Page 66 of Pretend Girlfriend

Theo just shrugged. “What can I say? I get along with everyone.”

I turned to Landon. “Do they have drug testing at Defense Technologies?”

“They used to,” he replied, “but relaxed their policy once weed was legalized in Illinois. I probably won’t smoke anything while we’re here, though.”

“Really?” Theo teased. “That’s like going to Napa and not drinking any wine.”

“He has a point,” I told Landon.

He shrugged. “We’ll see.”

We waited in line to check in at the front desk. After scanning our passports, the clerk asked us, “Do you have any dietary restrictions or allergies we should be aware of?”

Suddenly, an idea came to me.

“I don’t have any allergies, but there’s a member of our party who does.” I leaned forward on the desk like I was relaying a secret. “His name is Austin Hedges. He’s a recovering alcoholic. He’s doing amazing, just got his one-year chip. But he’s still embarrassed about it. Can you make sure all the drinks he orders are alcohol-free?”

“Um, one moment, please.” The desk clerk stepped away to speak to a manager.

“What’s that all about?” Landon asked.

“Getting even with Austin!” I whispered back. “You wouldn’t let me put him on the no-fly list, so this is my next best option.”

“Oh.” Landon grinned. “I like it.”

The desk clerk returned with the manager, who smiled at us warmly. “Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We have received these kinds of requests before, and we treat them with the utmost seriousness. We will ensure Mr. Hedges is only given non-alcohol beverages for the duration of your stay. We even have a supply of alcohol-free wine and beer.”

“That’s really great,” Landon said. “And if it’s not too much trouble, can you avoid bringing the subject up with Mr. Hedges? He’s really self-conscious about the whole thing.”

“We are trained in discretion,” the manager assured us.

“That was amazing,” I told Landon as we were taken to our room. “There’s no way it will work though, right?”

“If it works for even a day, it’ll be hilarious,” he replied.

Our room was on the third floor, with a view overlooking an inland garden. “Dang. I was hoping we would have an ocean view,” I said.

“I gave them one request, and they met it,” Landon said. “Twin beds.”

“That’s a relief,” I said. “I was afraid they would give us one big bed and we would have had to share.”

“Like the plot in every cheesy rom-com,” Landon agreed.

I cocked my head at him. “How many cheesy rom-coms have you watched?”

“Too many. My ex made me watch every single holiday one on the Hallmark channel. They’re always the same movie!”

Landon changed into a bathing suit—privately, in the bathroom—and then I did the same, picking my favorite red bikini and a see-through cover-up. Landon’s gaze swept over me for a moment, and then he was very careful not to look at my body.

Downstairs, we passed through the lobby to get to the pool. Several other members of the wedding party were checking in, including Austin.

“Hey, an activities desk.” Landon pointed to a desk in the corner operated by a friendly looking woman. “Let’s check out what they offer.”

“I don’t want to leave the resort this trip. I just want to sit on the beach with a cocktail until next Sunday.”

Landon had a sparkle in his eyes, though. “Do you trust me?”

“Not really, no.”

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