Page 134 of Pretend Girlfriend

“I feel the same way!” I blurted out. “It makes no sense, but after pretending for two weeks, I feel… I don’t know. I feel something.”

“A spark,” he offered. “The potential for something bigger.”

“Yes!”

“It scared me,” he admitted. “Suddenly realizing how much I liked you, and fearing that we would fuck it all up by…”

“By fucking?” I said.

Landon smirked. “Yeah. And believe me, it wasn’t easy turning down sex with someone like you.”

“Like me?”

“Someone absolutely fucking gorgeous,” he replied. “Especially after cuddling with you in bed all morning.”

“So we’re on the same page,” I summed up. “We kind of like each other, but are confused beyond that.”

“I’m not confused about the fact that I want to take you out on a real date,” Landon said firmly.

I smiled back at him. “I want that, too.”

His smile slipped. “So, the elephants in the room. What about Theo? And Austin, I guess?”

I felt my cheeks redden. I gazed out at the ocean as I answered him. “I like Theo, as we’ve discussed. And Austin… I don’t even know. I’m even more confused about him than I am about you or Theo. Before Jamaica, I hated him. He was a thorn in my side, blackmailing me about our fake relationship.”

“Wait, he did what?” Landon asked.

“I’ll explain it later. But yeah, I don’t hate him anymore. I kind of like him, too. I wish I had an easier answer for you.”

“Thanks for being honest.”

“I don’t know what’s going to happen when we get back to Chicago,” I said. “But if possible, I think I’d like to date each of you. See what shakes out. If you’re not okay with that, then I understand.”

Landon was quiet for a long time. The only sound was the waves washing up on the shore, and then slowly receding back out into the endless dark sea.

“I think I’m okay with that,” he finally said.

“Really?”

“At first, yes. I’m fine with you dating all three of us. I can’t promise I won’t get jealous after a few weeks, though. If you even date any of us that long.”

“Understandable,” I said. After an emotion-packed day, it was a surprisingly level-headed response. “Now for the toughest question of all.”

“What’s that?”

“What are we going to tell your family?” I asked. “That was a huge fight on the beach.”

“Tell me about it.” Landon removed the icepack, revealing some dried blood underneath his nose.

I pointed at him. “Now that’s going to leave a mark.”

He chuckled, then shook his head. “I don’t know what to tell them. Honestly, I just want to get away for a little bit. I need time to think.”

“There’s that town a few miles outside the resort,” I said. “Falmouth. We could find a bar. Get some drinks. Talk it out until things start making sense.”

“That’s the best idea I’ve heard all week.”

Landon cleaned up the bloody nose in the bathroom by the pool, then we called a cab at the front desk.

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