When tears filled the edges of her eyelashes, I lost it. “Damn, baby, no.” I pulled her to me and sent asshole Jon a scowl for making her cry.
His eyes bulged with worry as I stroked Caroline’s hair. “Don’t cry, princess. If you can’t go, then I won’t either. This was your first trip across country, your first plane ride. I’m not going anywhere without you.”
She looked up, and one of her hovering tears slid down her cheek. “But your interview.”
“Fuck the interview. My heart wouldn’t be in it if you weren’t there.” I clutched her face and looked deep into her eyes. “You jump, I jump. Right, Rose?”
She really started sobbing then. “Oh my God. We’re about to be sent to airplane jail and you’re quoting Titanic?”
“I’m sorry,” I instantly apologized. “God, baby. I’m so sorry. This was my fault. I should’ve—fuck, I don’t know. I only said the movie quote to make you smile.”
“It worked,” she swore even as more tears flooded her face and the tipping up of her lips looked anything but happy. “It was so beautiful, and I loved it. I just...I didn’t mean to get us into trouble. You’ve been so amazing, and I’m just fucking it all up.”
“No...no, you’re not in any trouble, ma’am.” Jon patted her shoulder hesitatingly, his expression full of worry. “I didn’t mean to make you cry. Here.” He thrust a wad of tissues at her.
“Oh. Th-thank you.” She sniffed and gingerly took a tissue before wiping her face. “So...you’re not...you’re not going to kick us off the plane?”
“Of course not. I am sorry for scaring you. I just wanted you to be aware of the rules.”
She nodded and blew her nose. “It’s okay. I’m aware now. We’re very aware.”
He still watched her warily as if ready to catch her in case she fainted or some shit. “Are you sure? Are you okay now?”
“Yes. Thank you. Thank you so much. If you don’t mind, I...I think we’ll go take our seats now.”
“Sure.” He touched her shoulder again and was lucky I didn’t snap his hand off for it. “I’m going to make you something warm to drink and bring it out to you, okay?”
“Thank you. That’s so kind.”
I lifted an eyebrow as I watched their byplay. When Caroline glanced up at me, her cheeks were still wet from crying, but not a single new tear filled her eyes. She took my hand and led us back to our seats. Without saying a word, we clicked on our seat belts and sat there, facing forward.
“You okay?” I finally asked, dipping my face to get a look at hers.
She turned to me, completely casual. “Of course. Why?”
I blinked. And then it hit me. “Why, you sneaky little shit. You just totally played him.” And me too, apparently.
Her devious grin slipped across her face. “Well, I had to do something. Your petulant smart-ass attitude wasn’t getting us anywhere.”
My mouth worked a moment before I hissed, “Holy fuck, woman. How the hell can you just turn the tears on like that?”
She lifted her eyebrows. “I have three brothers. Years of practice.”
“Oh my God.” I threw my head back and laughed. “You are so awesome. I’m not worthy.” Shaking my head, I gazed at her in awe. “I am so not worthy.”
She blushed and smiled but quickly dropped the expression when she glanced over my shoulder. Elbowing me, she whispered, “Quick. He’s coming with my drink.”
As much as I tried, I could not stop smiling. I dropped my face instead so Jon couldn’t see my smirk.
“Here you go, ma’am.”
“Thank you so much.” Caroline reached past me to accept her complimentary drink. “Warm tea. Mmm. It smells delicious.”
“And I apologize again,” Jon gushed. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. I’ve learned my lesson.”
I was so close to busting a gut laughing, and Caroline knew it because she suddenly clamped her hand around my thigh and dug her nails into me to keep me quiet. But shit. We’d been the ones to break the rules, and here Jon was, apologizing to her and fucking serving her tea. She was hands down the most entertaining, dynamic, devious, beautiful, amazing woman I’d ever met.
If I wasn’t already crazy in love with her, I would’ve fallen in that very moment.
A man with a sign that read “Oren Tenning” waited for us when we stepped off the plane.
Holding my hand, Oren slowed to a stop when he saw the guy. “Hi,” he said hesitantly.
The round little fellow looked up at him. “Mr. Tenning?”
After Oren answered, “Uh, yeah...I guess,” the man beamed and held out his hand.
“Lance Stanley. I’m with Booker and Finch, and consequently your ride to the hotel.”
“You...are?” Oren’s smile fell as he glanced down at me and then back at Zwinn. “I wasn’t...this is...unexpected. I just....I guess I thought I’d find my own way to the hotel.”
“Oh no, sir. This is the full-service interview experience. And can I say it is an honor to meet you? Everyone’s been raving about your portfolio since your application came in.”
“Really?” Oren blinked before he shook his head and cleared his throat. “I mean, thanks. That’s...cool.”
Mr. Stanley turned to me. “And you must be Mrs. Tenning. I recognize your face from some of the free-drawing samples your husband added to his portfolio.”
“You...” Too flabbergasted to get past the Mrs. Tenning part, I looked up at Oren for help.
He stepped in, lifting his hand and shaking it. “Oh, no. She’s not...I mean...not yet. She’s...” He glanced at me, his expression desperate. “She’s my fiancée.”
My eyes widened as I gaped up at him. He squeezed my fingers tighter. “It’s okay that I brought her, right? I was going to pay out of pocket for all her—”
“Oh, sure. Sure.” Mr. Stanley waved off Oren’s concerns. “Of course, she can come along to check out the area, give her nod of approval. Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials, ma’am.”
When the small man sent me a smile, I gave a weak smile back. “Um...thank you. It was...” I glanced up at Oren, “quite a surprise.”
Mr. Stanley leaned in to wink. “The best proposals usually are.” Then he straightened and turned back to Oren. “The baggage claim’s this way.”
Oren nodded and tugged me along as we followed Mr. Stanley. Then he glanced back with an apologetic wince to Zwinn for abandoning them. Quinn sent him a thumbs-up, letting us know they’d find their own way to the hotel, no problem.
And thus started our evening of being wined and dined as a nearly married couple by Oren’s prospective employer, though we found out over dessert that Mr. Stanley was more of a glorified secretary than an actual executive with the authority to hire Oren. The worst part was that he tried to sell the town to me, telling me about all the perks of living around the lake.
Oren played along, telling Mr. Stanley I was a filmmaking major, which had the poor guy’s face lighting up. “Well, California is the best place to be for that kind of major. You would be coming to the right area for sure.”
“So, all her credits would transfer with no problem if she came out here next semester?” Oren asked, actually looking interested in the answer.
I sent him a strange glance, which he completely ignored.
“I’m sure they would.”
By the time Mr. Stanley dropped us off at the hotel for the evening, my nerves were plumb shot. I silently followed Oren up to our room after we checked in, and I didn’t say a thing until he’d rolled all our suitcases into our suite and shut the door. Then I just stood there and stared at him as he dropped the luggage on the bed and immediately went to the window to check out our view.
Finally, I cracked. “Would you care to tell me what the hell just happened?”
He glanced back and winced. “You’re talking about the fiancée thing, aren’t you?”
I whimpered out a sound at the word and
nodded my head.
He sighed and came to me. “I don’t know. That just...blurted out. I wasn’t expecting anyone to actually meet me at the airport, to meet you. Telling him you were only my girlfriend sounded kind of irresponsible, as if I’d only brought you with me to party on Lake Tahoe.”
“Oh, so...lying to him first thing seemed so much more responsible, huh?”
“Fuck, I didn’t know what to do. I was kind of worried they wouldn’t let you come with me if I didn’t make us sound more...permanent. So I improvised. Seriously, you’re not that pissed, are you?”
Slowly, I shook my head. “No, but...if you end up getting this job because I made you look more like the responsible family man, then you owe me a cut of every paycheck you get.”
Grinning, he pressed his forehead to mine. “You got it, babe.”
With a sudden laugh over everything we’d gone through today, I grinned up at him. “First, I’m your fake girlfriend to your parents, now your fake fiancée to your prospective boss. I can’t wait to play the fake wife next.”
Oren took my hand and kissed my knuckles. “And I’m sure you’d make the best damn fake wife there ever was. Now, come here and check out this view.”
He led me to a window, and I sucked in a breath as I looked out at the sandy beach lit with tiki torches and the most colorful sunset ever glistening off the slow-rippling water of the lake.
“Wow,” I breathed as Oren wrapped his arms around me from behind and rested his chin on my shoulder. “Okay, we can move out here.”
Chucking in my ear, he turned his face so he could kiss my cheek. “We could build our fake home right on the beach and live fakely ever after.”
My heart thumped hard in my chest as I substituted different words for all the fakes. But then I just shook my head, reminding myself it was all...fake. If Oren moved here, I would not be coming with him.
Oren called Quinn, who reported that Zoey was queasy after the plane ride; they’d just see us at breakfast. So Oren and I took full advantage of our accommodations. He ordered a bottle of champagne up to our room, and we lounged on the bed, sipping from our bubbly fluted glasses while watching movies until we started kissing and then made love on the king-size hotel bed.
I woke naked and relaxed the next morning sprawled half on top of him. One of his hands rested limply on my ass and the other was tangled in my hair. I woke him by kissing my way down his chest. He groaned, then growled, and then moaned when my lips wrapped around his morning wood.
“Woman,” he muttered, sinking his hands into my hair. He let me suck for a few minutes before tugging me off him and hauling me out of bed, only to carry me into the bathroom and take me hard and desperately against the hotel’s enormous shower wall.
After he spent himself inside me and I was panting out my release on his shoulder, he kissed my cheek and asked, “Does it ever feel like I’m wearing your pussy out? I mean, shit. What if I start to rub you raw in there from doing you so much?”
When his hand lowered to pet me gently between the legs, I laughed and pressed my forehead to his. “Does it ever feel like my pussy’s rubbing your dick raw?”
He grinned. “No.”
I shrugged. “Then there’s your answer.”
With an amused chuckle, he wrapped his arms around me and pressed his cheek against mine. “I love the way you think.”
I loved him, period.
After we dressed, we met Zwinn downstairs in the dining room for a continental breakfast. Zoey looked sheet white as she sat with Quinn at a table, sipping from a cup of what looked like apple juice.
“Holy fuck, you look like shit,” Oren blurted.
I bumped his arm and sent him a look.
“What?” he asked as he motioned to her. “She’s as pale as a fucking ghost.”
I was worried about her too. It’d only been a few months since she’d had a kidney removed when she’d donated it to her wicked half sister. I hoped to God she wasn’t having a bad reaction from that.
But she shook her head and offered us a wan smile. “I’m fine. Just...a little nervous. My dad left me a cryptic message last night. Something about Cora.”
Oren growled, not liking Zoey’s half sister at all. “If that bitch is there, you fucking leave, you hear me?” He glanced at Quinn. “Don’t let them suck you guys into any more of her drama.”
“Oh, you don’t have to warn me.” Quinn took Zoey’s hand supportively. “We’re fully prepared to turn right back around and return to the hotel if she shows up.”
“Good.” Oren nodded and blew out a breath. He glanced at me, and I saw swirling unease in his gaze. When I touched his leg under the table, he quietly took my hand. But the unease didn’t abate. It seemed to grow and fester the longer our breakfast lasted.
By the time Zwinn announced they were going to get on the road and head to her father’s place, Oren even had sweat beading across his brow. With a nod, he glanced at me. “I guess it’s time for me to drag my monkey suit on.”
It hit me then. He was nervous about his interview. After I followed him up to his room and he went into the bathroom to change, I flipped through a notebook the hotel had left in the room, boasting of their local entertainment. Then I tossed it on the bed, deciding I’d just sunbathe on the beach with a fruity drink that had an umbrella in it most of the afternoon. God, this was going to be the longest day of my life, hoping he sucked on his interview as much as I hoped he kicked ass, all the while worrying about Zwinn’s trip.
I was just reaching for the television’s remote control to keep myself occupied when the bathroom door opened, and a freaking stranger stepped out.
Oren had shaved off all his scruff and even smoothed his hair back. His freshly dry-cleaned suit was sharp and made his shoulders appear impossibly wide. My mouth dried as I stared at this devastatingly hunky businessman.
“Oh my God,” I said, my mouth falling open. “I want to blow you so hard, right now.”
When he smiled that cocky smile I adored the most about him, I slid off the bed and sauntered his way.
“It’s the tie, isn’t it?” he asked, touching his throat.
“It’s everything about you, Oren Tenning.” I sank to my knees in front of him and stared at the front of his pants until it started to tent. Then I gazed up into his gleaming eyes. “I have a feeling Mr. Grey will see me now.”
When I unzipped him, he drew in a breath and grabbed the doorframe of the bathroom with one hand. “I’m guessing that’s a movie quote.”
“Mmm. Very good.” Pulling him, hot and throbbing into my hands, I licked the pre-cum off the head and then kissed his birthmark before taking him into my mouth.
His dry-cleaned suit was so crisp and clean, I didn’t dare do anything that might dirty it. So when he warned me he was about to come, I swallowed until he was done. When I pulled away and looked up at him, he stared at me with a dazed look in his eyes, and he leaned heavily against the doorframe.
“That was...that was...shit, woman. I don’t even know how to tell you what you do to me.” Reaching down, he pulled me up off my knees and into his arms. “Here I was, flipping the fuck out about this interview, and you just...completely relaxed every jittery nerve in me. Now do you see why I had to bring you?”
Honored he felt that way, I cupped his face in my hands and looked him in the eye before saying simply. “You’re welcome.”
He laughed softly and closed his eyes before pressing his forehead to mine. “I’m going to miss you today.” When he pulled back, his concerned gaze was searching. “You going to be okay around here by yourself?”
I nodded. “Oh yeah. Sure. I plan on getting the suntan of a lifetime.”
My day of sun tanning on the beach worked out better than I thought it would. I’d turned a golden brown by midday, so I walked to a nearby cabana, ordered myself some lunch, turned down a drink from a guy watching me at the bar, and then went to my room and fell asleep to a movie I found on TV. And I didn’t worry about Or
en once.
Okay, fine. I worried the entire fricking day away, but everything else I did was true.
The ringing of my cell phone woke me late in the afternoon from my nap.
“We’re back,” Quinn announced in my ear. “Ten’s phone went straight to voice mail so I figure he’s still at his interview. Do you want to hang out in our room until he’s back?”
I glanced around the lonely suite. “Yes, thank you.”
“No problem.” He gave me their room number, and I found it a few minutes later on the floor below mine.
Zoey was sitting on the bed, staring at the wall when Quinn opened the door for me. I glanced at her and then back to him as I entered, feeling instantly uneasy. “How did...how did everything go?”
Quinn gave an uneasy shrug. Zoey looked up at me, but the shock in her eyes made it seem as if she didn’t really see me. “Oh. Um...fine.”
I sat next to her and took her hand, glancing at Quinn for an explanation.
He shrugged again. “Her dad offered her a million-dollar trust fund he’d just taken away from Cora, and oh...her sister’s in a nut-house...after trying to commit suicide.”
I looked between the two of them before squawking, “What?”
Zoey waved a hand toward her boyfriend. “What he said.”
Quinn sighed and collapsed onto the bed on the other side of Zoey, lying on his back with his feet on the floor. He looked as shell-shocked as Zoey did. “I guess Mr. Wilder decided to really crack down on Cora and try to get her to behave. He ended up taking away her entire trust fund, and...she didn’t like that. So she went a little...” He sent a worried glance to Zoey.