Page 39 of Faking It with my Bestie's Billionaire Brother

"I know it's a lot to take in, but we need to remember who we are protecting here."

I shut my eyes, trying to tamp down the intense wave of guilt that threatened to overtake me. "Yes, Ralph, she's always been my number one priority. You know that I'm not going to let anything happen to Penny," I said.

"I know that," he said, "and I'm right there with you."

He promised that he would set up the wire transfer just to see exactly where it would go and what would happen to it after that. It wasn't an insignificant amount of money, but it was money that I could spare, so if it meant that I could find out more about who was really on the other side of that email, then I would just have to consider it part of my expenses for getting through this bullshit.

First, I would need to figure out how to approach the subject of this gala with Ava, without being distracted by thoughts of touching her.

Chapter fifteen

Ava

I woke up alone, which, after all the delicious dreams I'd had, felt like a bucket of ice water being thrown over me. I knew I had felt his warmth behind me throughout the night, his meandering fingers, and I had smiled to myself about what would be waiting for me when I woke up.

I had been determined not to worry about the consequences of our actions. I just wanted to experience more of the pleasure that Spencer Ashbury could ring out of my body.

But when I woke up, it was like it had never happened. Light poured in from the window, and the only evidence left from our time together was the fact that I lay there, naked, and the soreness in my muscles.

I slipped from the bed and found my robe, following my nose to the smell of Spencer's coffee. Even though I'd only been there for a couple of days, I'd already grown used to the smells and sounds of his morning routine. I knew even before I hit the mouth of that hallway that Spencer would be at the kitchen table with his cup of coffee, hunched over his laptop with a serious crease in his brow.

Although, after what we had done last night, I couldn't help but wonder if his face would be a little bit more relaxed now.

But when I peered in at him from my vantage point at the end of the hallway, I saw that it was something akin to Groundhog Day. The same Spencer with the same furrowed brow waited for me.

He hesitated when he saw me. Seemingly unsure what to say, he nearly barked out, "Good morning." His voice was so gruff that it made me jump. "As soon as you're done getting dressed, come sit here for a minute. We need to talk about what happens next."

My heart rose into my throat. "What happens next?" I managed to squeak out, and I didn't know what I was hoping for at that moment, I just knew that my heart rate was rivaling the speed of a freight train.

"Yes, there's a gala in a week that we will need to make an appearance at. I want to go over the details with you, so you know how to act as my plus-one," he said crisply, not even looking at me.

"Oh," I said quietly, opening my mouth to say more but…what would I say exactly?

I'd never exactly had a taboo night with anyone. I'd certainly never slept with my best friend's older brother before. To be perfectly honest, my sex life before Spencer had been completely tame and apparently bland. I didn't know how to move forward from this kind of situation.

But I didn't feel like I'd be able to get a whole lot accomplished standing naked under my silky robe, either, so I turned on my heel and marched back to my room to get dressed and ready for the day.

Regardless of whatever was about to come out of Spencer's mouth, I still had a day full of classes and kids to take care of, so at the very least, I knew that I had to go on as usual.

***

I might have spent a little extra time that morning getting ready. Did I look like a woman who had been ravished the night before?

I looked like the same old Ava, and yet, I felt different. I had never known heights of pleasure like that before, and the fact that it was with Spencer Ashbury of all people was still something that I could not quite wrap my head around.

"Quit stalling, girly," I told my reflection in the mirror, ran a brush through my hair one last time, and walked towards the kitchen, almost as if I was walking the plank.

There was no getting around discussing what had happened, but I had no clue exactly what Spencer would say. Still, for all the wild scenarios that ran rampantly through my head while I was getting dressed, I didn't expect him to still not make eye contact with me, looking down at his laptop as he told me, "We need to go over a few details. As I said before, there's going to be a gala. It's a benefit that we throw every year to shed light on our charitable causes for the corporation. People dress up and drink too much, and hopefully spend a lot of money, but Ralph seems to think it would be the ideal spot for you and me to announce our engagement."

I nearly choked on the swallow of coffee I had just taken. "Engagement?"

He looked up at me then, with no hint of the heat or closeness we'd shared from the night before in his eyes. "Yes," he said as if talking to a small child. "You agreed to do this fake relationship thing, but now, Ralph seems to think we need to escalate it to a public engagement. He believes that it will get the bad press off my back, and in light of recent developments, we're going to need to do it sooner rather than later."

I cleared my throat. "Yeah, but doesn't it seem a little fast?"

He directed his attention back at his laptop. "If this were a real relationship, of course it would be entirely too fast. But given that none of this is real, the sooner we can make this seem like a forever match, the sooner people will be off our backs, and you can go back to your normal life."

"I see," I said, although I was fairly certain I was the only one who heard my words.

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