Page 13 of My Surprising Valentine

I realized then that my own hands were still gripping his shirt, holding him like he might disappear if I let go. Slowly, deliberately, I forced my fingers to relax, smoothing out the wrinkles I’d left behind.

“Well,” Max said finally, his voice rough and a little unsteady. “That should be convincing enough.”

Chapter Six

Reality crashed back in,leaving me cold and disoriented. Right. This was just practice, another part of our charade. Max Bennett didn’tdorelationships, I reminded myself. He didn’t look at a man or a woman like they were the center of his entire universe, didn’t kiss like it meant something. He was just good at playing his part—maybe too good because I was starting to have trouble separating fact from fiction.

I pulled back, ignoring the ache in my chest and the way my body protested the loss of his warmth. I made myself smile, forcing a light tone into my voice even as my lips still burned. “Yeah. Very convincing.”

Max cleared his throat and reached for his phone like it was some kind of anchor. I noticed, though, that his hands weren’t quite steady. His thumb hovered over the screen, unmoving, and the silence between us felt charged again.

“So, uh.” His voice cracked slightly before he recovered. “The Sound of Musicis still your favorite movie, right?”

I blinked at him, trying to process the jarring shift in conversation. He didn’t meet my eyes, his focus trained entirelyon his screen, but the slight pink flush creeping up his neck told me he wasn’t as unaffected as he’d like me to believe.

Still, I latched onto the familiar topic gratefully, desperate to find my footing even as the ghost of his lips lingered on mine. I forced a teasing tone into my voice. “Are you questioning my devotion to Captain Von Trapp?”

Max’s lips twitched, the corner of his mouth curling as some of his usual playful confidence returned. “Just making sure his marriage hasn’t changed the good Captain’s appeal.” He glanced up finally, that twinkle of mischief returning to his gaze. “Though I still say he should’ve ended up with the Baroness.”

I gasped dramatically, smacking his arm. “Take that back! The Baroness was all wrong for him.”

He grinned, feigning innocence as he rubbed the spot where I’d hit him. “Why? She was practical, elegant?—”

“Emotionally unavailable!” I cut in.

“Maria was hisemployee,” he pointed out, an old argument between us.

“She was hissoulmate,” I corrected, trying to ignore how my voice caught on the word. “She saw past all his walls and defenses to who he really was.”

Max went still, his gaze locking on mine, the humor in his expression softening. “You’re such a romantic.” His voice was soft, and there was a glint in his eyes that made my breath catch all over again.

For a brief moment, it felt like we were teetering on the edge of something dangerous. I dropped my gaze quickly, heat crawling up my neck as I turned away and straightened the throw pillow, my fingers fussing over its fringe. “Well, someone has to balance out your cynicism.”

“I’m not cynical,” he protested, stretching an arm along the back of the couch, his fingers grazing my shoulder as he did. The touch was light, barely there, but my body noticed anyway, everynerve ending humming to life. “I’mpractical. The Baroness made more sense. Same social class, same lifestyle?—”

“Same emotional walls,” I argued, cutting him off. “They would have been miserable together, focused all the time on hosting fancy parties while keeping each other at arm’s length.”

His smile faltered—just a flicker—like my words had hit too close to home. “Sometimes walls exist for a reason, Han,” he said, his voice turning somewhat somber, giving me the sudden impression that we weren’t talking about the movie anymore.

I pulled my knees up to my chest, wrapping my arms around them like I could build a wall of my own. “Right. To keep people from getting hurt.”

Max was quiet for a moment, and then his fingers brushed my shoulder again, a slow, absentminded movement that made me shiver despite my attempt not to. “To keep things from getting complicated,” he corrected softly.

Like fake-dating your best friend and then kissing her senseless?I wanted to ask. But instead, I forced a smile to my face that felt brittle. “Well, thank goodness we’re keeping things simple, then.”

His laugh was short and dry, a sound that didn’t quite match his expression. “Right. Simple.”

His phone buzzed again, and he grabbed it like it had saved him from something he didn’t want to say. Relief flickered across his face as he glanced at the screen. “Speaking of simple, do you want to go through the rest of these questions? We still haven’t covered favorite books or biggest fears.”

I let out the breath I’d been holding. “Biggest fear is easy—spiders.”

Max’s grin returned, genuine this time, softening the jagged edges between us. “I’ll never forget the time you called me up at two o’clock in the morning to deal with that ‘monster’ in your bathroom.”

“It was the size of my fist!” I protested.

“It was a daddy longlegs.”

“Which is a giant ass spider, Max!”

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