Page 18 of Fiancé for Hire

Surprise. Surprise. He didn’t come across as theFast & Furioustype. She expected him to say something likeHamiltonor maybeThe Wiz.

Antika:I’m surprised you’re awake. Why are you awake?

Drevon:Watching the fight with my cousin and best friend. I didn’t think about how late it was. Sorry.

Antika:What’s your biggest pet peeve?

Drevon:People who ask too many questions.

Antika sputtered a laugh, glad to see that he had a sense of humor. She had figured as much earlier. Who knew getting to know someone via text messages could be so much fun? She texted several laughing emojis, and Drevon responded almost immediately.

Drevon:Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

Drevon:I have two pet peeves: People who lie, and I hate the silent treatment.

Hmm...interesting. She sensed there was a story there. She’d been known to give the silent treatment a few times. Hell, she had mastered it toward the end of her marriage. Before she could respond, another text came through.

Drevon:Your pet peeves?

Antika:People who chew with their mouth open.

Actually, she had a ton of pet peeves, but figured she’d start with a lighter one. No sense in scaring him away before she had a chance to use his services.

The thought of having a famous model as her plus-one for Tamera’s birthday party was still mind-boggling. Antika was looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. She was a simple woman who didn’t venture out much past her comfort zone, and spending time with someone like him was way out of her norm.

Drevon:Note to self: don’t chew with my mouth open at the party.Then he added several laughing emojis.

Drevon:That’s it?

Antika:I also hate people who are mean just to be mean, and those who put down others.

Seconds ticked by without a response, and she wondered if she’d shared too much. After being married to and dating men who were arrogant, narcissistic, and sometimes misogynistic, she had no tolerance for mean people.

She recalled when she first married Patrick. He was charming, nice looking, and he made her feel special…desired. But within a year, something had changed. She hadn’t been able to pinpoint what, but he no longer cared about her feelings.

Going from being the center of his attention to barely being tolerated had cut deep. Her self-esteem had been shattered, and it wasn’t until she got picked up by the WNBA did she start feeling like herself again.

Drevon:Noted. Last question. What makes you happy?

Damn. This just got deep.

Antika sighed. Her days were so busy with work, she wasn’t sure what made her happy anymore. She never had time to think about it, and right now, her brain was too muddled to come up with a well-thought-out response.

So she said the first thing to come to mind.

Antika:Cookies; any type of cookies and warm hugs. What about you?

Again, seconds ticked by before he finally responded.

Drevon:Right now? Talking to you. Looking forward to next Saturday. Have a good night.

Wow. He’s good. What a way to end a conversation.

With just a few words, he melted her heart and had her looking forward to seeing him again.

Antika already knew Tamera’s birthday party would be a blast, but now that she was getting to know her plus-one better, she had a feeling it was going to be a night to remember.

Come on, Saturday…

---