Page 53 of Test the Ice
“Read it,” I say, mid-chew.
Charleigh has crawled over to me and tries to pull herself up by using my leg. I beam at her and quietly say, “What are you doing trying to stand, little missy?”
“Boundaries?” Malaki stares at the paper with his eyebrows drawn together.
After a few minutes, he smooths his forehead and smirks. “Does this mean you’re going to accept that we’re engaged?”
I purse my lips. “We’re fake-engaged.”
“Same thing,” he mutters.
I nod to the paper. “Not according to those boundaries.”
They’re not really to protect me, but more so for him.
I’ve been groomed to believe I’m an inconvenience, a nuisance—a leech,if we’re talking specifics here. The last thing I want is for Malaki to think I’m using him any more than I already am.
There’s the thought of him not being the person I think he is either. What if something happens between us, and he runs off to tell Benedict about our ruse? There’s a part of me that trusts him. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be in his house, along with bringing Charleigh around him, but trust is fragile.
I clear my throat. “If, for some reason, we have to be in public, we will obviously have to act like a happily engagedcouple so we can keep up with the facade that Benedict believes. But behind closed doors? We remain professional. I’ll keep my job so I can help pay rent…” My words trail as I glance around the kitchen. It’s bigger than my entire apartment. “And I will obviously cover all the things I need, like baby food for Charleigh and–”
Malaki chuckles deeply, cutting me off mid-sentence. He waits until my mouth is shut to shake his head. “No.”
I jerk backward. “No?”
“You’re not paying rent.”
I sit up straighter. “Yes, I am.”
Malaki sighs. “Reese, do you really think Benedict is going to believe that you’re engaged to a pro hockey player if you’re working as an Uber driver?”
I glance toward Charleigh who has moved on from pulling up on my leg.
“Don’t tell me you’re one of those guys who thinks women shouldn’t have jobs,” I mutter, pushing my donut off to the side.
Malaki pushes it back toward me. “Of course I’m not. My mom worked her entire life up until she got sick. If she were alive, she’d kill me if I thought that. But Ubering isn’t your dream job, right? According to your sister, you dropped out of college to take care of Charleigh, and you work as an Uber driver because of the flexible hours and fast cash. Oh, and she mentioned something about you selling hand-stitched quotes in college too.”
That’s it. I’m kicking Zoe out and back into the dorms.
“What were you in college for?”
I turn my nose up. “It doesn’t matter.”
He taps his fingers on the wood table. “Says who?”
“Says me.” I avert my gaze to Charleigh again, who’s clapping her hands like she’s cheering us on.
“Fashion?”
I pause, and he smiles.
“How did you know that?” I ask.
Malaki doesn’t answer. Instead, his smile grows deeper.
“Fashion with a minor in marketing,” I finally say. “But I can’t do anything with half a degree, and I have to work, Malaki. I have to save money somehow, and my measly embroidery business made next to nothing.” My voice shakes with panic.
I get up from my chair to pace.
