Page 28 of Offside Devil

My breath catches in my throat. Double it. As in, twice as much money as the already generous amount he was going to pay me.

I could afford a couch.

“Actually…” He wrinkles his nose, bobbing his head as he considers. “The original rate was for eight hours, but you’ll be living here until this is all over. That’s twenty-four hours per day. So, I’ll triple it.”

Holy shit. Two couches.

My heart is about to beat out of my chest. I can barely breathe, but I force out a shaky exhale. “What does being a fake girlfriend entail?”

He starts pacing again, ticking off conditions on his fingers. “You move in immediately. I have no idea when CPS will drop in again and I want to be ready. Also, you can’t bring random people over to my house.”

“That won’t be a problem.”

He stops, his mouth almost curling into a smile. “Are you telling me you aren’t much of a hostess, Wednesday?”

I frown, only proving his point. “My condition: no more calling me Wednesday Addams.”

Zane’s blue eyes light up, but he nods in agreement. “Fine. No alcohol or drugs, obviously. Nothing that would raise a CPS agent’s eyebrows. And you can’t date anyone outside of this relationship. It’s fake for us, but it has to look real to everyone else.”

“That’s fair.” And incredibly doable. Without knowing it, I’ve been following Zane’s guidelines for years now.

“Oh, and no sex,” he throws in quickly, almost like it’s an afterthought.

“You just said that. No one else outside of this relationship.” I give him a thumbs up. “Got it.”

Zane drags a tired hand over his stubble. “I was talking about with me. You and me. We won’t be having sex with each other.”

“Oh.” All the blood in my body rises to my face. Heat cascades down my neck, but I force myself to give him an easy smile. “You should have said that to start with. This was all an elaborate ruse to get in your bed, Zane. So, now that that’s off the table, I’m out of here.”

It’s a joke to crack the tension, but for a second, Zane’s bright blue eyes darken. That dimple on his right cheek makes an appearance, and I remember where this all started.

Not that long ago, I was basically naked and Zane was looming over me with an expression that looked an awful lot like the one he’s wearing now. We were at a fork in the road. One little choice is the only thing that separates this joke from what could have very well been a reality.

A sweaty, sexy, grindy, breathless reality.

I was dangerously close to letting my new boss fuck me in that coffee shop bathroom.

And he knows it.

I clear my throat. “Kidding. I’m kidding.”

“I’m not.” A muscle in his jaw twitches. “No touching. No sex.”

Suddenly, I want to touch him. My fingers ache to reach towards him for no other reason than he told me not to.

I curl my fingers into fists and tuck those fists underneath my thighs for good measure. “Are you telling me not to fall in love with you, Zane?”

“Do I need to? Are you worried you might?” He grins for a second, but it wilts just as fast. “No, that goes without saying. I’m not the kind of man you want to fall in love with.”

“I think you’re wrong about that,” I blurt before I can stop myself. When his eyes snap to mine, I look out the window. At the glass buildings reflecting the late afternoon light. The view that will be mine for who knows how long. “But it doesn’t matter, anyway. I’m not the kind of woman who falls in love.”

“Perfect. Sounds like we’re a fake match made in heaven.” Zane steps up to the coffee table and reaches his hand across to me. “Do we have a deal?”

Even if this fake relationship only lasts a week, I’ll make enough to pad my emergency fund for months. For the first time in years, I’ll have some cushion. I’ll have a chance to breathe.

All for the low, low price of my dignity.

And what’s that worth anyway these days?

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