Page 16 of That Fake Feeling
“Ihave no idea.”Roseraises her gaze and looks at me like she’s searching for something. “AllIknow about you is whatIfound out in my research over the last few days.Andnot much of it could be described as good.Oreven approaching acceptable.”
“Notmuchof it?Thatmeans there must have been something that was okay.Whatwas that?”
Shesnorts. “Whenyou gave the homeless guy your coat.Andit had a pocket full of cash.”Sheshakes her head. “Butit was the middle of the night, and you were leaving a bar, so it was probably a drunken accident.Oranother fake thing for good publicity.”
Islam my hand on my chest.
“Youwound me,Rose.Thatwas totally real.Thisthing we’re doing here is the first fake thingI’vedone in my life.”Igrip the pile of the rug between my toes. “AndIwouldn’t be doing it if my brother and cousin didn’t think it was the right thing to do.”
“Thankfullytheirheads are screwed on right,”Sterlingmutters.
Roseturns back to her list. “Anyway, touching is for publicity purposes only.”
Thisis the first timeI’vewitnessedSterlingyield control to anyone.Forthat,Rosehas my unrivaled admiration.
Shepoints at her next clause. “Two.Ahand cannot be placed on my leg any higher than the knee.Three.Ahand on my back is allowed, and it can rest on the side of my waist but must not travel around to the front.”
GoodGod, she’s definitely thought this through.
“Doyou have one of these for all your relationships?”Iflap the contract in the air. “Isthis why you haven’t dated anyone for years?”
Shelooks up from her papers and fixes me with a look chilly enough to send a shudder through my barely dressed body. “Thisis not a relationship,Mr.Dashwood.It’spurely a business arrangement for both our benefits.”
Andback to reading from the list she goes. “Ifkissing is required, mouths must remain closed at all times and can only be placed on the cheek, the back of the hand, or, very briefly, the lips.”
Thisis hilarious.Islide my hand across the table towardSterlingand poke him in the arm. “It’sa no-tongues clause.Shehas a no-tongues clause.”
Roseobviously thinksI’mabout as funny as a car crash. “Someonehas to.IfIdon’t look out for myself, no one else will.”
Nowthere’s a comment that sounds like it has baggage.
“Youshould try having a bunch of brothers and cousins who think they know what’s best,”Itell her. “Ipromise you, being looked out for gets old pretty fucking quickly.”
“Okay,”Sterlingsays, pulling us back to the point. “Thewhole first page consists of parts ofMissBellamoreyou can and can’t touch and under what conditions.You’refine with that,Connor.Right?”
Iscan down the list.
“Numberseven is a little disappointing. ‘Notouching my backside under any circumstances.’”Ilook up to seeRosenodding. “Seemsa little restrictive.Imean, what if there was a tarantula on your butt or something?Wouldn’tyou want me to brush it off?”
“Thetarantula would probably be preferable.”Sheflips to the second page of clauses. “Anyway, the other really important thing isTheLearningVillage.”
“Yes,I’mjust reading that,”Sterlingsays, finally looking happy about something. “Thisis actually an excellent idea.”Hetips his head and looks atRose. “Haveyou ever thought about switching career paths toPR?”
“Shit, no.”Thewords are clearly out ofRose’smouth before she can stop herself.Anot unattractive hint of pink appears on the apples of her cheeks.
Herinstinct was to go straight for the profanity.Howinteresting.Maybeshe’s not as goody-goody as she first seems.Andshe’s clearly not fond ofPR.Maybeshe could grow on me.
“Imean, thank you for the compliment.”Shemakes a nice attempt at a recovery. “ButI’mcommitted to my career path.Andplan to get aPhDin special education too.”
Iroll up her clauses and drum the table with them. “Youwant to teach kids with learning difficulties?”
“Wecall themexceptionalities.”Shepauses to let the new word she’s just taught me sink in. “Andyes,Iwill teach them a bit.ButIalso want to be a professor, soIcan train special ed teachers.ThatwayIcan send hundreds, maybe thousands, of teachers out into the world to help way more kids thanIever could by myself.”
Well, there’s a goal so pure in its nobility thatIdon’t have a single sarcastic thing to say about it. “Amazing.Ican see whySterlingthought you were the right person to work with me on this, er, project.”
“Yes.”Sterlinggives me his side-eye. “Andbecause it must mean she has incredible patience.”
“I’vebeen volunteering atTheLearningVillagefor years,”Rosecontinues. “Itdoes amazing work for disadvantaged kids who can’t get help anywhere else.Theygot funding for a rec center a while ago, but the donor pulled out, so it’s been sitting there half-built for months.I’dlikeBigBrainToysto fund its completion.”
