Page 20 of Accidentally on Purpose

I had a feeling she wasn’t talking about the water.

“Hey, Mom.”

I turned as Reese walked into the room. It couldn’t have been more than twenty steps between her bedroom and the dining room, but she looked flushed. Like she’d sprinted those twenty steps even though there was no rush.

“Oh, honey, there you are,” Arlene cooed, giving her daughter a once-over.

Reese had on yoga pants and a loose sweater that fell just long enough to make my fingers itch to want to lift it. To want to skim over the sides of her hips and the curve of her ass underneath.Damn.I brought my glass to my mouth and took a healthy gulp of water, and that was when she looked at me. Her full lips parted with the slight catch of her breath.Double damn.She was gorgeous.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, giving Cheryl a side hug on her way over to us. “Are you okay? How’s your knee?”

“It’s fine. Brand new as a matter of fact—”

“Mom,” Reese scolded.

“I’m fine, honey.”

“Did you take your medicine?”

“Of course, she did. Only Dilaudid would make her think she could come in here and cook dinner tonight—”

“You didn’t.” Reese folded her arms.

“Don’t listen to her. I put some sausage and tomatoes in a pot and told her to stir them.”

“Mom—”

“But I did all my exercises today. My physical therapist is lucky he’s got a nice face because he’s a sadist.”

“Oh my god—”

“Pasta’s done. Reese, can you help—”

“I’ve got it,” I chimed in, grateful to put a few steps between Reese and me to let the heat dissipate.

“I like you,” Cheryl said with a twinkle in her eye, and then we worked to plate the spaghetti and add the sauce.

The three of us took seats at the table closest to Arlene’s chair, Cheryl on one side, Reese and I on the far side.I felt the tension ripple off of Reese from the moment we sat down. It didn’t matter how well-rehearsed our story was. Reese sat as still as a board, afraid one wrong word would send the whole thing crumbling.

“So, Decker tells me you ended up at Jenny Lake,” Arlene prompted.

“Yeah.” Reese relaxed a little when the conversation steered clear of our past. “We went out on a canoe.”

“Oh, you did? That was your favorite place when you were younger. Remember the time you lost your lunch in the lake?” Arlene beamed and then proceeded to share a story from Reese’s childhood and a trip to Jenny Lake, a twinkle in her eye as she looked at her daughter and then to me.

I wished I could just tell Reese how obvious it was her mom loved her no matter what. I understood expectations. I understood people-pleasing. I understood not wanting to let someone you loved down, but my fake girlfriend was missing the forest for the trees. Her mom only wanted her happy—boyfriend or not.

We spent most of the meal on that topic, but when Cheryl stood and declared she was going to make some hot toddies, that was the moment Arlene turned to me and asked, “So, Decker, how did you and my daughter meet?”

Reese went stock still.This was the moment we’d prepared for.And it was the moment her knee began to bounce wildly, bumping her leg into mine.

I smiled even though my teeth locked at the friction her movement created. Being attracted to my fake girlfriend was an unforeseen complication of my offer to help.

“Well, it all started in the emergency room,” I began slowly, sliding my hand onto Reese’s knee under the table. As soon as I touched her, I swore I heard her breath catch.I gave her knee a gentle squeeze of reassurance…and her leg stopped shaking.

Relax, baby,I wanted to tell her, but all I could do was keep stroking her knee.

“Oh, boy.” Arlene chuckled, pure joy twinkling in her eyes.

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