Page 7 of Kicking it with my Fake Fiancé
Levi smirked. “You know an American woman he can marry?”
I shook my head. “No, but we could probably find one for him, right?”
“Priority will be given to couples on the LGBTQ spectrum,” the TV said just then.
A slow smile spread over Parker’s face. “What aboutyou?”
“Whataboutme?” I asked, furrowing my brow.
“Yes! What ifyoumarry Matty?” Cam said.
I shook my head. “That won’t work. He’s straight.”
Travis snorted from where he stood in the kitchen, doing dishes. “That argument won’t work in this group.”
“He’d never say yes. You guys know that, right?”
Bennett shrugged. “Didn’t you say he’s looking to immigrate? What better way?”
“We… we’re… we’re just friends,” I stammered.
Travis laughed again. “Keep trying.”
I looked at Travis. “I haven’t even seen him in person since high school.”
Travis smirked at me and glanced at Parker. “Tell him, Park.”
Parker nodded enthusiastically. “You should totally do it. Besides, wouldn’t getting on TV be great for your music career?”
“Yeah,” Theo chimed in. “You said you needed to do something big.”
Levi shrugged. “Looks like we found a solution tobothof your problems.”
I sighed deeply, running a hand through my hair. “I’ll think about it,” I said, finally conceding. A moment later, I rubbed my hand over my face. “I’m going to head out. Looks like I’ve got a lot of thinking to do.”
A chorus of “goodnight” and “good luck” arose as I slipped through the front door. It was a stupid idea, right? Stupid, stupid, stupid. If it was so stupid, though, why couldn’t I stop thinking about it? Why couldn’t I stop imagining what Matty would look like in a suit, standing next to me and saying “I do”?”
Chapter Four
Matty
Iinhaledaslow,deep breath as I stared out at the fjord and the mountains beyond from the patio of my favorite local brewery, a glass of a sour beer sweating on the table in front of me, my two closest friends—besides Jared—chattering nearby. My mind was swirling with thoughts of Linnea, Jared, and America.
“Hallo? Earth to Matt.”
I blinked several times and focused on the hand waving in front of me, belonging to my friend Jakob. “Sorry,” I murmured. “I zoned out.”
“Apparently so.” Jakob nodded. “What’s got you so distracted?”
I shrugged and took a sip from my glass. The chilled beer hit my tongue and slid down my throat, leaving a hint of the sour flavor behind. “Broke it off with Lina this week,” I said finally.
Benjamin, our other friend, leaned forward at the table. “Seriously? Why?”
I felt I’d explained myself too many times in the week since the split, but I took a deep breath and dove in once more. “Different goals. Different ideas for the future. Plus, I don’t know, something didn’t feel quite right.”
They both nodded. A moment later, Benjamin ran his hands through his strawberry-blond hair. “Well, now what? Do we celebrate or are we in mourning?”
I chuckled and shook my head. “Neither. It just… is.”
