Page 51 of Gracefully Yours

So there was no way I was letting him see the half-made dress strewn all over the room.

“Don’t come in!” I shouted, hurrying to drape a sheet over the mannequin currently holding the bodice of my dress as I was working on the skirt. “You can’t see it!”

Daniel chuckled through the wood. “You know, for all your talk about a fake marriage, you sure seem determined to do this right.”

He’d said he was going for a run, and I could only hope that he wasn’t shirtless again. I’d already had to amend our rules yesterday to include beingfully clothedin all common areas. Daniel shirtless was a reminder I didnotneed.

I opened the door, crossing my arms as I eyed him, kicking a spool away from me. “We’re only doing this once.”

“Mhm.” His hair was damp, likely from a shower he’d taken post run. Why did I want to brush my fingers through it? Why did I want to see if he still smelled like apples?

I’d used his body wash this summer. We wouldn’t evaluate why I enjoyed smelling like him.

Clearing my head of thoughts of Daniel in the shower, I refocused my energy on him. “That means it has to be perfect.”

“Does that perfection involve me feeding you dinner?” He quirked an eyebrow.

As if in answer, my stomach growled. But… “What about the cake tasting?”

He frowned. “You’re telling me you aren’t hungry?You?”

Well… He had a point. Between dancing and working out to stay in shape, I had to consume more calories since I burned so many off. “Okay. Yeah. I could eat.”

“Great. Follow me.”

I never knew how special it would feel to have a man make dinner for me every night. I’d figured I would be the one taking care of him, but watching him cook so effortlessly was…sexy.

How on earth was I going to survive it if that was my view every night?

And how was I going to survive sharing a room with him during the ski trip next week?

* * *

“There they are!Our fellow engaged couple!” Noelle grinned, waving at us wildly from their driveway.

“Oh, goodness,” I muttered under my breath, tugging my jacket tighter around me as I fiddled with the engagement ring on my finger.

The ski trip I’d been dreading had finally arrived, and I was trying to remember why I’d agreed on this trip. It was a terrible idea. For starters, because I was in a fake relationship with my best friend, and none of them had any idea that it was real. That wasn’t even touching on how I was always freezing cold. I’d bundled up in a sweater and a thick jacket just for the drive to meet our friends.

Putting on my best fake smile, I attempted to grab my bag out of the trunk of Daniel’s car, but he swooped in and grabbed it out from under me.

“Oh. Thanks.”

“Of course,” he murmured, carrying it over to Matthew’s truck. “I got you.”

Noelle flung her arms around me, pulling me into a tight hug. “Hi, Char.”

“Hey.” I grinned at her, thankful that I had my best friend by my side.

“I’ve missed you,” she pouted. “This last month has been way too busy.”

“I know,” I agreed with a groan. Between my winter recitals, and her finishing the end of the school year at her job, plus wedding planning, we’d barely seen each other. The last time I’d seen all the girls had been that day at the coffee shop. “But at least you’re on winter break now!” We’d waited until there was enough snow on the mountain for the trip, and since classes had ended for the semester, it worked out perfectly. To everyone’s excitement but mine. Never mind the fact that it was right before Daniel and I’s wedding, so the trip was one big celebration forus.

I looped my arm through Noelle’s as we watched the guys load Matthew’s truck.

“Everyone excited?” Matthew stretched out his arms, carrying out an ice chest from their house.

“Oh, yeah,” I said, feigning excitement. “Excited to read in the lodge,” I said with a laugh.

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