Page 20 of Fake Dating My Valentine

My impatient sister stared at me through the mirror, and I didn’t like it, so I turned around and arched my brows. “Fix what, exactly?”

“Whatever the hell is going on with you and Torey. You said that you would fix it, but seeing as you both are hiding from me, I’m guessing you didn’t.”

I groaned inwardly, knowing Nix wouldn’t let this go until it was fixed to her satisfaction. “I tried, dammit. She listened and said she would let me know.” Whatever that meant. Maybe it was naïve to expect anything beyond forgiveness from Torey, but I thought she’d give me more.

“Do you want to tell me about it?”

“No. I absolutely do not.”

She chuckled and stepped inside my room before dropping down on my bed. “Sounds juicy.”

“Nix,” I groaned and turned back to the mirror where my reflection stared back at me and called me an asshole.

She laughed again, sounding far too amused for my liking. Rolling off the bed, she tugged on my arm. “I’ll help you.” Nix smacked my hands away and began fixing my tie. “Even though you totally slept with Torey.”

“I am not having this conversation with you Nix.”

“Fine, I’m not all that eager to hear about your sex life.” Her smile was bright and teasing. “Was it just sex or do you actually like her?”

“It doesn’t matter.” She was right; she hadn’t asked for anything beyond our fake relationship. Then again, I hadn’t given her a chance to say anything before I stupidly talked about mistakes. She had pointed it out earlier today with a stony expression, but I knew Torey well, and I saw the signs of hurt that she tried to hide.

Nix gasped and took a step back, staring at me like I was a freak show. “Oh. My. God. You do like her!” She clapped her hands together and tossed her head back. “You totally like her.”

“I didn’t say that.” My words were useless, even if Nix could hear them over her own delight.

“You didn’t have to, big brother. That grumpy expression on your face tells me everything I need to know. So, now that the truth is out there, wanna talk about it?”

“Still, no.”

“Fine. But we should get going or we’ll be late for the Cocktail Lover’s charity contest.” She rolled her eyes. “Never heard of such a thing, but it’ll be fun and it’ll bring in a lot of money for the local women’s shelter. Make sure you kick ass tonight.”

“I’ll do my best.” I’d spent a few hours on YouTube learning what I could about what makes a good cocktail because I was a hometown boy and I wanted to do well, and yeah, I was hoping my skills would impress Torey. If she bothered to show up.

“Good. Let’s go. Lee is going to meet us there.”

“How did you get him to agree to show up for so many town events? I heard he was a recluse.”

She turned over her shoulder, a blush staining her cheeks. “He is a reformed recluse. And if you really want to know, I’ll tell you. Maybe it’ll help you with Torey.”

“Nope. No thanks. Not in a million fucking years.” I grabbed my jacket and followed Nix down the stairs and out of the farmhouse, but ultimately I decided that the suit would be more effective if I lost the jacket and rolled up the sleeves.

“Very nice, big brother. Good luck.” Nix hugged me tight and kissed my cheek as we entered the community center. “Holler if you need me.”

“Right,” I mumbled to myself and scanned the room in search of Torey. She hadn’t arrived yet and the event started in five minutes.

“Looking for someone?” Torey’s voice washed over me like warm honey.

My jaw clenched and I slowly turned to face her, which was a mistake because she looked like my every fantasy come to life. The sparkly dress she wore showed off all the curves she usually hid behind jeans and t-shirts. Her cleavage nearly spilled over the heart-shaped neckline, and her legs looked long and shapely in the knee-length dress, accentuated by a pair of sky-high red heels. Even her smile was painted bright red. “Torey, holy shit.”

“I clean up nice, right?” She smiled but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Now, let’s see if we can win this.” She took two steps forward before my arm reached out to grab her.

“Torey.”

She shook her head. “Not here and not now. Let’s win this for charity and then maybe we’ll talk.”

I nodded. She was right and I knew if I pushed she’d shut down completely. “Yeah, okay. How about we go back to the teasing sort of friends we were before you rocked my world?”

Her smile was soft but it grew bigger and bolder by the second and a red blush bloomed on her cheeks. “That sounds like a plan.” She held out her hand and I took it eagerly. Hungrily.

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