There’s zero chance that he’s going to kiss me.
But his gaze lingers on my lips a little too long before he drags his eyes back to my stare. “We could tell her the truth, that we’ve been secretly dating, and you’re my girlfriend.”
I laugh at his words.
He can’t be serious.
“You said it. I can’t have two nannies. How would that look? And I need someone capable of protecting my daughter. That’s your job. You can help me hire the perfect nanny.”
“You want me to be your fake girlfriend?” I still can’t get his words out of my head. “It’s insane!” I squeak a little too loudly, and he brings his hand up to my lips, his finger grazing my mouth, silencing me.
“Bristol likes to eavesdrop. She wants to be a spy, and I can’t have her spilling our secrets unless we want the world to know about us. Hiring you as my fake girlfriend would be good PR for me.”
His eyes light up, and I’m pretty sure he’s talking before he’s thinking.
I shake my head. “I did not agree to this.” I shove my hand between us, gently pushing him backward. “I’m your daughter’s bodyguard. That’s it, Kyler.” I glance around the room. “Are there hidden cameras? Is this some type of reality show where you tell me you had me fooled?”
I slip quickly from his grasp, and he runs a hand through his unkempt hair.
I don’t dare admit that he looks boyish and suave with his messy bedhead look. He’s recently showered and still smells of soap from after his game.
His tongue darts out to the corner of his lips, staring at me. “I’d pay you for your services.”
“You couldn’t pay me enough to fake date you,” I say a little too quickly.
“Is that so?” he asks.
Did I just challenge him?
That was not the plan. Neither is faking dating my boss. He is my boss, technically. We have a contract that we both must abide by, but it seems that he wants to change the terms.
Typical of a billionaire. Always out to get what they want.
What about what I want?
Having his strong arms wrapped around me doesn’t sound that bad. I could handle a few pictures in public. How bad could it be, pretending to date a star hockey player?
My stomach flutters at all the possibilities, but my brain is screaming at me that this is a terrible idea. This morning, he had me believing he was being held at gunpoint.
“What will your teammates think?” I ask. “They saw me in the locker room. They’re not going to believe I’m your girlfriend.” He’s crazy if he thinks either one of us can pull it off.
And worse, we’d have to lie to Bristol. It’s not bad enough that we’ve already been doing that, but I don’t want to break her heart when she finds out the truth.
“And the headmaster at the school?” I ask. “He already knows I’m your daughter’s bodyguard. You can’t keep it a secret forever.”
The smile on Kyler’s face grows even wider. “Right. You know I called him and explained everything after you met with him this morning.”
“Explained what?” I don’t like where this is going.
“I told him that you concocted the bodyguard story so it wouldn’t put pressure on our newly formed relationship, especially with the media looking for a bite of the dirtiest details of our lives. He already thinks we’re an item.”
“And what about your brother? Can he keep it a secret?”
“He already thinks we’re fucking. It won’t take him long to buy whatever story I sell to him.”
I smack his arm, and he grabs my wrist, refusing to let me go. “Did you just hit me?”
“What do you think, Einstein?” I shoot back.