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1
Avery
As per my usual morning ritual, I made my way to the office belonging to my boss, Ethan Barrett, carrying two takeaway cups of coffee. Although I was employed as an accountant and getting coffee was not part of my job description, I got him a drink every morning on my way to work, a habit that had begun when his assistant had been on sick leave and had continued ever since.
I placed one cup in front of Ethan’s assistant’s computer and turned around, balancing Ethan’s cup in my hand. His office door was ajar, and I could hear him talking on the phone, his tone exasperated. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I couldn’t seem to help myself.
“Yes, I have the suit… No, you don’t need to do th— I told you I’d handle it… Yes. I. Do… I have a date, so there’s no need to interfere… See you at the wedding… Goodbye, Mother.” He made a kind of frustrated growl sound, so I counted to thirty before walking in, to give him time to compose himself. I knocked lightly to announce my presence, then pushed the door open the rest of the way and walked across the room to where he sat, now focused on his computer.
Everything on Ethan’s desk had its set place, and the coffee was no exception. The metal coaster sat perpendicular to his computer monitor, and just to mess with him, I moved the coaster slightly to the left as I placed his drink down. He frowned, glancing over at the cup distractedly, and nudged it back into place with a finger before returning his gaze to his screen. His eyes flicked up to mine for a second, and I met his irritated expression with an exaggerated eye roll, turning on my heel to make my way out of his office.
“Avery, wait.” His commanding tone stopped me in my tracks. This wasn’t going to be good. I slowly turned to face him. He was staring at me, his laser-focused gaze directed at mine, and I swallowed, nerves overtaking me.
“You like me, right?”
My mouth dropped open. What kind of a question was that?
“Like you? Uh…yes? Why?”
His brow furrowed at my tone. “Why the hesitation?” He sounded genuinely curious, so I sighed and walked back to his desk, sliding into the seat opposite him.
“Take a seat, why don’t you?”
I chose to ignore his sarcasm. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound hesitant. Your question came out of the blue, so it threw me.”
Ethan leaned back in his chair, running a hand through his thick, dark hair. He appeared to be mulling over his words, so I sat back and waited. Finally, he opened his mouth.
“Listen, Avery, I want to make a deal with you. If you’re interested, that is.” For the first time ever, he seemed unsure, and it unnerved me. Ethan Barrett was the owner and founder of Barrett London, a successful boutique digital marketing agency he’d built from the ground up. Although I didn’t know a huge amount about his personal life, we’d always got on well in the office. I admired his work ethic, and his business had a low staff turnover. He always came across as confident and imposing, so to see him hesitate threw me.
He took a deep breath and continued. “Here’s the deal. I have a family event to attend, and I need to take a date. I’d like to take you.”
“I’m sorry, what?” I stared at him in disbelief, shuffling uncomfortably in my seat.
“Let me explain myself. This isn’t a real date. Long story short—my baby sister is getting married. My mother is”—he looked pained—“rather vocal regarding my love life. She’s desperate to set me up with the daughter of one of her friends, and if I turn up to the wedding without a date, it’s going to be really fucking awkward for me, to be perfectly honest.”
“Okay…” I said slowly, frowning as I tried to wrap my head around his words. “Why not just bring an actual date?”
“I can’t do that. It’s my sister’s wedding, and to make it worse, I’m expected to stay for the whole weekend. If I took someone I wanted to date, she’d read far too much into it. A whole weekend away with me at a family wedding? That’s just asking for trouble. She’d have high expectations regarding my feelings for her, and she’d either end up being an utter clinger, or we’d drive each other insane by the end of the weekend.” He shuddered in revulsion, and I couldn’t help the amusement that tugged the corners of my lips into a small smile.
“While I understand your predicament, I’m not sure why you’re asking me to help you.”
Ethan leaned forward, spearing me with his dark gaze.
“Firstly, and most importantly, this is a business deal. You won’t get the wrong idea about my intentions. Secondly, you’re attractive enough to pass as my girlfriend. Thirdly, we’re friends—in work, at least, and we work well together, so I’m confident we can pull this off without a hitch.”
My mind was whirling.
“Hold on just a minute. This was what you were talking about on the phone just now, wasn’t it? I could’ve sworn you said you had a date.” I bit my lip. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop. You were talking quite loudly.”
Ethan raised his eyebrows at me. “Hmm…I’m sure. But yes, I was talking to my mother on the phone. The reason I told her I already had a date was because she was hassling me about setting me up, and I thought of you. I apologise, I s
houldn’t have presumed that you’d say yes, but I was hoping you would be amenable to the idea.”
“Were you, now?” It was my turn to raise a brow at him. “What do I get out of this arrangement, anyway? It seems to me like you’re the one getting all the benefits, while I’m supposed to lie to your family and pretend to be your girlfriend?”
“Look, I’m going to come clean with my family afterwards. My sister, at least. I’m not close to my mother, at all,” he muttered darkly. “As for your benefits, I was hoping we could negotiate those. You’ll be getting an all-expenses paid weekend away in a five-star country manor. There’s an on-site spa and golf course, and you can charge whatever treatments you want to my room. I will of course compensate you financially. I thought maybe an additional payment on top of your annual bonus?”
I shook my head emphatically. “No, no, no. If I do this, you are not paying me. That veers far too much into paid escort territory for me.” I smiled at him mischievously. “In fact, why don’t you just use an escort? Wouldn’t that be easier all round?”
“That is out of the question,” he said sharply, glaring at me.
