Page 25 of Faking It With My New Boss

“This is very high maintenance,” I said. “I don't know if I'm ready for this kind of commitment.”

“You should have thought about that before you didn't put a ring on it,” she said.

“Alright,” I said. “You're right. In order for us to really pull this off, we need to have a basis with each other and some relationship stuff we can throw around to make it plausible.” I thought about it for a second, then stood up. “This is what we're going to do. We're taking the rest of the day off. You go home and pack some clothes.”

“Pack some clothes?” Courtney asked. “What do you mean?”

“Just fill a bag with all sorts of different outfits. Things from different seasons, different types of activities. You might want to bring along your makeup, too. We're going to take a crash course in each other and start making some memories together. I'll meet you back here in two hours.”

She left first and I spent the next twenty minutes researching places to go. When I had a list, I headed back to my place and gathered some clothes of my own. I didn't know if we were going to be able to make this happen, but the least we could do was try.

When Courtney showed back up, she was in jeans and a lightweight sweater and her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She was carrying a large duffel bag and a smaller bag in the other hand. She looked like she was ready for about a week of vacation. Which was good because we needed to have several months of a relationship in the next day.

I'd given my driver the day off, deciding it was just easier to drive ourselves around and not have to explain any of this to anyone. We climbed in the car and I showed Courtney the pages I'd printed out.

“Alright, all of these places are close enough that we can hit a bunch of them today. We'll change clothes and things in between so it looks like a bunch of different situations.”

“We'll have to do the ones with winter clothes inside,” she pointed out. “Or wait until tonight when we can pretend it's really cold and be bundled up without the pictures actually showing much of what's around us.”

She seemed into the plan and I couldn't help but feel a little bit of excitement. It was ridiculous, but it felt like an adventure and I was all for it.

We spent the rest of the day running around to as many tourist attractions, locations, and picture backdrops as we possibly could. We took pictures and video, pretending it was different points in our relationship. In between settings, we changed clothes and Courtney altered her makeup so it was more believable that we weren't just doing this all in one day.

It was ridiculous. It was completely over the top, but it was also more fun than I'd had in as long as I could remember. We ended up laughing and being silly together, getting to know each other as we shared real memories and offered up little bits of ourselves.

As night fell, we changed into evening clothes and I headed to a location I'd been looking forward to all day. The fountain on the university campus was one of the most beautiful places in the area and I knew it was lit up at night. It would be the perfect backdrop for a date.

Courtney looked somewhat hesitant when I pulled onto campus and we started walking toward the fountain. She looked around, not seeming as excited and willing as she had been in all the other locations.

“Don't worry,” I said. “Security isn't going to stop us.”

“No, that's not what I'm worried about,” she said. “I just don't want anybody to see us.”

“People have been seeing us all day,” I pointed out.

“Yes, but not ones who I might potentially know and could cause trouble for this whole plan,” she said.

I looked at her curiously. “Why would anybody know you here?”

We got to the fountain and she let out a sigh. “Alright. There's something I haven't told you.”

“Go ahead,” I said, starting to take pictures of the area. I walked up beside her and took a selfie.

“The reason I was so eager to take the position with you after I heard how much you were willing to pay is that I'm funding my way through law school,” she said.

I turned to her in surprise.

“What?” I asked. “You're in law school?”

“Yeah,” she said. “I started my career in interior design and was really successful, but after my divorce, I decided I needed to do something for myself. I wanted to pursue law when I was younger, it's actually what my best friend does, too, but I didn't do it. Now I'm doing it.”

“I can't believe it… I'm fake engaged to a co-ed. What kind of law are we talking about? Because my family might be really upset if you are going to be like an environmental lawyer or something like that. Do you think it's too late to change your focus to corporate law? High power prosecuting, maybe?”

I laughed, but Courtney didn't laugh along with me. She looked angry.

“Go ahead and make fun of me,” she said. “You wouldn't know what it feels like to have a dream and not go after it. Or to have to claw and fight for it. You've never had to dream or hope for anything in your life. You've had your entire existence laid out for you. You have all the success in the world and you don't even want it.”

She was getting more upset, and I didn't want the fun we'd had all day ruined. I wanted to defuse the situation and get back to what we were doing. I stepped in front of the fountain with her right as the lights under the water changed to blue and purple. Grabbing her, I pulled her in for a kiss and snapped a picture.

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