Page 83 of Pretend To Be My Cowboy
Lizzy gave a little snort of disbelief. “You may not have pretended to be a guy’s girlfriend, but you have to admit, you have a type when it comes to men.”
Emma sniffed again. “I do not.”
Lizzy nodded, her expression pained and knowing. “You do, sweetie. You tend to fall for guys who don’t actually see you, they just see what they can get from you.”
“I do not—”
“Remember Todd?” she asked.
Emma frowned. Todd was a former teacher at her school. She’d been head over heels for him, and she’d thought he’d liked her too. But when he transferred to another school, she realized he’d liked her as a friend—a friend who helped him do all his lesson plans in addition to her own.
“Or that guy who strung you along just so you’d feed his pets while he went on vacation?”
“Mark,” Emma muttered. Humiliation was an unpleasant addition to all the other toxic emotions juggling for supremacy. “You make it sound like I’m some...some doormat.”
Lizzy sighed. “Not a doormat. You’re just nice. And generous. And too giving for your own good. I just wish you’d find a guy who didn’t try to take advantage of that.”
Emma wanted to deny that Nash was taking advantage of her, but a memory of that kiss stopped her and had her battling another wave of tears.
Had it meant anything to him or was it just his way of making a really clear statement to the people of Aspire?Nash Donahue has found a woman, so all you pining ladies and matchmakers can back off now, please.
She wished she could get enough time and space to sort it out—what she was feeling and what she wanted from him—but the last two days had done nothing to settle her emotions. She was more confused than ever.
Casey’s rehearsal dinner started in less than an hour and she’d already agreed to go. It was part of the deal, and she wouldn’t back out just because she felt confused. She’d known what she was getting into when she agreed to Nash’s plan. At least she thought she had.
She let out another pathetic sigh. “Oh Lizzy, I wish you were here.”
“If I was…” Her eyes sparked with fire. “I’d give this new user a piece of my mind.”
“He’s not using me,” Emma said. This time the protest came quickly. Despite the confusion around the kiss, Nash had been nothing but straightforward with her about where this was going—nowhere. If she’d let herself become confused about their friendship, that was on her. She took a deep breath. “Nash isn’t like that.”
Lizzy didn’t respond but her silence felt like an accusation.
“He’s not,” Emma said. “He hasn’t led me on. I knew what I was getting into when I agreed to this.”
Lizzy just stared at her through the phone, and Emma’s cheeks burned at the memory of his kiss. Hearing herself say it aloud gave her clarity but not comfort. She’d felt so certain there had been real emotions behind that kiss, but hearing herself talk now in the cold light of day...
He hadn’t meant for her to get the wrong idea. He’d probably be horrified if he knew that she had.
But it’d felt so real. She sank back into the pillows as the memory played on a loop for the millionth time. The soft look in his eyes, the way the world had blurred around them so, in that moment, they were the only people on Earth.
It was the sort of kiss she’d always dreamed of receiving. The kind of kiss that made her believe she was cherished and special and…
Stupid. She sat up straight with a huff. She was doing it again, romanticizing something that she should just forget.
“I just have to get through tonight’s rehearsal dinner and then the wedding. After that I’ll be flying home, and I can go back to my normal life.” The fact that going back to her normal life made her want to cry was too depressing to talk about. So, she swallowed the thick wave of emotion instead.
She was living in a fantasy, but once she got back to Chicago, she’d be able to put this time in Aspire into perspective. “I’ll be fine once I’m home.”
A silence followed, and Emma wasn’t sure who she’d been trying to convince, herself or Lizzy.
“Oh Emma, I’m so sorry you’re going through this,” Lizzy said. “I wish you’d just come back on Tuesday like you were supposed to and then none of this would have happened.”
Emma didn’t respond. She wasn’t sure it would have been any easier to leave Nash a few days ago. Even before the kiss, she’d been feeling too attached by far.
A glance at the time had her sitting up straight again. “Lizzy, I’ve got to go. But thanks for listening.”
“I’m always here for you, sis. You know that.”
