Page 20 of Make Her Mine

We step out onto the sidewalk, and I say, “Admit it, I was smooth.”

She nods. “I will admit that. Thank you for just going along with that.” She pauses and then says, “Of course this was all your idea in the first place so really I was the one going along with it smoothly.”

I chuckle. “Obviously it was a great idea, right?”

“Well, it’s better than letting him be happy and confident.”

I touch her on the tip of her nose, partly because it feels right and partly because I know it will make her nuts. “Exactly.”

She frowns but does not swat me away. Probably because we’re standing on display outside of Dottie’s huge front window.

“We need to tell our moms,” we both stay at the same time.

I chuckle and she smiles.

“Everyone needs to be in on it,” I clarify.

“I know. They’re going to think it’s nuts.”

“But they’ll have our backs.”

“Yeah.”

We turn toward the bakery together and start walking. I grab her hand and entwine our fingers.

She tries to pull away, almost instinctively. “What are you doing?”

I tighten my hold on her. “The entire diner is watching us. We just announced we’re together. For sure Zach is watching. We have to act like we like each other now, Harlow.”

She huffs out breath. “Yeah, I don’t think either of us thought this through.”

Maybe not at the moment it was first suggested and it hit me that it was a great idea, but since then? Oh, I’ve thought about it. More than I should have.

I pull her in closer and kiss the top of her head again. She elbows me. I chuckle. “Oh come on, it’s a week.”

“About six and a half days longer than I think I can pull off liking you. “

“Look,” I say, glancing side to side and then stepping behind the gazebo so that we’re blocked from the diner. We’re in the middle of the town square so it’s not like we’re totally hidden, but I can make this look good. I turn her and back her up against the side of the gazebo, then brace a hand next to her ear. “We have to pull this off now. We told Zach, word for word, to his face, together that we’re a couple. It would be way worse for both of us if Zach figured out we’re faking it.”

She’s staring at me with wide eyes. Maybe because this is the closest Harlow and I have been in years. And she doesn’t remember the last time we were this close. Considering she was blacked out and I was carrying her into Graham’s bedroom, I’m not surprised.

“We can pull this off,” I tell her firmly.

She wets her lips, and I can’t help it when my eyes drop to her mouth. It’s just instinct. Or something.

Whatever. She has a nice mouth. At least when it’s shut and not snarking at me.

“Yeah. I’m sure we can,” she says.

“Maybe I’ll ask your dad for tips on how to deal with brats.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Your mom pokes at your dad just like you do to me.”

Harlow shakes her head quickly. “My mom likes my dad. When she pokes him, it’s teasing and…flirting.” She frowns as if she doesn’t really like using that word in reference to her own parents.

I grin. “Yeah, it is,” I say thoughtfully. “Interesting.”

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