Page 35 of Strictly Pretend

I’m not going to argue with her. She’s finally talking to me, and I’m not planning on risking that. “Okay, that’s fine. And next week I’m going to take you out.”

“What?” Her voice lifts about a hundred octaves.

“Your neighbors are listening,” I remind her. “Sound happy about it.”

“Oh yay. Why?” Her voice is deadpan.

“Because there are no photographs of us. We need to start a social media trail. And we need to see if we can do this face to face before we make idiots of ourselves.”

“I guess you’re right,” she says grudgingly. I can almost hear the gnashing of her teeth as she replies.

“Of course I am. Now I’m going to hang up and finish my dinner.”

“Chips aren’t dinner.”

“Thank you. I like the way you take care of me. My little honeybun.” I add the last bit just to enjoy her reaction.

“Fuck off.”

“I love you too, baby,” I tell her. And there’s a little grunt of frustration.

“Now go to bed,” I instruct. “You need your beauty sleep. I’ll call you tomorrow at nine. Be ready to work harder than you have in your whole life.”

I hang up with a smile on my face. Maybe this could even be enjoyable?

Keep your mind on the game, Salinger. You’re doing this for business reasons. You need to get her eyes on that unit.

That’s the only reason I’m doing this. And the only reason I’m actually looking forward to attending a wedding for the first time in forever. I grin as I slide another chip between my lips.

CHAPTER

NINE

EMMA

“So I’m gonna need a dress,” I say to Rita, walking into the shop the following Friday.

“For the wedding?” she asks.

“For tonight. Brooks is taking me out on a date.” I wrinkle my nose.

Her eyes widen. “Oh my God. Did you say yes?”

“I did.” I fill her in on last week’s conversation with Jemima and my change of mind. She grins. “So what time is he picking you up?”

“At six.”

We’ve spent the last seven days exchanging every piece of information we can think the other person needs. I haven’t told himallmy dirty secrets. Like the fact that sometimes I don’t take my makeup off before bed, and that if I’m feeling super lazy I only wash my hair twice a week.

There are some things a man doesn’t need to know.

But we have exchanged favorite colors, favorite foods. He’s sent me a family tree because trying to explain hisdad’s marriages and his brothers’ wives' names was almost impossible.

I haven’t told him I haven’t looked at it yet.

But tonight is the night we’re meeting to really see if this can work. Brooks is calling it a ‘trial run’.

As long as he doesn’t call it a date it’s fine by me.

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