“Thank you,” I say, doing a little curtsey, which earns me a treasured laugh. I give him a once-over, too. He really pulls off the luxurious, laid-back thing like nobody on this planet. “You look quite handsome yourself.”
He shrugs, holding out his arm for me. I could get used to this. Dating Carter Forkerro, no matter how fake, is proving to be a lifestyle I find myself enjoying. I actually look forward to seeing him. He comes to the door, he walks with his hand in mine or on my back, and even though this arrangement isn’t real, he takes care of me.
Not that this is what is important, but I haven’t paid for as much as a bottle of water while I’ve been out with him. He treats this very much like an actual relationship. It’s hard to complain when he’s anything but how I expected him to be. This entire thing is fake, and he still doesn’t even glance at another woman when he’s by my side.
It’s…nice.
I wind my hands around his arm and offer a gentle squeeze. “So, where are we going?”
“Ah,” he says with a shrug, “just a little event.”
I stop moving. He nearly yanks me off my feet when he keeps striding forward with those long legs.
“Whatkindof event? Am I dressed right?”
An event can mean many things. Is this some hockey royalty event? Is this a team thing? Are we going to a friend’s birthday party? Where the hellis he taking me? When he said it was a surprise, I assumed it was a nice dinner at his favourite spot, or maybe some comedy show in a bougie box.
Anevent?
“You’re perfect,” he tells me, extending his fingers to me again. He wiggles them, and I slap them gently out of the way. “It’s a charity event, Bub. We can be in and out in a couple of hours, and then I’ll take you to get ice cream.”
I arch a brow. “Ice cream?”
He nods, his grin growing. “That’s a very normal, very commonly utilized date activity.”
I still don’t take his hand. I stare up at him, almost defiantly. “Whatkindof event, Carter?”
“It’s just something the team puts on every year,” he says with a shrug. “There are a few of these, but this one is the most laid back. It’ll be a couple of hours of shmoozing and then we’re free. It’s for local clubs. For kids.”
I roll my eyes. Of course it’s for the kids. I’m supposed to say no to the kids?
“Come on, Red.” He wiggles his fingers again. Regretfully, I take his hand, treasuring the way he tends to lead me places. Fingers around mine, back to me as he guides us ahead. He opens the door for me, like he always does, and I hate how I’m getting used to him.
When we arrive, I’m shocked to see that this event has a red-carpeted section where the guests enter the ballroom. It marks the path to the only entrance into the gala. That means there is no sneaking in through the back door to avoid it.
Translation: I’m going to have to be photographed to gain entry.
Carter immediately heads for it without even sparing me a word, so I squeeze his hand in a death grip as a protest.
No.No.I am so out of my element. A red carpet? What is this? Why do the kids need a red carpet? Why do we have to walk a red carpetforkids? That’s just bizarre.
He glances over his shoulder, sees my panicked face, and slows.
“I can’t.”
He turns to me, a little smile on his mouth. When he places his hands on my shoulders, I glare up at him. He should have told me what this night would consist of. I would have planned better, spent longer on my makeup, and downed a glass of wine before getting in his car.
“You can’t get a picture with me?”
“On a red carpet? In front of twenty cameras? This isveryintimidating.”
His lip twitches upward. “Don’t you, like, staple people’s heads for a living?”
I shoot him a look. Not the same.
“It’s a couple photos, Red.”
A couple of photos that will be plasteredeverywhere.A couple of photos that I will have no control over. I take one look at the people currently having their picture taken and instantly want to die. Tall, all legs, and perfect, platinum blonde hair. She’s the Hollywood type of pretty, knows how to position her body, and is comfortable posing next to her man who doesn’t seem to give a shit about the cameras.
