Page 494 of Rock Me All Night
Sounds implausible. I take a deep breath. "What?"
He pulls his cell phone from his pocket. "You told me to spin the story as the truth."
I nod.
"That's what I did." He taps the screen a few times and hands the phone to me.
It's the same gossip site but the headline is totally different.
Tom Steele Confirms Identity of the Mystery Girl and He's Madly in Love.
What?
Madly in love.
With me.
My heartbeat picks up until it's the only thing I can hear.
"Keep going, gets better," he says.
I do.
There's a picture. A selfie Tom took. From his gorgeous green eyes to the jut of his hipbone. Only.
No.
There's fresh ink on his hipbone. A single word.
Willow.
My hands are so sweaty I nearly drop the phone.
"Miles did it first, but he got his on his chest. Figured this was the best way to one up him."
I stare back at Tom. "You... You didn't."
He nods, unbuttons his jeans, and pulls them down low enough to reveal the ink. There it is, in curving black letters. My name. On his body. Forever.
"Tom." I set the phone on the windowsill before I break the damn thing. "I..."
"I love you, Willow. Took me a while to figure out what that meant, two people loving each other, but I'm sure." He slides his arms around my waist. "Now I need your help making sure the whole world knows it."
"How?"
He points to the camera poking out of my purse.
"And you're paying me for this service with a year of studio rent?" I ask.
"Unless you demand two years." He pulls me closer.
"No, one year is plenty." My laugh is nervous. He loves me. I tug at his jeans. "Show me again."
He does.
I trace the letters with my fingertip.
Tom runs his hand through my hair and looks me in the eyes. "I hope you're okay with the whole world thinking you're my girlfriend."
