Page 64 of Fake It 'til You Make It

I snort. ‘Yeah, right. Impressive slash extremely dull.’ I feel myself grinning, baring teeth like the grimacing-face emoji.

‘Well, thanks for exposing your darkest secrets, Abbey.’ He chuckles.

‘Hey, don’t laugh. I’m cool now. Though my family are still livid about the career switch, especially Mom. So it’s another thing that might come up whilst we’re in Canada.’

Oh God, I need to move this on before he decides to fake dump me. Playfully, I nudge into his shoulder and ask, ‘What is it with you Thomas boys and pissing off your best friends?’

‘They piss us off because they’re lying, faithless, narcissistic dickheads.’

‘Ha. Got it.’

‘Can you really help with this stuff? My judgment and ability to process anything to do with Roman and I— My brother separating is barely existent. I’ve known Roman for years, since he and my brother were in college, but ultimately, I’m on my brother’s side in this, obviously. I just can’t decipher legal jargon or frankly, see the wood through the trees.’

‘Sure. I mean, I might be a little rusty,’ I say, tearing off a piece of naan because I don’t dare look at him as I tell another fib. ‘Come on then, you’ll need to give me some background. Beyond your brother’s business partner being a lying, faithless, narcissistic dickhead, what’s going on?’

Mike chortles. ‘I think I like you more every time we meet, Abs.’

His words cut his amusement short. Mine, too. I’m taken aback, I think. With the exception of my sister and Shernette, no one calls me Abs. Though I’m less surprised by Mike’s familiarity and more by the effect his words have on me. I… liked him giving me a nickname. It was kind of cute. Short of intimate.

I’d chastise my mind for wandering to dangerous places, but the fact that Mike has stilled at his own words makes me wonder, for a nanosecond, if he felt the same.

Stop. It. Abbey.

Stop. It. Now.

As. If.

He opens his mouth, as if he’s going to speak again, then closes it silently. Are his cheeks flushed? Is Mr Bigshot embarrassed?

There’s some sort of fission going on between us. To take the sting out of it, I joke, ‘Consider yourself amongst very highly regarded acquaintances, Big and Burly. Only my sister and Shernette call me Abs and get away with it.’

‘Sorry, I?—’

‘I don’t mind at all.’You probably wouldn’t have said it if I wasn’t playing the part of the new me but I liked it. ‘Now…’ I pull my legs up beneath me on the sofa, getting settled for the long haul.

‘Wait. Big and Burly?’

Now it’s my turn to blush. ‘Shhh. Tell me everything I need to know about your brother and Vanguard.’

That supercilious smirk he often wears pulls on his lips. Damn him. Big, burly and flipping sexy.

Moving on to safer ground, I hold up a hand to stop him as he reaches toward the pile of documents on the table. ‘Before we start, Mike, I just need to tell you, I’m looking at this as a friend, not a professional adviser. I mean, I’m an actress. If you share any of this with your brother, he should know that.’

‘Got it,’ he says with a nod, bringing the documents between us on the sofa.

‘And you should think about confidentiality,’ I tell him. ‘I mean, I assure you I’m not going to share anything outside of this apartment but before you tell me anything I can’t find out from the public domain, you should be comfortable with that. Your brother needs to be comfortable with that.’

‘Abbey, I trust you.’

‘You do?’

He doesn’t flinch at my surprise, only looks me in the eye and says, ‘I do. And Ted will be immensely grateful. I know him better than anyone, believe me.’

Okay. I nod but don’t speak because suddenly, with Mike confirming his faith in me, I am doubting myself. I was going to be fired as an auditor, never mind a business analyst. Anxiety makes me chew my lip.Can I do this?

‘Abbey, let’s just eat food and hang out; forget this. You don’t have to?—’

‘It’s not that I don’t want to help. I love this kind of business analysis and troubleshooting, or used to. I’ve helped my dad out with this kind of thing multiple times, but you need to know I’m not qualified. I mean, I’m just an auditor.Wasan auditor.’

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