Page 21 of The Cupcake Cottage

That about summed up Daisy-Mae Ray.

As a prime example, he even knew what kind of ring he’d buy her. Something classy that showed that he saw beyond her small-town roots. Something big. Bold. Beautiful. Expensive. Something that proved to her that he planned to pamper her for the rest of their days.

He cleared his throat, realizing he was firmly in troubled territory. Especially since that wasn’t the first time she’d called him her real-fake boyfriend tonight.

“We’re exclusive,” he said, his voice coming out gruffer than he’d planned.

“Of course.” She gave him a slight shove, then grabbed his arm, bringing him around her again. “Otherwise, what’s the point of all of this?”

“Right.”

“I’ll come to events with you and stuff like that. Like it was real.” She looked bashful, very different from the take-charge Daisy-Mae he knew. Then she blasted him with one of those fullsmiles again that made him feel as though he’d won the Stanley Cup.

“To help the team,” he said, more to remind himself than to clarify anything with her. “To make sure Louis doesn’t seem like a liar and further damage my image.”

She gently traced a finger down his cheek in what was simply the most seductive move he’d ever experienced. “Don’t forget, you’re also protecting me from the guys on your team through some misplaced sense of duty.”

Man, he wished there was nobody around so he could kiss her. “Are you gonna bust my chops the whole time we date?”

She gave him a flirty little twist and was out of his arms. “Of course.”

“Boy, am I ever in for it,” he said, feeling the barren chill against his side where she’d been tucked.

They began walking again, down the slope of the arched bridge, away from the patio of onlookers.

“Are you sure you can handle all of this? There’s still time to back out.” She turned, walking backward. The bridge’s boards were uneven, and she was still wearing those crazy sexy shoes. Fearing she’d tumble, Maverick caught up to her, sweeping his arms around her.

“I can definitely handle all that is Daisy-Mae Ray.” They were nose to nose, the city alive around them.

She made a soft sound, and he almost kissed her, filling in the empty beat.

He gently slipped her from his arms, taking her hand and wishing they could flee back to Sweetheart Creek to carve out enough privacy so he could finally kiss her.

** *

Not wanting the evening to end, Daisy-Mae begged Maverick to take her to a coffee shop they both knew called The Gingerbread Café. It was a few blocks from the Dragons’ head office and meant their date would last at least an extra hour. Hopefully. Maverick, since being photographed during their walk, had been antsy to disappear. But as his girlfriend, she had a task. Make him look good and get the public to adore him in the way he deserved.

And stretch the date in case he woke up in the morning and realized this was all a very terrible idea.

Or the public decided they didn’t like her after all.

The café was hopping. Being licensed to serve alcohol, it stayed fairly busy from open to close, especially on weekends.

“Do you want to go somewhere else?” Maverick asked over the sounds of the bustling café. “There’s nowhere to sit.”

“We could grab something and walk?” she suggested, the scents of gingerbread and vanilla making her hungry.

“You sure?” His gaze dropped to her high heels.

“Yeah.” There was no way she was ending their evening early because of her feet.

His hand gently touched her lower back and shivers zipped down her spine as he guided her toward the counter where they could place their order.

Daisy-Mae couldn’t stop smiling. She wanted to shout out that Maverick Blades had said yes to her. They were out on a date.

But it was fake. Not fully real, she reminded herself. Although almost real. Pretty much real.

Their relationship had an expiration sometime after Maverick’s reputation was back on solid ground. When that would be, she didn’t know, but she hoped for her own sake it would take a year or two. Or however long it took Maverick to realize he couldn’t live without her.

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