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“Yeah, I do. But if he is seeing someone else, I pray for her. Because just a few hours ago, he was trying to get back with me. It was clear he was pretty jealous of the Alex situation, too.”
“Men,” Keri said, rolling her eyes. “You can’t live with them, but you can live without them.”
“I like to think that not all of them are as bad as Cole. Some actually seem…” I glanced across the street toward Alex, who was walking out of his restaurant at the same time. “Sweet.”
Keri nudged my arm. “Oh my gosh, you’re smitten with him, aren’t you?”
“What? No. I’m just…he’s just…” I smiled at Keri and sighed. “Have fun with the auction today, okay?”
She held up her basket. “My first ever Snack on Hillstack. Hopefully, I can help raise some good money for the shop with some store-bought pasta salad and ham sandwiches,” she joked.
“Are you kidding me? Men will be pushing one another over to get that basket of yours.” I knew that for a fact, too. Keri was a young, beautiful girl. She’d just turned twenty-three not that long ago, and it was no secret that the men were into her. Guys stopped into our store without a dog in tow just to speak with her. It didn’t hurt that she was also one of the sweetest women in town. If there was ever an issue, Keri was willing to step up and help out, no matter what.
“Fingers crossed,” she said. “Now, I’ll stop bothering you and let you go get your man.”
She waved goodbye as she walked off to join the others preparing for the picnic auction. Before I could make my way over to Alex, another arm looped around mine and tugged me in the opposite direction.
“What in the hallelujah is going on?!” Avery barked my way, almost yanking my arm from its socket. “Why am I hearing around the streets that you and Alex Ramírez are a thing?!”
Oh yeah.
I forgot to tell my sisters.
If Willow wasn’t off with Snake Bite or whatever his name was, I was certain she’d have some choice words for me, too.
“I forgot to—” I started, but she cut me off.
“Yara Zuri Kingsley, do not tell me you forgot to mention that you have been seeing that man! I will disown you as my sister if you tell me that.”
“Fine, fine. I won’t. But it all happened very quickly, and I didn’t get a chance to tell you that Alex and I are dating.”
“Bull crap. You’re not dating him.”
“I am. We are totally a thing.”
She narrowed her eyes and pointed a stern finger at me. “You’re lying!”
“What?” I snickered and shook my head. “I am not.”
“You are. When you lie, your nose scrunches up.”
“No, it doesn’t,” I said, working hard to hold my nose still.
“There! You did it again! Out with it. The real truth.”
I groaned, knowing I wouldn’t be able to pull a fast one on Avery. The rest of the town? Sure. My big sister? Not so much. “Cole was giving me a hard time, and I convinced Alex to be my fake boyfriend to ward off Cole in exchange for my services.”
“Oh my goodness,” Avery cried out, her jaw dropping open. “My sister’s a hooker.”
“What?! No, I’m not!”
“You said you’re giving him your services! If that’s not a come to mama, spread one’s legs kind of thing, then I don’t know what is.”
“My dog services, you weirdo.”
Avery arched an eyebrow. “Is that some kind of kink thing? You mean doggy style?”
“No! I mean, I’m helping him train Feliz—”
“Is that the name for his penis?”
“Avery!”
“Okay, okay, you’re not a hooker. Continue.”
“I’m training his recently adopted dog, Feliz, and in exchange, he’s pretending to be my boyfriend.”
Avery’s brows lowered. “So it’s not real?”
I shook my head. “As fake as a relationship could ever be.” I think. Maybe.
A sigh rumbled through her lips. “Good. Because if you were in a real relationship, and I heard it through the grapevine of Mary West, we would’ve had some real hard-core issues between us, sister. I’m still a bit annoyed that I didn’t hear about the fake relationship from you, though.”
“Don’t worry. The next time I get a pretend boyfriend, you’ll be the first to know.” I gestured toward her basket. “You’re taking part in the auction this year? You never do it.”
“Uh, yeah, because it’s dehumanizing to have women stand on a stage and be auctioned off to men.”
“Careful, you’re sounding a bit like Willow,” I teased.
“Sometimes that girl is right. Bizarre, but right. Anyway, for some reason, Wesley wanted me to do it this year. So whatever. Plus, it kind of reminds me of Mama, and I’ve been missing her lately with the whole engagement thing. Sitting at Hillstack with Wesley seems sort of cute, seeing as how that’s where Mama and Daddy met.”
