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“Yeah, me too.” It’s obvious he’s feeling what I’m feeling. The too-good-to-be-true factor. Any of us in the house would have the exact same thoughts, except for maybe Rush. Of all of us, he’s the planner. The one who makes sensible decisions. Even if he somehow manages to be chronically late for literally everything.
“But even though the money is—well, a fucking dream, let’s be honest—I want you to promise me you’re not going to get carried away with it. If you’re uncomfortable, or this guy is pushing you into—”
“He’s not like that.”
Gabe gives me a wry smile. “You think everyone is good. Even your shitty parents. I’mjustsaying, protect yourself, okay? You’re sleeping with him and pretending to be his husband and he’s offering you a fairy tale, that’s a lot. I don’t want you seeing him as some kind of … I dunno. A savior or something.”
Gabe’s right to warn me because I’m worried I already kinda do.
“We’re not sleeping together.”
“Yeah, right. They all heard you the other night.”
I screw my face up. “Tell me they weren’t listening at the door.”
“They didn’t need to. Seven said screaming filled the whole house. Kismet was pacing outside your door for an hour.”
My face heats. “Fuck you, I don’t scream.”
Gabe lowers his voice and moans like a porn star. “Yes. Émile. Deeper. Use your tongue. Oh, oh,oh. Like that.”
Jesus H Christ I did beg for his tongue.
“And I’m going to go and drown myself now.”
He leans into the chair’s backrest until he’s almost horizontal. “You’re so easy to embarrass. It’s amazing.”
“I’m so glad you get enjoyment out of this.” I huff. “We made this whole plan,afterthe sex, and agreed that it would be too weird to continue doingthatwhile we pretended to be husbands and he was giving me money and shit.”
“I’m proud.”
“Thanks.”
“I give it a week.”
I push off the door to go back to sorting through my clothes. “Fuck you. We got it out of our systems the other night, if anything else happens, it’ll be once this whole thing blows over.”
“You’re not …actuallygoing to marry the guy, are you?”
That’s the tricky part. “I have no idea about that legal shit, but we’ll work it out. To get the money, I don’t see a way around it.”
“And once it’s over?”
“Annulment or divorce or whatever.”
Gabe still looks worried. “It’s a big sacrifice.”
I shrug. “Is it? It’s not like it’ll have any effect on me. Once he’s got his money, the both of us will just move on.”
Gabe’s looking at me through wide eyes. “I love you, but this is batshit crazy.”
“Maybe. But I’m going to do it anyway.”
Because as next level as Gabe finds it, I’m actually … excited? Nervous as hell, and sure I’m going to screw it up, obviously, but the thought of doing something so completely different to what my life has always been sounds fun.
I’ve worked my ass off. I’ve put my head down, studied, held on to three jobs, volunteered, reduced my free time to almost nothing, all to try and make it in an almost impossible career.
Is it really so bad to want this break? To want, just for a moment, and get to see how the other side lives?
