Page 12 of The Riskiest Move

She groans. “I want to wear my Chucks. Rogan said this event is casual. He’s wearing jeans too.”

“One of the positives about pretending to be Cooper’s girlfriend is that he’s 6’6”.”

Standing at 5’11” in my bare feet, it’s not easy to find a man who’s tall enough for me to wear some of my heels. Tonight that’s not the case.

“You two will look so striking next to each other. Have you thought about how you’re going to pull this charade off?”

Have I thought about it?It’s been on my mind more than I’d like.

“Yep, but I decided there’s no real way to prepare myself for this. I just need to act as normal as possible.”

“I think you’ll be fine. You’re great in social situations. If it were me, I’d probably pee my pants from nerves.”

I laugh. “Peeing my pants is the least of my worries.”

“Are you concerned about anything?” she asks.

“Only that I’m about to be under the watchful eyes of everyone there. I guess I didn’t really consider the level of exposure before agreeing, and how intimidating that would be. But there’s nothing I can do about it now.”

“Maybe you’ll gain some new podcast listeners.”

“It’s possible. Whatever happens, good or bad, I agreed to help him, and I’m not going to back out now.”

She sits on the edge of my bed. “Why did you agree?”

I finish slipping on a bracelet. “When we were out after the game, Cooper looked so relieved when I stepped in to fend off that woman. When he came over here and asked me to help, I knew it must be important to him. He’s a sweet guy, and I figured helping him could be a way for me to gain some good karma.”

“Yeah, karma that comes in the form of a real boyfriend,” Autumn says.

I laugh. “There’s plenty of time for that. Don’t forget, I’m still on my dating break.”

“This could be a best-of-both-worlds situation for you. You’ll get all the perks of dating a pro football player without having to worry about feelings or emotions.”

“And best of all, you’ll be there with me,” I add with a smile.

She gives me a quick hug. “Absolutely. I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

“Are you doubting my acting skills?”

She laughs. “Nope. I’m doubting Cooper’s.”

“Yeah, I’m also wondering how he’s going to do. But it’s not like he’s never had a girlfriend. He should be able to make it look somewhat convincing.” I fasten the gold necklace with the diamond pendant around my neck and then put on the matching earrings my parents gave me for my twenty-first birthday.

“And if he doesn’t, you can,” she adds.

“Exactly.” I add a quick spritz of my favorite perfume before I grab a pair of black ankle boots from my closet and slip them on. I add a black blazer over my white blouse, then check my reflection in the mirror.

“You’re gorgeous, as usual,” Autumn says.

I turn to her and smile. “We’ve been best friends since freshman year of high school, which means you’re grossly biased.”

“Biased maybe, but I’m not blind. You’re beautiful inside and out, even on your worst day.”

My head tilts as I study her. “You know love is the strangest and most powerful phenomenon. It even turned my notoriously grumpy best friend into a sweet compliment doler-outer.” Autumn tosses a throw pillow at me and I snatch it midair, laughing.

“I wasn’t grumpy. I?—”

“Bullshit.” I cut her off. “You were as prickly as a thorn bush. I have to say, being in love looks wonderful on you.”

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