Page 27 of Under My Skin

“I think so. I’ll definitely be around more over the summer, but I have some commitments I need to keep, and I’ll be glad for the help regardless. I should probably also mention I might need you at night occasionally. My, um…my boyfriend plays for the Dragons, and I promised I’d go to some public functions with him and let him take me out once in a while so the press can see us during the off season.”

The last sentence burned my throat coming out. I hated callingBraden Hicksmy boyfriend.

He was the bane of my existence. The reason I’d had to bury my sister. The father of this precious little boy, who he couldn’t have cared less about.

“That’s not a problem,” she said with a smile. “As long as you give me some notice so I’m prepared, I can stay late some nights.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “Perfect. I love that you were speaking Spanish to him, by the way. My dad was Cuban, and my sister always used to speak Spanish to Isaac while she was pregnant. She always told me she wanted him to grow up knowing about his heritage.”

Lina let out a soft chuckle. “I’m glad. My family came here from Colombia when I was a little girl. Sometimes the Spanish just slips out.”

“So, when can you start?” I laughed a little, but I was only half-joking.

“As soon as you need me.”

“Um, my boyfriend is actually going to be taking care of your salary, so if it’s okay, I’ll give your contact information to him so he can set up the payment information over the weekend. Then we’ll have your start date on Monday?”

Again with calling him my boyfriend. Except this time…this time it had slipped out a little easier.

No. I couldn’t let myself go down this road. This wasn’t real. None of it was. The only part of this that wasn’t fake was the financial help he was giving me in exchange for four months of putting on a charade. A charade I still wasn’t sure if I could pull off.

“That’s perfect,” she said. “If you could also give me your school schedule and any nights you know you’ll need me to work right now, that would be helpful.”

“Yeah, of course. Let me go grab something to write it all down.”

I got up and went into my bedroom to grab one of my notebooks and a pen, but before I wrote it down, I pulled out my phone and texted Braden.

Me

Lina’s a perfect fit for us. I told her I’d give you her contact info so you can call her to set up her payment info. I’ll text you her number when she leaves.

Braden

That’s amazing. I’m glad you found someone you like. I’ll call her and get everything squared away as soon as you send me her number.

A lump rose in my throat, and I swallowed it back down as I started to write down my school schedule for Lina.

After a whole month of barely making it and being an inch away from a nervous breakdown, I finally felt like I could breathe easier. And the utter relief that washed over me at the knowledge that I didn’t have to do everything on my own anymore wasalmostenough to make me forget that the person who had put me in this situation in the first place was the one offering me a way out of it now.

Almost.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

BRADEN

Why wasI so fucking nervous?

No, seriously, why? This wasn’t a date. Not really. I was literallypayingDani to spend time with me.

So why was it that my palms were sweating and my stomach was twisted into a knot as I walked up the stairs to her apartment? Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I knocked on the door.

After a few seconds, a beautiful Latina woman – who wasnotmy date for the evening – answered the door with an adorable baby boy in her arms.

“Hey. You must be Lina,” I said, smiling at her.

“And you’re Braden.” She stepped to the side to let me in. “It’s nice to meet you. My brother’s a big fan. Um, Dani asked me to let you in. This little guy spit up all over her dress and she had to get changed.”

I chuckled as I walked inside and shut the door behind me. “It’s no problem. Gives me an excuse to meet Isaac anyway.”

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