“Yeah. She’s a fierce girl, this one. One hell of a fighter.” His gaze was on the phone screen, and she knew he’d be keeping tabs on the kid.
“My brother doesn’t do very many hospital visits.”
“Not everybody does. Or can. The machines and tubes and shit freak some guys out, and some people just aren’t comfortable around children. Kids are super intuitive, and they know when you’re forcing it.”
“It was hard for Erik when my mom was sick, too. She was sick for a long time.”
He pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her. “His foundation raises a lot of money and awareness for pediatric cancer support, though.”
She smiled. “Did you just defend my brother?”
“I’ll use double the mouthwash later.”
They laughed together, and since she was pressed against his body, she could feel him relaxing. She wanted him tokeeprelaxing. “How do you feel about pizza deliveries and movies?”
He made a sound similar to a sound he made during sex. “I approve of both in a general sense, but I’m very much in favor of them right now.”
“What are the chances we agree on toppings?” She pulled back so she could see his face, which already looked a little more relaxed.
“I’m pretty boring, I guess. A classic pepperoni and cheese is my favorite.”
“Sexandpizza compatibility,” she said, getting up off his lap so she could get her phone and place the order. “Next up, seeing if our movie compatibility is as strong as we think it is.”
Two hours later, there was an empty pizza box on the coffee table, the apartment smelled like fresh popcorn, and they were both in a far better mood. Will had that effect on her, she thought. She enjoyed having him around, and not just in the bedroom.
As she watched a limo racing to escape a crumbling fictional city on the screen, she felt a pang of anxiety that had nothing to do with the characters in the limo.
Kristen couldn’t quite put her finger on the exact moment her relationship with Will had changed, but she couldn’t deny that somewhere along the way, it had.
They were fake dating behind closed doors now. They were acting like a couple when nobody was watching—when it wasn’t necessary to keep up the pretense. They’d been together every night since the first night, going out for dinner in a variety of places before going back to her place, where they’d fall into bed. He’d leave early in the morning so they could both get ready for the day’s work, and then they’d do it all again.
Now here they were, cuddled up on her couch with a movie on. His arm was draped on the back of the couch, and his hand was resting on her shoulder. A bowl of popcorn was balanced on his thigh and when they reached for some at the same time and their hands touched, it wasn’t even awkward.
They were dating.Actuallydating. And she had no idea how or when it had happened.
But there was no reason for them to be together right now, laughing at how awful the disaster movie was that they’d chosen to watch. No reason for her to be sitting against his body instead of at the other end of the couch.
No reason at all, except that she looked forward to spending time with him. She liked it. She likedhim.
Shit.
That wasn’t part of the deal. Making her life look “respectable” for her superconservative boss was the objective. Great sex and numerous orgasms were a sweet bonus. She enjoyed the hell out of his company in bed and had seen no reason to deprive herself of him as long as he was in town. She just hadn’t expected to enjoy his companyoutof bed.
“Everything okay?” he asked, turning the TV’s volume down.
“Yeah. Why?”
“Well, you got tense all of a sudden. And you just randomly said ‘shit,’ which is usually a dead giveaway something’s wrong.”
She hadn’t realized she’d said it out loud, and her brain flailed for a lie—anything but the truth because she wasn’t ready for that kind of confession. “Sorry. I just remembered a thing I need to do at work.”
The answer must have satisfied him because he turned the volume back up.
Kristen concentrated on relaxing since he could feel the tension in her body, but it wasn’t easy because she couldn’t stop thinking about her realization that she liked dating him. Or fake dating him. Pretending to fake date. She didn’t even know anymore.
* * *
“That was a great movie,”Will said when the end credits started rolling.
