Page 65 of Off Season

“I remember. Mariana, the hot yet boring woman.”

He nods. "That's right. My younger brother mentioned that our mother has been looking for an engagement ring for Mariana, as if I would ever let her buy one for my future wife. As if I’m ever going to propose to Mariana.”

I cross my arms. I’m not sure what he wants from me. “Where is this going?”

He fidgets nervously. “Is there any chance you’d be willing to come home with me andpretendto be my full-fledged girlfriend?” He holds up his hands. “It’s just pretend. I know we’re only in a flingationship. We would fly there on Christmas Eve morning and we’d be there for about five nights.”

My shoulders fall. “I want to help you, I really do, but I can’t just leave my sister for Christmas. It’s not like we have other family in the area. Arizona is gone and Ripley is leaving in two days. We have no idea when she’s coming back.”

“What about Tanner?”

“What about him?”

“I’m pretty sure your sister is secretly banging him.”

I raise an eyebrow. “How do you know about that?”

“Tanner is my agent and my friend.”

“He talks about my sister with you?” I find that hard to believe.

“Umm, no. Tanner could have twenty-five children in an apartment nearby and we wouldn’t know. He doesn’t share at all, but we may have given him the nudge he needed to seal the deal with Bailey. He was pining after her for a long time. It was obvious.”

“Hmm, we’ll get back to that.” I shake my head. “I’m sorry. I won’t leave her alone on Christmas.”

“She can spend it with Tanner and Harper. IknowTanner wouldn’t mind.”

I take a few deep breaths as anxiety begins to kick in. “Cruz, I’ve never been away from her for more than one night. And I’ve certainly never been in a different state than her.”

His eyes widen in shock. “For real?”

I nod.

He thinks for a moment before placing his napkin on the table. “I’m not done. I was prepared for some resistance. I have a counteroffer.”

I smile. “I didn’t realize that this was a negotiation. Let’s hear it.”

“We’ll spend a few days with my family with you being the doting girlfriend, and then I’ll take you on an all-expenses paid trip to Jamaica for the New Year. Four days and nights in paradise. You and me. Beautiful scenery, perfect weather, great food, new adventures, and lots of fucking. All the fucking you want, any way you want it.”

I steeple my fingers. “You drive a hard bargain, counselor. I understand why you want me to come home with you. Can you give me a few days to talk to my sister about it? I need to make sure she’s taken care of, and I need to wrap my mind around being apart from her for that long.”

I chew my lip, and he notices. “What else? What am I missing?” he asks.

“Well…I’m a nervous flyer. Like crazy, pacing, doomsday, disruptive-to-the-flight kind of nervous. My sister has to calm me on every plane ride. I’ve never flown without her.”

He lets out a laugh. “You fly for your job. All the time.”

I blow out a breath. “I know. I hate it. My poor teammates suffer through it every damn time.”

“It’s kind of ironic that you chose a college across the country from your hometown. One where you had to fly far away.”

“That should show you how much I needed to get away from my mother.”

“Got it. I appreciate you considering it. I may have already told my mother that my girlfriend was coming home with me, but I can always call one of my regulars if you can’t make it.”

I’m calling his bluff. “Give me the name of one of your regulars.”

“Umm…Tami.”

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