Page 6 of Home Run Fiancé
“Jake, this is my sister, Rhys. Rhys, this is my buddy Jake.” Asher makes the formal introductions and I extend my hand out of habit. She lifts her stunning hazel eyes to mine and takes my hand. The moment freezes and hangs there, the seconds ticking much slower than normal. Then she leans forward and pulls me into a hug, which isn’t easy to do with a guy my size. But I go with it, mesmerized by those eyes, or maybe it’s the smell of flowers that permeates the air in a cloud around her. Either way, I’m participating in the hug and enjoying it very much, to my surprise.
Asher clears his throat and I jump back, time finally returning to a normal speed. Her gaze is on my chest and a pink tinge hits her cheeks. If I wasn’t still surprised by the hug, I’d feel rather smug about her reaction to me. As it is, I’m a bit discombobulated and all too aware that her older brother is standing right there watching us.
Asher claps his hands and we both look over at him. “I’m sure you’re wondering why I’ve invited you two here. I have a proposition that I think will benefit you both.”
I narrow my eyes and ignore the beauty next to me in order to focus on what he’s saying and where he can possibly be going with this.
“Rhys, you could use some money, being a poor college student. Jake, you could use a fake fiancée to turn around your reputation and get you on the Sliders.”
Asher quits talking and looks at us expectantly, his eyebrows raised, his eyes darting back and forth between the two of us.
I fold my arms across my chest as realization dawns. This is about his idea the other day. He wants to set me up with his little sister? He’s crazier than I originally thought.
“What—”
“Nope. That’s not going to work, brother of mine.” The hippy girl next to me cuts me off with that loud rasp of hers, stealing my thunder.
I was just about to rip into Asher and this asinine idea, but she beat me to it. I look over at her and then do a double take. What does she mean “not going to work”?
Asher steps closer to her. “Rhys. Think this through. You’d only have to go on a couple public dates and then pretend to get engaged. That’s it! Once Jake signs on with the Sliders, you can have a quiet, amicable breakup and go back to life as usual. We’d pay you well for your time, I promise you that.”
She shakes her head, the ring of flowers on her head threatening to fly right off. “Nope. No can do. I’m sorry to disappoint, Asher.” Then she snaps her fingers. “Wait! I have a friend though from the coffee shop who might be interested. Let me ask her instead.”
I’ve been watching this whole conversation like a fly on the wall, observing but not participating. Even though it’s about my life. That silence is about to end.
“Hold on, you two.” I slash my arm through the air and Rhys jumps back like she forgot I’m here. I talk to the side of her head since she’s refusing to look at me. “Why won’t it work? You just met me. How can you have a problem with me?”
She finally lifts her gaze and some of the fire in my belly recedes at the nervous look in her eye. She’s young, too young to be dealing with the likes of me. I instantly regret my tone. “I don’t have a problem with you necessarily. Jake, is it? I don’t know you at all, but I’m not interested in being in the public eye, so I’ll pass. I wish you luck with your trade though. Hope you make it to the Super Bowl.”
Rhys turns and walks away to the bags of takeout like everything is settled. “Yes! You got Chinese. My favorite.”
I’m catching flies with my mouth hanging open. Did she just dismiss me from the conversation? Nope. That doesn’t work for me. Most women would be tripping over themselves to participate in this little engagement charade. I follow her over to the counter, my arm right against hers, hoping to get her attention back.
“I play baseball. We don’t have a Super Bowl.”
She looks up at me with a saucy smile. “Oh, that’s too bad. The food is always spectacular at Super Bowl parties.” She pats me on the arm and moves to take the food to the table.
“Hold up.” I grab her by the waist to stop her and ignore her arched eyebrow. “How old are you?”
She tilts her head and presses her lips together. Even in a straight line, they snag my gaze and scramble my brain. Who has lips that puffy naturally? I know fake duck lips are all the rage right now and I can’t stand that puffed-up look. But Rhys? Her lips are all natural. I’d bet my career on it.
“Old enough to know I’m not interested,” she answers, her voice finally coming out at a lower volume.
And it’s the whisper that wrecks me. It’s like the words had a hook on the end and I’m the fish that swallowed it whole. I’m well and truly caught. This girl just has to reel me in and I’d follow. Not a position I prefer to ever be in and yet here I am. I have to make sure she never finds out or I’ll never get off the razor-sharp hook.
I let go of her waist and command my feet to move away. I make it to the table feeling a bit more free with each step away from her. If I didn’t want to embarrass Asher, I’d run right out the door, never to return. Losing my head over a woman is not something I intend to ever do again. Which makes Rhys dangerous.
Asher helps Rhys bring the rest of the food to the table and I make sure to sit on the far end. Rhys takes one look at the table and sits on the other end, furthest away from me. Asher has no choice but to sit in between us. Which suits me just fine. Doesn’t even bother me she doesn’t like me.
We all dive in to loading up our plates with noodles and beef and broccoli. I take more beef and veggies than I do noodles. Got to keep my weight in check for the season. I ignore the uncomfortable silence. Not my problem.
“Rhys, Jake’ll pay you ten thousand dollars,” Asher says around a bite of chow mein, like we’ve already talked about it and agreed to terms.
“I’ll what?” I bark, nearly choking on the broccoli.
Rhys swallows hard. She flicks her gaze to me and then back down to her plate, fiddling with her food, but not eating.
Asher puts his hand on hers. “Jake’s one of the good guys, I promise. I would never ask you to do this if I didn’t believe in him completely.” Well, that calms me a bit. “And the truth is, he really needs you.” Well, now that might be overstating it. “I don’t trust any other woman to keep this a secret. It’s gotta be you, Rhys.”
