Page 121 of Just One Fake Date

“I’m going to sleep like the dead tonight.”

“Better set an alarm. We’ll be back at it early tomorrow, too.” They paused to consider the spread and Shannyn named everything.

“Italian today. Meatballs, buns, sautéed peppers and onions, hot peppers, extra sauce, mozzarella or provolone. Jalapenos because Aidan likes them on everything.” The guys laughed. She beckoned to Aidan, knowing that he’d set an example. He loaded up his plate, creating two meatball sandwiches that overflowed the capacity of the buns.

“Damn,” Derek said, then gave Tyler a poke in the gut. “You’re going to get fat around here.”

“Not if there’s more work like this,” he said they laughed again before they dug in. Paul took even more than Aidan, but Shannyn figured he was young enough to have a hollow leg. Tyler stopped with his plate before following the other guys, then backed Shannyn into the counter. His eyes gleamed as he bent down to whisper in her ear.

“Pretend you like me,” he whispered. “And let me thank you for lunch.” He kissed her before she could argue and Shannyn didn’t have to pretend one bit. Derek and Aidan hooted from the backyard, but Tyler ignored them, taking his time.

“Making sure my panties melt?” she asked when he lifted his head.

“Making sure you consider the possibilities.”

“You should stay over,” she suggested on impulse.

“Funny. I was hoping you might say that.”

“Just for appearances.”

Tyler arched a brow, which made him look wicked. “Just for that?”

“Aidan will be sleeping in the living room,” she chided. “He doesn’t need that much information about my life.”

Tyler bent to nuzzle her ear. “It doesn’t look like a very big couch in your living room, certainly not big enough for Aidan and I to share, plus I don’t think we know each other well enough for that.”

Shannyn smiled and brushed her lips across Tyler’s. “You have to sleep in my bed, with me, for the sake of appearances.”

“What a terrible fate,” he murmured and kissed her back.

Shannyn laughed. “You might think so. My bed’s a lot smaller than yours.”

“I think I’ll survive. Kiss me like you mean it now,” he said and Shannyn did.

By the endof the day, Shannyn watched Tyler wave as Derek backed out of the driveway, and saw him push a hand through his hair. Even dressed down, he looked expensive. There was nothing rough around the edges about him, although he’d worked just as hard as the other guys on the roof. He had a bit of a sunburn on the back of his neck and his forearms, and she knew she’d never seen him with a dirt smudged on his skin. He looked good enough to eat, in her estimation, his muscles flexed and his T-shirt damp, and his eyes lit when she opened the kitchen door for him.

“Why don’t you take a shower while I get dinner?” she suggested and he smiled.

“Don’t mind if I do.” He fist-bumped with Aidan who razzed him a bit, and Shannyn went back to dicing onions. She couldn’t help thinking of Tyler in the shower, the water running over him, and kind of wished Aidan would disappear.

No such luck.

Her version of the chicken piccata was well received and Tyler was clearly impressed. The three of them did the dishes together and Shannyn was sure Aidan would go out in search of beer.

Instead, he sat down at the table again and spoke to Tyler. “Shannyn said you’re a money guy, right?”

Tyler flicked a glance at Shannyn, and she wondered if he was remembering her description of Aidan’s relationship with money. “Finance. Yes.”

“Can I talk to you then? Like a professional consultation? There’s something I want to do, and I’m not sure how to start.”

“Okay.” Tyler sat down opposite Aidan. “What do you want to do?”

“Open a brew-pub.”

Shannyn blinked at her brother’s first expression of any kind of ambition.

“Why?” Tyler asked.

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