Page 5 of Faking With You

I shift in my seat, and Mac finally puts me out of my misery when he says, “The thing is, my father, he’s very set in his ways.” He sits back in his seat, as though putting distance between us, and I watch him. Hhe continues to hold his glass and swirl it while he watches me. “He wants me to be in a serious relationship before he’ll appoint me as his replacement to take over the company. I don’t think it’s realistic, but then I figured maybe we could help each other out.”

I take another sip of my drink, letting his words swirl through my mind. I’m not sure how he could possibly think I could help him with this dilemma, and I’m shocked when he says, “You can pretend to be my girlfriend, just long enough for his retirement party, and I’ll help you—” His eyes slowly make their way down my torso. I can almost feel them like hands skating across my skin and my cheeks heat.

“You want to help me?” I squeak.

The corner of his mouth quirks slightly, and he nods almost imperceptibly. He leans forward, holding his glass between his very large hands as he rests on his forearms and says, “I’d love to help you with your manifestation. I think we’ll have some fun.”

I swallow nothing, feeling the room get warmer and my throat getting drier. “And you want me to pretend to be your girlfriend?”

“Yes. We’ll need to make it believable for my father, which means that no one can know it’s not real. My father runs the company from London, but he likes to do random company visits, so he may show up to my place and expect to see you or at least some of your things at my place.”

He just goes right into it, not holding any punches.

“You’ve really thought about this,” I say.

“I’ve had a few days to make a plan.”

I’m not sure how I feel about being referred to as a plan, I’m not sure how I feel about any part of this. I look around and wave at my server, making a sign for the bill. I need to get out of here, get some fresh air, and think before I can give him an answer.

When the server returns, Mac grabs my bill, and I open my mouth to protest, but he waves me off.

“I interrupted your dinner, the least I can do is pay.”

I reach for the bill, but he pulls it away.

“I can pay for my own meal, thank you,” I say, my tone coming out harsher than I’d like.

I’m a very independent person, and I pride myself on being able to take care of myself. Letting others take care of me in any way is not easy, but especially a man I barely know.

He relents and allows me to take the bill, and I quickly pay the server when they come back with the machine. I try to slip out of the booth, but Mac stops me when he says, “You never gave me an answer.”

I slip my purse over my shoulder and look at him. Two answers war with each other in my mind. The normally safe part of me is saying no, while the side that wrote mymanifestationfor the year is saying yes. I’ve always played it safe, protecting myself emotionally and physically. I don’t take risks, but part of me wants to take this jump into the unknown.

Unable to settle on an answer, I say, “I have to think about it.”

He holds eye contact with me for several moments before he nods.

CHAPTER 5

Mac

Ifinish my drink as I watch Eliza leave the bar as quickly as she can. She holds her head high, powering her way through the tables, and I can’t take my eyes off her. Just her presence demands my attention, and she doesn’t even know it.

I pay my bill and leave, finding my way back to my apartment, which is only a short walk from the bar. The air is crisp and cool as it blows lightly through the streets of downtown Vancouver. A cold front is supposed to hit the city in the next few days, and I shiver just at the thought of it. Winters here can be harsher than they were growing up in London, and despite the fact that I’ve lived here for over a decade, I still haven’t quite adjusted.

I secure my scarf around my neck and shove my hands in the pockets of my jacket. Downtown Vancouver is different from London. Walking down the street here, you’re surrounded by tall buildings; nothing about this area feels open. In London, there are areas of tall buildings, but nothing like this.

I nod at the concierge for my building as I step inside and then ride the elevator to the top floor. This is one of the buildingsmy father’s company developed a number of years ago here in Vancouver. When my father had said he wanted me to run the Vancouver office, he had told me that I would live here. I didn’t fight it because it’s close to the office and has a great view of the water, but it’s also one more tie to my father and his control of me. As much as I do want to run this company when he retires, I’m sure that he’ll try to micromanage it.

There’s been times when I’ve wondered if I’m actually passionate about taking over the company or if it’s some subconscious part of me trying to prove to my father that I’m good enough.

Inside my apartment, I pour myself a whiskey and walk over to the floor-to-ceiling windows and stare out at the city. It’s dark outside, but the lights from all the buildings make it easy to see. The people below appear as little specs as they all hustle along the sidewalks. That’s one thing about the city, everyone is in such a rush to get somewhere, and I find that I’m the same way. My day is always planned out, utilizing every minute I have to get the most done.

With that thought, I head to my home office and get more work done. We have development projects scheduled to break ground in the next few weeks, meaning I have a ton of things to get done before then.

After several hours, I finally make my way to bed and let my mind wander to Eliza for the first time since I left the bar. I have no idea if she’s going to accept my proposal; she gave no inclination before she left, and I found her hard to read in that moment. I find myself more keen for her to say yes than I originally anticipated.

Eliza isn’t at our Saturday game, which is unusual. She’s usually at all the weekend ones, sitting with her friends and hitting the bar upstairs afterwards. I’ve found myself up there once or twice just to be able to see her. I’ve never joined them, only grabbing a pint at the bar where I can see her and watch a game on the TV at the same time.