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Drew turned his gaze back onto Jenna. “I don’t like to misrepresent myself,” he said. “But if it genuinely makes sense for you, too, I’d be willing to give it a shot.”
Make sense for her? She couldn’t make sense of a damn thing while she was staring into Drew Maddox’s face. Damn, Jenna. Sharpen up.
“How about this,” Drew went on. “We can give it a trial run tonight. Ava and I were supposed to have dinner with Uncle Malcolm, our cousin Harold, Hendrick and his wife, Beverly. Come with us, just as my date, not my fiancée. We’ll see how it feels. See if Hendrick and Bev buy into it. See if it makes you too uncomfortable. If it does, just say no after dinner. No harm, no foul. I will absolutely understand.”
“Really? Wouldn’t that be, you know...really awkward?”
His smile was so gorgeous. Subtle dimples carved deep into his lean cheeks, bracketing his sexy mouth. His hypnotically beautiful, long-lashed eyes studied her intently.
“Of course it would be awkward,” he said softly. “Welcome to my world.”
Ooh. Those words sent inappropriate shivers rushing down her spine.
Drew Maddox waited, eyes fixed on her. After a moment, one of those black winged eyebrows tilted upwards.
She didn’t want to imagine the dazzled, starry-eyed look that must be on her face right now.
Just like old times. Ava had dragged her into lots of trouble back in their college days. But this time, it was just playacting, right? In the interests of securing more funding for Arm’s Reach. Her cause was a good one. It was worth it.
And what was the harm, really? She wasn’t lying to anyone but the predatory gossip rags and this tight-assed partner, Hendrick Hill. And it wasn’t a lie that would damage anyone, or take anything from anyone.
Plus, she wasn’t locked into it. She could bail tonight if they crashed and burned.
“Okay,” Jenna said slowly. “I suppose we could give dinner a try.”
Ava’s delighted hand-clapping startled Jenna, causing her to sit bolt upright in her chair. “Excellent!” her friend said briskly. “You have just enough time to get home and dress for dinner. You came here in a cab, right?”
“Ah, yes, but—”
“I’ll call a car to take you home, and I—hold on a sec.” A guitar riff from a classic rock tune came from a smartphone on the table. Ava glanced at the display and tapped the screen, holding it to her ear. “Hey, Ernest. Talk to me...really? Three of them? They’re hungry today. Okay, I’ll tell them to hurry up. Thanks.”
She laid down her phone, her eyes sparkling. “You guys! We have an opportunity to launch this right now with a splash. My assistant, Ernest, has identified three celebrity photographers lurking down in the front lobby, waiting for Drew. Jump on it! Use them for once, instead of letting them use you!”
Jenna drew in a sharp breath. “You mean, paparazzi? They follow you?”
Drew’s mouth tightened. “They bother me occasionally, yes.”
Ava waved her hand. “Ever since that thing he had with that actress who did the last dinosaur flick, what’s her name? Bonita Ramon. It’s hard to keep your love affairs straight. Anyhow, the tabloid sharks discovered that stories about Drew sell newspapers even without a movie star attached to him. His money, his looks, his sex life—”
“Ava, don’t,” he said.
Ava rolled her eyes. “Your own fault for being so damn photogenic. You’re, like, walking clickbait. So? They’re waiting, people! Go get ’em!”
Ouch.Jenna winced inwardly at the thought of being compared to the radiant movie star, Bonita Ramon. This adventure could prove to be more dangerous to her self-esteem than she’d thought. “You mean, just go downstairs right now? Together?”
“Wait, Av,” Drew said. “We told her she could bail after dinner. If she goes out with me now in front of the photographers, she’ll be in it up to her neck. No going back.”
“So decide now! Call it fate, okay?” Ava pleaded. “Walk through the lobby holding hands. Laugh, smile, flirt, improvise. Seize the day! If this is going to work, you can’t be tentative or coy. You have to hit it hard and keep on hitting!”
Drew glanced at her, and shrugged. “Your call, Jenna,” he said. “Do not let her pressure you.”
Ava clasped pleading hands. “C’mon, Jenn,” she coaxed. “Don’t you trust me? Tell me you do.”
“Hush up and let me think,” Jenna said distractedly.
Thinking was hard, with her wits compromised by Drew Maddox’s proximity, which created a huge racket in both mind and body.
Drew was right. Going out now nixed any chance of changing her mind discreetly.
