Fixing myself a cup of lavender tea before going back to the kitchen, the bell above the door rings. I don’t bother looking up since it’s been a slow morning and Gavin is at the other register.
I feel his large, warm presence behind me before he says, “Hey.”
Swallowing down my lingering anxiety, I curse myself for finding an inkling of comfort in his low, gravelly timbre.
I turn around, holding the cup to my lips, and take a sip. “Back already? Have I accidentally caused a caffeine addiction?”
He shrugs and runs his eyes down my body. “Maybe, but coffee wouldn’t be my vice.”
I let out a dry breath, hoping it hides how much I love his attention. He’s straightforward, even when he’s attempting to be subtle.
He bites his lip and taps his fingers on the counter, looking boyish and endearing despite the tattoos visible from his rolled-up sleeves.
“I have a favor to ask,” he says slowly. “And it’s crazy—like, really stupid and ridiculous—but I hope you’ll at least hear me out.”
My eyebrows raise and I take a long drink of my tea. I’m on guard because who starts like that?Fucking weirdo.
I’m intrigued. I usually am when it comes to Liam Maddon.
“Will you not deny the rumors going around town?” All of my amusement drains from my body and Liam quickly adds, “Everyone thinks we’re dating. Pippa hired me to start the studio’s renovations on two conditions. I have to bedone by the first week of December, and she’s trusting me becauseyoutrust me.”
I raise one of my hands to my forehead. I don’t get migraines often, but today will be one of those miserable days after all.
“When did these rumors start?” I ask. Mentally, the last few days play through my mind, reel by reel like an old-school film spool.
“I think the farmer’s market,” Liam says casually.
He was probably cool as a fucking cucumber when Pippa threw this at him. Thank God she didn’t approach me first or she would have seen through every lie immediately.
NotThank God.
It doesn’t matter if Pippa finds out we aren’t dating—itshouldn’tmatter.
Letting out a sigh, I shake my head. “We had dinner together on Friday, then spent the entire morning together on Sunday. I introduced you to so many people.”
“As your friend,” he adds.
His effort is appreciated, but no. I grimace at the reminder, at how eager I must have looked to the town. All I wanted was a good laugh from the numerous stories I heard about Liam—and now I’ve ended up as one half of the town’s newest sweethearts.
“I’d never introduce someone as myboyfriend. First of all, I hate that word. Second, I’m private, which is hard in a town like this.” I leave out the part about how my siblings and I are treated like the entire town’s grandchildren because of their care for our mother.“It’s pretty much what they’d expect me to do.”
He nods, trying to follow along. “And Pippa said being Mia’s cousin doesn’t change her opinion of me, which I get. My cousins will always defend me. She does, however, trust your instincts about a person.”
I told Liam that I was enrolled at the dance studio for most of my childhood and adolescence, but I didn’t go intodetails about my relationship with Pippa; how close we are, years after I quit dancing. Sometimes I feel closer to her than I do my own mother, but the guilt festers before I’d ever have the guts to admit that.
“And you… what? Want me to pretend to be your girlfriend?” I ask in disbelief.
He fakes a grimace. “You’re right, ‘boyfriend’ and ‘girlfriend’ are out. We aren’t twelve.”
I snort. It’s exactly how I feel about calling someone that at my age.
More seriously, Liam sets his hands on the countertop and talks quietly. “You saw how the town remembers me, and it’s not wrong—I was a little shit. I would hate myself if I were any of them. But Ireallyneed someone to give me a break if I’m going to help my uncle.”
I nibble on my lip, thinking it over. Liam’s eyes catch on the plush, pink skin for a millisecond before he meets my gaze again, a new type of desperation swimming in the blue tides.
“The studio would be a huge project,” I ruefully admit.
There are three different stages, though one is much larger than the others. Each one has its own changing area, and there are five different practice studios, a concession area, main atrium, office areas, and a few other nooks and crannies.
