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I was pleased I’d managed to get Violet to agree to a fake relationship and that I’d get to spend more time with her despite her reservations about me. But I was seriously concerned about the way I’d persuaded her.
If she hadn’t been completely convinced I was a player before this, surely there would be no doubt in her mind now. The whole reason I wanted this fake relationship was so she could see the real me, beyond hockey and the Darling Devils’ infamous reputation. She’d never give me a genuine chance if she thought I was anything like her ex.
“We should probably figure out how this is all going to work,” she said. “Like a game plan. I’m working tomorrow at Hug in a Mug, and it’s usually quiet on a Sunday morning. Why don’t you come by, and we can discuss the logistics.”
“Logistics? That doesn’t sound very romantic.” I was usually a big fan of having a well-thought-out game plan, but I much preferred how things had been working with Violet so far: kiss first and figure out the rest later.
“It’s not supposed to be romantic,” she replied with a smile. “Obviously.”
I was growing more and more concerned it was going to be impossible to swing this situation around in my favor. What if our fake relationship ended up putting me thoroughly in the friend zone. That would be even worse than Violet thinking I was a conceited arrogant jock.
“So, tomorrow morning?” she asked.
“Sure. I have something first thing, but I’ll come by after that.”
“Okay, great.” She reached for the door handle.
“Wait, I thought I was giving you a ride?”
“No need,” she replied, holding up her phone. “My cousin just sent me a message. She’s leaving now. Thanks anyway.
“Hold on a minute, Sunshine,” I said as she jumped from the truck. “One more thing. Weren’t you supposed to bring my jacket tonight?”
She shrugged, and a wry smile pulled at her lips. “I’m your girlfriend now, aren’t I? I think that means I get to keep it.”
With that, she closed the door and hurried off into the darkness. And I was left trying to ignore how much I’d enjoyed it when she called herself my girlfriend.
12
VIOLET
“Is he here yet?” Mia asked as she came out of the back room.
I was beginning to regret telling her about my agreement with Reed. She’d been asking me about it all morning while we worked at Hug in a Mug. I was already on edge as I waited for him to arrive for our logistics meeting, but the more Mia talked about it, the more nervous I became. What if this was all a terrible mistake? Was I just setting myself up to get screwed over by another jock? And where the hell was Reed? Maybe he’d changed his mind and wasn’t going to show at all. If he took much longer, I was going to talk myself out of the whole crazy idea.
“We didn’t agree on a time,” I replied, doing my best not to glance at the clock. I was getting seriously worked up, and I felt my heart skip a beat every time the bell above the front door chimed and a new customer came in. All Reed and I were doing was meeting to discuss our fake relationship, so there was no reason for me to be this anxious. I hadn’t even felt this way on my first few dates with Jeremy.
“I still don’t think this is a good idea,” Nicole said. She’d also heard about my deal with the devil. While Mia, at least, seemed excited by the potential for drama it might cause, Nicole couldn’t see any positives. She was probably right. But I had to keep reminding myself that I’d done this for a good reason. To keep my sleezy ex-boyfriend off my back. And I had to believe it was going to work even if my friends thought that was delusional.
“Aren’t you worried about him?” Nicole continued. “Like, being alone with him?”
I shrugged. “I’ve been alone with him before, and nothing bad happened.”
“I guess.” Nicole wasn’t convinced. “But we’re talking about a guy who apparently intimidated his math teacher into giving him an A last year. A guy who got caught stealing a car in sixth grade. We’re talking about a Darling Devil.”
I was starting to lose track of all the different rumors I’d heard about Reed. None of them were good, and while he’d only ever been nice to me, the constant barrage of shocking stories that swirled around about him kept me uncertain. Perhaps now that I was his fake girlfriend, it was time I got to the bottom of some of this gossip and worked out who the real man behind the myth was.
I shrugged at Nicole. “People seem to have a lot to say about Reed and his family. I’m not really sure what to believe. It can’t all be true, can it?”
Nicole pursed her lips like she thought I was being naive. “I’m just trying to make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into. Some of it’s definitely true. Like, you can see the scar on his neck. He got that in an underground street fight, you know.”
“I thought he got it in a bar brawl,” Mia said.
“Is there a difference?” I asked.
“If you’re talking about Reed Darling, you’re both wrong about the scar.” A girl I recognized from school had just come up to return her empty coffee mug. She leaned across the counter and lowered her voice as if she were about to reveal some big secret. “My mom works at the hospital. She told me he came in because a girl threw an ice skate at him and there wasn’t a cover on the blade.”
“Oh my gosh,” Mia’s eyes went wide, and from the look on her face, it seemed as though she much preferred this version of the story. Of all the rumors I’d heard, Reed’s scar was probably the one that intrigued me the most. Nicole was right. You could clearly see the evidence of the scar on his neck and shoulder, so there was no doubting its existence. But no one could agree on its origin. Clearly only one of the girls’ explanations could be true.
