Page 26 of Pretend for Me

As I bend to scratch behind her gray and pink ears, Vajayjay wastes no time climbing up my arm and laying her head on my shoulder. With each stroke down her back, she rubs her chin against my ear, licking it.

“Holy shit,” Piper exclaims, bewildered. “Who are you, and what have you done to my sassy, ‘I will be owned by no man’ cat?”

Five minutes later, we’ve put Vajayjay back in her room, along with the others, and Piper is turning off the computer at the reception desk.

“You never did answer the two sausages that were in here,” I say, barely holding back a sneer, thinking about the assholes again. “Are you hungry?”

She nods, walking up to me. “Starving. I have a date planned with my frozen pizza. Want to join me? It’s about the only thing I can make.” She smirks before she winks. “I promise not to top it with sausage.” At my glare, she lifts her hands up in surrender. “Too soon. Got it. So, about that pizza . . .?”

“Tempting, but no,” I reply. “I hate pizza.”

Piper’s mouth drops open in disdain. “Who the hell hates pizza? I knew you were a robot.”

Annoyed at myself for not having thought of getting reservations earlier, I pull out my phone, dialing Lenni, my admin. “Can you get me a reservation in thirty minutes atSakurafor two?”

Piper’s widened eyes assess me before she rolls them. “Of course you’d demand a table at the most exclusive and booked-out restaurant in the city, thirty minutes before needing it.”

I raise a brow, sliding my phone back into my pocket. “And I’ll get it, too. You know why?” I lean in so our faces areonly an inch apart, not waiting for her answer. “Because I always get what I want.”

“Move in with you?!” Piper practically shrieks, and the patrons at the tables next to us turn to stare. “What do you mean, the amendment is to move in with you?”

I stay composed, having anticipated this reaction from her, given it’s similar to the one when I asked her to marry me.

To be honest, I still can’t believe she agreed to marry a stranger with little to gain on her part, besides using me as the face of her salon and to save its reputation. Not that I would have tarnished its image like I’d threatened.

I’ll admit it was a low-handed move on my part. I wouldn’t have carried through with my threat, but fuck if I didn’t love seeing that fire ignite in her amber-flecked eyes. She was stunning then—all that personality and wit housed inside that petite frame of hers—and she’s mesmerizing now.

Sitting to her right, my eyes travel down her torso, taking in the small breasts beneath her metallic short-sleeved shirt that’s cropped and showing off a smooth, toned stomach above high-waisted black trousers. She’d pulled her hair into a long braid in the back seat of my chauffeured car, and with it out of the way, I can finally admire her slender neck. There’s a line of tiny moles that travel down from it to her collarbone, and it takes everything I have to stay focused on our conversation when all I want to do is trail my tongue over them.

Jesus, she’s a vision, and if I don’t control the fucking boner barely hidden behind the tablecloth draped over my lap, we’re going to end this conversation early.

I take in a long breath. “I need to release a statement to thepress tomorrow regarding our engagement. If they think we’re trying to hide it, gossip rags will have a field day. They’ll do that anyway, but I’ve learned that getting ahead of the communication is key. But when it’s all out there, do you realize what’s going to happen?”

“Yes,” she states adamantly. “You might not know this, but I have a pretty famous brother in the NHL. I know that our engagement will get a lot of media attention, but I don’t see how living with you will change anything.”

I knew she was Rowan Parker’s sister—it was part of the background check I had done before asking her to marry me. Still, I pinch the bridge of my nose, no longer interested in the dragonfly noodle dish in front of me. “Let me ask you something, Peter?—”

“Piper,” she corrects, those fiery eyes narrowing in determination.

“Do you have paparazzi follow you around everywhere, camping out in front of your salon, or lurking around your condo because of your brother’s fame?”

I can practically see the wheels turning in her head as she connects the dots. “Aside from your visit last week, and a few times when really high-profile clients have come in, no, we haven’t had to deal with cameras. We beef up security when we know celebrities are coming to the salon.”

“Right, but has any of it been for you, specifically?”

She shakes her head. “No. Most people don’t know that I’m related to Rowan.”

“Now imagine the frenzy when they find out you’re marrying the CEO of the world’s most profitable company?” I watch as understanding dawns in her eyes. “Unfortunately, I’m constantly being followed and photographed by the paps. Even more so than my parents. It’s something my ex had to deal with and it made her miserable, and unfortunately, it’s something you’ll have to dealwith, too, no matter how much I don’t want that for you.”

“So we’ll beef up security around the salon and my condo. Why would moving in with you make this any better?” she argues.

“Because my house is practically a fortress. Not only is it tucked away from the paparazzi, but it’s also highly secure. Yes, it’ll increase your commute to work, but those are things we can deal with.”

“But—”

I gesture for her to let me continue. “But what I can’t do is take a chance on your safety and privacy, Peter.”

Her shoulders slump. I know she wants to argue, but knows I’m right.

---