Page 64 of The Match Faker

‘No, I was going to make something when I got home.’

‘There’s some chicken cacciatore in the fridge that I made for lunch. It’s like a chicken stew with peppers and mushrooms in tomato sauce. You can warm that up if you want.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Mia.’ I fixed my gaze on her. ‘I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t. Let me take you to the bedroom.’ Her eyes bulged. ‘The spare bedroom,’ I added.

The clarification wasn’t just for her. It was a reminder for my dick, which had jerked at the mention of the word bedroom. I didn’t know how I was gonna survive this whole abstinence thing. Especially with Mia here.

Since I lost my virginity at fifteen, I didn’t think I’d gone more than a few weeks without sex, so this was a new experience.

‘Y-yeah,’ Mia stuttered. ‘Of course. Okay.’

Was she thinking about sex too? She’d broken up with Boris a while ago, but had she dated since? I doubted Mia did hook-ups. She’d always been a hearts and flowers kind of girl.

Unlike me, Mia grew up in a traditional family. Her parents had been together for ages. So even when we were teenagers she’d talked about getting married and having kids. I definitely wasn’t interested in that shit.

I led her up the stairs.

‘This is the office.’ I stepped aside. She poked her head through the door, then followed me to the next room. ‘And here’s the gym. My PT, Nate, comes here most days to train me.’

We walked down the hall, where I pointed out the main bathroom.

‘It’s—wow. Amazing!’ Mia said, taking in the sight of the waterfall shower and brilliant white roll-top claw-foot bath. We moved down the hallway and I stopped at the doorway of the master bedroom. ‘So this is… your room?’

‘Yep. This is where the magic happens…’ I teased.

‘Remember the rules.’ Mia glared.

‘I’m winding you up.’ I stood next to the king-sized bed, which had a midnight-blue velvet-upholstered headboard which matched the walls. The floor-to-ceiling wardrobes and bedside tables had a walnut finish that complemented the wooden flooring. ‘I use the en suite, so the main bathroom is all yours. Let’s go to your room.’

‘Okay,’ Mia replied as we walked to the bedroom directly opposite, which was much smaller than mine.

‘Sorry it’s a tip. This is how my friend left it.’ I pushed some boxes to the back wall.

‘It’s fine. I can sort it out. You’re already helping me and it’s late.’

‘I just need to find the airbed.’

Mia helped me go through the boxes. ‘Found it!’ she called out.

‘Great. The pump should be inside.’

‘I’ll find it after I’ve had dinner.’

‘Okay. I’ll get you some bedsheets. What else do you need?’

‘A towel, shower gel…’

‘Should all be in the bathroom. Back in a sec.’

When I returned, Mia had already made space for the bed.

‘I’m gonna sleep now.’ I handed her the sheets. ‘What time do you need to be at the office?’

‘Eight-thirty-ish.’

‘I’ll get Phil to take you. Just in case. The clothes will be here before I leave, so I’ll put them outside your door.’

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