Neighbors with Benefits (Anderson Brothers, #2)(32)
Waiting was not.
…
“Calm down,” Mia scolded herself in the bathroom mirror. “Maybe he just can’t see what a dick move this was.” Of course he couldn’t. To him, it was probably generous, and how he’d operated in the past. She’d always had a gift for putting herself in other people’s shoes, but his shoes were way too big to wrap her head around. She couldn’t even imagine what it was like to be him.
In his warped sense of what was appropriate between people, paying someone was probably his answer to most things. Goodness knew it was the easiest answer for someone like him. He most likely knew she wouldn’t take money, so he bought her stuff instead—beautiful stuff, of course; he was Michael Anderson after all.
Ordinarily, she would have just chewed him out on the spot, but after spending time with him, she’d learned that curbing her impulsive side had benefits—not that it wasn’t still there, lurking under the surface like a powder keg, waiting for her to light the fuse. But, he responded much better to more controlled responses. He liked order, not only in his physical life, but in his emotional world as well. And it was worth putting things away where they belonged and waiting to react because of the ease it brought to their friendship.
Friendship.
She shook her head at her reflection. Nope. Not friendship. Business relationship. He’d just proved it by paying her. He saw her as an employee, not an equal.
Well, she couldn’t stay in there all night. They were leaving for the wedding in the morning, and they needed to clear this up before then. Ripping the Band-Aid off all at once was the best tactic.
After a deep, fortifying breath, she opened the bathroom door. Michael shot to his feet from the corner of the bed, kicking over an empty highball glass. The glass rolled across the floor and came to rest right in front of her. Ordinarily, she’d have just left it there, but she knew that things on the floor bothered him, so she picked it up. Turning it in her hands, she watched the light play off the cut glass. “I don’t want to be paid, Michael. You’ve made me uncomfortable.”
“It wasn’t my intention to make you uncomfortable. Quite the opposite.”
“I didn’t come to the office with you because I expected compensation. I didn’t expect anything. I didn’t come with you tonight as an employee; I came as a friend.”
“This isn’t about tonight.”
She placed the glass on the counter just inside the bathroom. “I heard you on the phone in your office.” After shrugging out of her coat, she folded it over her arm. “You did this because Kawashima signed the deal with you. It’s why you kissed me, too. It’s all about the deal. You’re trying to pay me and I feel uncomfortable.”
A puzzled look crossed his face. “The only call I made was to Jacob to let him know we were ready for pick up.”
“And the clothing store in the living room just magically appeared on its own?”
“No. I arranged for it last week.”
“Last week.” Well, that put a new spin on things. She thought he’d ordered the zillion dollars worth of designer clothes after Kawashima signed the deal.
“The items in the living room are costumes and props for the fake fiancée routine we’re going to pull off this weekend.”
“I don’t need costumes.”
“Of course you do. You said yourself that we’re an unlikely couple. Well, I’m going to make every effort to appear to be someone who would appeal to you, and you need to do the same. Your one little black dress, several T-shirts, a pair of blue jeans, and paint-splattered warm-ups wouldn’t cut it at a wedding in the Hamptons. And they wouldn’t be sufficient to go the places we would go were we truly engaged. Your parents are actors. Pretend you’re one as well, and consider this your costume wardrobe for an elaborate play.”
It seemed overkill. It was going to be an intimate, outdoor wedding with only her and Jason standing in. Sue had planned the thing over a year ago when the four of them, Mark, Sue, Jason, and Mia were inseparable. After the nasty breakup, Mia had thought—no hoped—Sue would sub her out for someone else, but out of duty or friendship…or something, she remained in the wedding party. “It’s a small wedding. I’m just the maid of honor.”
“All the more reason you should look the part.”
He had a point, and heaven knew she couldn’t afford to go out and buy a suitable wardrobe—well, not until after she sold the series of paintings. Her friends all knew she was a casual kind of person and accepted the way she dressed. But, as he pointed out, there was no way in hell she could run in Michael Anderson’s circles wearing a Mighty Mouse T-shirt and paint-splattered warm ups. She lowered herself on the opposite corner of the bed from him and patted the space next to her, encouraging Clancy to abandon him. To her surprise, the dog stayed where he was, chin on Michael’s thigh.
“I don’t do things half way, Mia. I agreed to do this, and I intend to do it well—perfectly, in fact. Our image as an engaged couple living together will be strengthened by your new clothes. It’s all about perception.”
“Well, my perception is that it was presumptuous and pushy to dress me without my input.”
“I’m sorry. You’re right. I was trying to surprise you.”
That caught her attention. She snapped her gaze to his face, but there was nothing in his expression that indicated he was kidding. “You’re not the surprise type.”