Page 21 of All For You
“I was thinking about both of our… predicaments.”
One of her naturally arched eyebrows cocked as her lips pursed.
“Look, my ex won’t stop calling. Every message is more desperate than the last. Her cheating on me made me realize I never really loved her. I think it was the thought of being married to her is what drove me, and probably her too. But I need her to realize that I’mnot devastated,nor do I want her back.
“And I also have the issue of women throwing themselves at me now that I’m single.”
She grunted, and I thought about how cocky that must have sounded.
“Aspen, you saw how the women were tonight. That was over the course of an hour. I even got propositioned by the flight attendant on the plane home. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not mad about it. But I need to focus on baseball while I’m here. Not sidestepping every woman who want to give me her number.”
“Okay, but what does any of this have to do with me, except being witness to the throngs of women vying for your attention?”
Chugging my beer for liquid courage, I smiled as I finished and set the bottle on the coffee table.
“I am so glad you asked. In return for helping me, I will help you get the guy of your dreams. All by agreeing to fake date me. It will keep the girls off my back, hopefully, and I’ll teach you how to talk to men and flirt. It’s a win-win.”
With an unladylike snort, Aspen lifted her beer to her lips and took a healthy gulp. Her eyes were trained on the opposing wall of photographs, and I couldn’t get a read on what she was thinking.
Either she was going to laugh in my face, or she was going to laugh in acceptance. Regardless, I was waiting to hear the chime of her melodic giggle.
“What?” she squeaked and then cleared her throat. “What would all of this entail?”
Her question gave me pause, and I leaned forward, rubbing one finger across my bottom lip as I pondered my answer.
“Honestly, I haven’t thought it out that far. I would think a couple of dates in town with some posts on social media. Maybe seen around shopping or at the market. That’s still a thing, right? The Saturday farmer’s market?”
“Yeah,” she whispered as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “What… um…. I mean, how would you teach me?”
“Well, during these dates, we can use them as classes. I’ll teach you how to talk to a guy, what to wear, things like that. At the end, we can stage a breakup, and you can pursue the suit.”
“Hm….”
Reaching out, I grabbed her knee farthest from me and used it to twist her body to face mine. I took a moment to appreciate the feel of her soft skin beneath my fingers. “What’s the hesitation? We both get something out of it.”
“First, I’m trying to figure out if you’re really serious about this. Not only am I unsure that anyone in town will buy this charade, but I am a far cry from the women you’ve dated. Owen, I am the opposite of those supermodels. I’m just… me.”
Before I had a chance to argue, Aspen continued. “And secondly, I feel like I’m getting the better side of the deal.”
“I promise you, you’re not. As long as my ex believes I’ve moved on, then the entire scheme is working. And leave the convincing everyone part up to me. I’ll lay it on as thick as I need to.”
“There is one more problem you haven’t considered,” she said, leaning closer to me with dilated eyes from the dim lamplight.
“Yeah, what’s that?” The huskiness of my voice reached my own ears, and it was a sound I was unfamiliar with.
“I don’t have the time.”
Her gaze penetrated something inside me, and I found myself leaning closer to Aspen until our faces were only a few inches apart.
“Here’s the thing about time, cricket. It’s always fleeting. And I understand the dedication to your family’s farm. I’m just as committed to my team, butyouare more than the life you’ve been handed.”
“I don’t know how to be anything else.”
“Then let me teach you. When we make this agreement, you can be whoever you want. And when I go back to training in five months, you can decide which cricket you want to be.”
Our talk had taken on a serious note, and I threw out her nickname to get the reaction I was hoping for. Otherwise, I was likely to start our lessons sooner rather than later, because I wanted nothing more than to seal my mouth against hers.
Of course, I’d have to be careful. In the future, she’d be likely to hold a razorblade in her mouth to slice off my tongue.
