Page 20 of The Lucky One

“Is me pretending to be your boyfriend yesterday going to be a problem?”

She presses her lips together and my lips are drawn to them again, like a bug to a bug zapper.

Lightning bugs.

Ray.

No idea what my newfound fascination is with Disney movies, but it’s a decent distraction.

“I don’t know.” She shrugs. “People are going to wonder when they see us out and about together.”

“True.”

“So maybe we just don’t correct them if they assume that?”

This could either be the best thing that’s happened to me this trip or the worst.

“I’m sorry, are you saying we should do something spontaneous?”

She rolls her eyes, a hint of a smile playing around her lips. “It’s still a plan.”

“A plan to fake a relationship.”

I really don’t want to rain on this beautiful moment, but I have to point out a very obvious flaw in her logic.

“This will absolutely require going with the flow. You can’t predict what people might say or do.”

“I think you’re forgetting that was literally my job,” she says pointedly. “I had to figure out what my brides wanted, sometimes without them being able to even voice it.”

Forget crumbs. She’s giving me little gold coins.

I get why leprechauns are so protective of their treasures.

“If you think it’s best, I’m on board. Do I get to call you my girlfriend now?”

She sighs. “Don’t make a big deal out of this. I said we just won’t correct people if that’s what they assume.”

I walk around the island slowly, watching her face as I move closer. “But that means we have to act like we like each other, Spitfire.”

Her eyes widen a little, and the color on her cheeks deepens. “I mean, you’re okay, I guess. I can act.”

“You wound me,” I smile, covering my heart with my hands.

Another step closer.

She holds up a finger between us. “No public affection.”

Flustered Bridget is so easy to mess with.

“So private affection is okay?”

A small squeak escapes her as she steps backward. “No!”

“We have to show at least a little affection for this to be believable.”

She takes a deliberate swallow, her eyes round as she gazes up at me. “Hand-holding only. If necessary.”

“There are a lot of ways to show affection that don’t fall on the PDA list Bridget,” I say softly. “You can tell someone they look beautiful. Watch their favorite movie. Make them dinner. Or coffee.”

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