Four Day Fling(9)

My mother was like a bloodhound. She could sniff out the tiniest lie if you didn’t cover your tracks adequately enough.

The shower stopped running, and I tapped my fingers against the soft material that covered the sofa cushion next to me. How did I bring it up? Did I just go straight to the point, or mention it gently?

“So,” came Adam’s voice. “Have you given any thought about how we convince your family we have a real relationship?”

I turned my head, then froze.

Uhhh.

He was standing in the doorway. Tall. Tanned. Muscular. And wet.

Very, very wet.

His dark hair hung over his forehead, dripping water onto his shoulders where the droplets trailed over his chest. I saw one even trickle right over his abs and into the fluffy white towel he had secured at his waist.

“Red? You listening?”

I jerked my attention from his waist back up to his face. His lips were twisted in a knowing smile, and he wiped his face with another towel.

“I’m listening,” I said. “You asked how we’re going to convince my family this weekend isn’t a ruse.”

“Oh, good. You retained the information. I thought it might have gotten lost somewhere between my shoulders and my cock.”

I glared at him. “I’m regretting this already.”

“Don’t. I’ll remind you later why this is a very good idea.” He winked. “Well? Do you have any ideas?”

“Yes, but, honestly? Please put on some pants. If the person who brings our dinner is a woman, you’ll have her fainting in the hall.”

He stared at me for a second, then burst into laughter and turned back to the room. He emerged again two minutes later, this time wearing light gray sweatpants.

“All right,” he said, sitting with me on the sofa. “What’s the plan?”

“For you to wear more clothes so I stop getting distracted,” I muttered, ignoring his quiet snort. “I think we need to agree on the most basic things: where we met, when we met, and how serious the stage of our relationship is.”

Adam nodded and scratched his jaw. “Well, I vote we stick to the truth where possible. We met in a bar, so let’s actually use that.”

“I agree. But when?”

“Let’s say a few months ago. That’s vague enough to make our relationship serious enough that you’d bring me to a wedding, but not necessarily needed to bring me up in conversation with your family.”

“You’re good at this. Have you done it before?”

“No. Believe it or not, I’m not in the habit of accompanying random, hot women to family weddings.”

I blushed at him referring to me as “hot.” Damn it. He was charming. “Okay, so, we met in a bar a few months ago and just recently stepped toward being more serious. How does that sound?”

He nodded. “I think that’s good. We should be able to deflect any others. The key is to not be split up, and if we are, find each other to fill any gaps. Agreed?”

I took a mouthful of water and returned his nod. “Agreed. Failing that, we pay someone to cause a distraction so we can run away.”

His grin made his eyes sparkle. “I saw those heels in the bedroom. Do you think you’ll be able to run in them?”

Shit. “Absolutely fucking not.”

“Don’t worry, Red. I got you. I’ll throw you over my shoulder and we’ll run into the sunset.”

He looked so damn serious I couldn’t help but laugh. Of course, that made him break the serious persona he had on, and he laughed, too. “No, but seriously, if you can’t run, I’ll handle it.”

“You have my full confidence,” I managed to eke out between giggles.

He got up at the sound of two knocks and a call of, “Room service!” He pulled open the door and shot the poor young woman on the other side of it a dazzling grin. “Thanks. I can take this in. Don’t worry about it. Do you have the check?”

Wordlessly, she handed him a slim leather wallet and a pen. Adam opened it and scribbled on the bottom with a flourish.

“There you go. Thanks.” He smiled once again, pulled the tray inside, and shut the door on the poor thing.

“Well, that was smooth,” I said. “And they were supposed to charge it to my card. It’s on file.”

Adam shrugged. “I set up my card on my way up. They didn’t question it.”

“What? You’re here doing me a favor. I can at least buy you room service.”

“Hey, I get something out of it, too. Fake boyfriend, real sex. Remember?”

I did remember.

“And if there’s real sex, you need sustenance, and I’m happy to pay for it. So…” He pushed the tray right in front of me. “Eat up, Red. You’ll need it to get through the party…And for what I have planned for you later.”

“What—what you have planned?”

He grinned and picked up his burger.

Oh, man.

I should have ordered a shot of vodka with this Pepsi.

***

“Are you ready to do this?”

I looked at Adam. He was dressed in a white shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows. His black pants were perfectly tailored to fit him like a glove, and even his black shoes were so shiny that, if I got close enough, I’d probably be able to see my reflection in them.