AllFreeNovel
Share Us
We’re eating at the island countertop, which also serves as his table. He could probably fit a dining table in the space next to us, but instead, he has some gym equipment set up there. Between us and the hallway that leads back to the bedrooms is the living room. Even with the gym equipment in plain sight, his apartment looks nothing like a bachelor pad. It’s thoughtfully decorated, with black-and-white canvases along the walls and a rather comfortable-looking sectional opposite the large TV.
“How old are you?” I ask.
Teddy’s eyebrows lift. “Thirty-six. Why?”
“Just wondering,” I say, waving my fork. “You seem so…put together.”
He huffs a laugh. “Thanks.”
My phone takes that moment to vibrate from inside my pocket, but I ignore it. “Where’s that?” I ask, pointing at the canvas closest to us. It looks like a small town, the houses crammed together, flowers hanging out windows and trees squeezed into the empty spaces along the sides of the cobbled street.
“Quebec,” he answers. “I grew up there.”
“Is that where your grandparents still live?” I ask, piecing two and two together.
He nods, drinking some water before speaking. “Did you grow up here?”
“In Vegas? No. Born Midwesterner. My family lives in Indiana.”
He hums, and my foot taps against the bottom rung of my chair.
“Is this weird?” I blurt, setting down my fork. “It’s weird, right? Like, we barely know each other, and suddenly, we’re sitting down to dinner, talking about our pasts, and playing house as if we’re married.”
We are. We are married.
“It’s not weird,” Teddy says calmly. “It’s nothing different than what people do on a date.”
“Yeah, but we’re not dating,” I say slowly. “Are we?”
“No,” he says, shaking his head. “We’re not.”
“Okay, so…”
“Stop overthinking, Kipp.”
I huff. “Do you even know me? Overthinking is what I do.”
Teddy eyes me then, something unnervingly focused in his gaze. Sometimes, I swear the man is two people. There’s genial, teddy bear Teddy, whose mouth is always turned in a smile and who speaks soothingly, like he has a degree in setting people at ease. And then there’s the hawk-like Teddy, who goes still and silent, a predator hunting prey.
I probably shouldn’t enjoy being the potential mouse in this scenario, and yet I can’t help but wonder what would happen if I run.
“Try not to worry over this,” he says, sharp expression clearing. “Do you need help getting the rest of your things?”
“Nah, it’s not much,” I tell him. “All the furniture and stuff came with the apartment.”
He nods. “Done with dinner?”
“Yeah, all set,” I say, my plate practically licked clean. “Thanks again for cooking.”
He squeezes the back of my neck as he stands, and I have to work real damn hard on not making a sound. His hand is so big.
Teddy picks up my plate and loads our dishes into the washer. Reluctantly, I pull my phone from my pocket. There are a barrage of comments on my Instagram posts, congratulating me and Teddy. I don’t know why I haven’t taken the pictures down. I should, but… They’re so nice. So normal, almost, despite the circumstances that led to our drunk wedding and the fact that the whole thing is a sham. But we look happy, and even if it is fake, I can’t quite make myself get rid of the lie.
“I’m going to take a shower,” Teddy says, rousing me from my phone. “Feel free to look around or watch TV. There are a few streaming services to choose from.”
“Thanks,” I mutter, my mind stuck on the shower part of what he said. I don’t think I truly considered what living in close proximity to this man would mean. “Can I watch you?”
Teddy laughs as he disappears down the hall, and I groan to myself.
