugged her forearms, and the front of the dress was a modest top that touched her collarbone. I wondered if it was a new dress that she purchased with my money.
Still, she looked alluring and beautiful, and I forced my eyes to the bar beneath us.
“We’re having dinner with my mother,” I said. “You could have dressed a little more modest.”
I caught a frown on her face as she glanced at her outfit. Her long hair fell over her shoulders in soft waves with the light creating a red tint. She looked at me with those eyes that always reminded me of lily pads. She smelled amazing, like an early morning on top of a hill, when the grass was still damp from the night’s mist, and flowers were beginning to bloom.
I took another sip of whiskey and forced those thoughts out of my head.
“Unless your mother is a governess from the late 1800s, I don’t think she’ll have a problem with my outfit,” she said. “But last I checked she was a modern 21st-century woman.”
“My mother isn’t modern,” I argued. “She still makes her toast with an electric burner.”
“She’s more modern than you,” Maddie said. “She followed all of my accounts the other day.”
I nearly choked on my drink. Of course, mom would follow Maddie; she was hoping for a daughter-in-law soon. But somehow it still rubbed me the wrong way.
“Don’t forget to post those pictures,” I said. “If she is following you.”
&n
bsp; “Let’s take one now,” Maddie suggested and took out her phone. I shook my head, snatched it, and shoved it back into her purse for her.
“After dinner,” I said. “We’re going over to my mother’s house first, and then we’ll take a picture.” I couldn’t handle taking a picture with her before another few drinks.
“Okay,” she said and clutched her bag to her side. “Where does your mom live?”
“On my property,” I said and looked at her. “Listen, you need to act like you’re falling in love with me, and that we’ve had a thing between us since we were kids, okay? My mom has a soft spot for fairy-tale endings.”
Maddie crossed her legs, and my gaze immediately moved to her smooth thigh. It was so damn close to mine. So hot.
“I can do that,” she said. “Might be my easiest role yet.” She smiled at me, obviously comfortable with the animosity I’d been throwing at her the whole time. If I didn’t know any better, I could have sworn that she was even attempting to flirt with me.
“Tell my mother one thing that you like about me, something realistic sounding, at least. And you can make up stories if you need. Just nothing embarrassing or too complicated. And hand holding and shoulder touching is okay, but nothing too romantic in front of her, got it?” I asked.
“So, pretend I’m in love with you, flirt with you by bumping our shoulders, but I can’t actually touch anything other than your hand,” she summed everything up and I nodded. “Got it.”
I stood abruptly and picked up the gray tie from a table near the foyer.