Page 9 of No Reservations

Cole sat, and I settled into the chair next to him. “Yair’s my personal attorney. He drew up the contract for our um…” He glanced at me, lips pressed together. “For the terms of our arrangement.”

A wave of absolute ridiculousness swept over me and washed all the anxiety away. What was the big deal? I’d lived through worse. I’d posed at the top of a waterfall in sandals. I’d traveled to Japan on my own before I knew the language. I’d stood by Santi’s side when he came out to his super-catholic family. A twist of faded pain swept through me. I stood at his grave.

With a quick shake of my head, I cracked a smile. “You make it sound like an arranged marriage contract. My family’s not going to pay you a dowry.”

The attorney turned a laugh into a strangled cough quickly covered by one thin hand.

Cole’s deep brown eyes gleamed as his eyebrows shot up. “What? I…” He shook his head before a smile grew on his own handsome face. “Okay. I’ve never done something like this before, you know.”

“It doesn’t have to be so serious.” I reached over and patted his arm. “I’m the one who suggested this. I’m not going to mess it up for you.” We stared at each other for a long moment until Cole finally nodded and turned back to Yair. He took a deep breath and blew it out, but his shoulders still looked awfully tense.

An hour passed. I admit I didn’t understand every bit of legalese included in the contract, but Yair was patient. Cole keptasking me if I was sure, and I kept nodding, smiling, and signing things. The second hour wrapped up, and we all stood, shook hands again, and parted ways.

Cole led the way back out to the sleek Land Rover, we climbed in, and then headed back toward the inn. Silence spun out. The luxury SUV was so well insulated there wasn’t even any road noise, and the AC fans didn’t whir or rattle like in my Jeep. Fifteen minutes into the ride, I couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Okay,” I said, and Cole jumped and shot a glance at me. “If we’re supposed to be dating, I think we need to know more personal stuff about each other, right? I mean, I know your name, and my friend Wes told me you manage Eclipse 6, but that’s about it. I don’t even listen to their music.”

“They’re a boy band, pop with a little R&B, dance house vibe thrown in here and there.” A smile played over his lips. “I don’t listen to them either.”

“What do you listen to? Let’s find something in common.” I swiveled in the seat to face him and tucked my thumb under the seatbelt.

He shrugged and grimaced. “I don’t really listen to music. I don’t watch TV. I go to the gym regularly, but that’s just for my health. I don’t really do much besides work.”

“At all?” When he shrugged, I went on. “What do you do to relax?”

Another grimace passed over his features. “I take vacations at lakeside inns and fake relationships with ruggedly handsome strangers.”

Well, at least he had a sense of humor. I was beginning to worry about this man. At first glance, he was simply handsome. Gorgeous really. But if I looked closer, every feature was marred by tension and stress. His angular jaw was clenched just a bit too tightly. His rich brown eyes narrowed under a pinched brow. His broad shoulders inched too high toward his neck. People whodidn’t take the time to look at him probably wouldn’t notice. I wondered if he had anyone like that in his life.

“You need a hobby.” I turned back to look out the front window. “I mean, I’m not that good at relaxing either. Just lying around in the sun? Boring! You gotta find a way to let loose, though, you know? Have some fun.”

I reached across the center console and patted his thigh. “Don’t worry. We can find a way to make this fun together.” A man like Cole didn’t deserve the rumors and gossip. He didn’t deserve to get hounded by the digital press and have all sorts of aspersions cast about his character or his sexuality.

He needed a chance to be himself and let down the walls. Sure, it might just be a business arrangement between us, but that didn’t mean we couldn’t enjoy it. I leaned back on the soft leather seat and watched the pines and maples flow by the window, my mind already turning over the possibilities. I’d make sure he didn’t regret hiring me to be his fake boyfriend.

***

Wes bounced on the couch next to me and flashed a wide smile. “So, when you move into his cabin, I get your room. Perfect.”

I took a big bite of my steak sandwich, chewed, and swallowed as soon as I wouldn’t risk choking. “I’m not moving into his cabin.” We’d been talking about this whole fake relationship thing for the past hour. Mostly, Wes squealed and giggled, Dee frowned, and I tried to focus on the food. Halcyon would definitely get five stars for the restaurant options alone.

Dee dropped his fork. “Won’t that look a little suspicious? Cole Gilliam’s boyfriend staying with two other random men on vacation?”

I hadn’t thought of that. When Yair was going over the contract, he mentioned things like public appearances and pressreleases. Cole had a few business engagements coming up in the next couple of months that I would attend with him. I took a sip of my lemonade. “I mean, there isn’t anyone around here that would notice, right?”

“That’s what caused this whole problem in the first place, Matthew.” Dee shook his head at me like I was a silly child.

Maybe I was. Offering to pretend to be Cole’s boyfriend seemed like fun when I first thought of it. Also, it would help him out and get the paparazzi off his back. They had already gotten a picture of me. What would it matter if they took a few more? I took another bite, so I didn’t have to answer right away.

“I think you need to sit down with him and come up with a real plan. Not the legal contract type of plan, but one that will actually work. I don’t think either of you thought this through very well.”

Wes nodded. “As totally amazing as the idea of dating Cole Gilliam is, you know it’s not going to be all champagne and roses, right?”

“I don’t like champagne.” When my friends only stared at me, I sighed and set the remains of my sandwich on the table. “We’re not actually dating.” My head started to ache, and I slumped over on the arm of the couch. “Okay. We need a plan. I get that. I’ll talk to him tomorrow morning first thing.”

“I guess it’s still you and me, Dee,” Wes crooned as he leaned forward to steal a carrot stick off our friend’s plate. “Let’s video chat with Joe tonight from our bed.”

Dee shot him a look and grabbed his carrot sticks before Wes could steal another. “He just loved that last time.”

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