Page 56 of Salty, Spiced, and a Little Bit Nice

He gave a low scoff. “In your dreams.”

“Relax, sweetheart. My heart belongs to you, at least until our fake courtship is over.”

“I’m not jealous. I’m upset, because you don’t seem to care that your date with Mike could jeopardize the deal with Jacqui. Did you ever stop to think about that?”

“Nobody saw us,” I said. “Even if they did, we didn’t do anything. He’s just a friend. We went to a café, I drank some tea, we had a chat. I didn’t make out with him in public.”

Annoyance flashed in his eyes, and the jaw tics became more pronounced. “I’m respectfully asking you to refrain from making out with him in public until our agreement is over. After that, you’re free to see and do anything with anyone.”

An unexpected flurry of frustration swirled inside my head. He didn’t care who I’d be seeing once this fake relationship was over? That annoyed me more than I thought it would.

“Actually, I’m seeing him again next week. I could use more friendly faces in this city, since the company I’m presently in is so insufferable.”

This time, a vein popped in his neck. “Is that so?”

Mike’s words from earlier came back, shaming me and reminding me again that after everything Alec had done for me, I shouldn’t be behaving this way.

“Listen, I don’t want to fight. I got you something.” I placed the brown paper box I’d been holding on the sofa. “I’ve been wantingto check out the place, and their pastries are highly recommended by Kim and Jenna. I was going to bake you some brookies, but I got sidetracked and didn’t have enough time.” I pointed at the box. “Open it.”

His gaze was suspicious. “Are they poisonous?”

“I won’t lie, the thought did cross my mind.”

“You do realize that if you tried to poison me, Rob knows you live here, so you’ll end up becoming the first and prime suspect.”

“Naomi’s going to help me get rid of your body. No one’s going to suspect anything.”

He rolled his eyes. “Pretty sure that’s not how it works.”

“Just open the damn box already, will you? Fine, I’ll do it.” I lifted the lid with a flourish, revealing a dozen mini éclairs inside. “It’s from the French pâtisserie inside the Plaza. Wasn’t too sure what your preferences are, so half is chocolate, because you can’t go wrong with chocolate, and the other half is mocha, seeing how you inhale coffee every morning. I don’t know how to make these myself, so I thought these would be a nice treat for you.”

His eyes narrowed. “What’s this for?”

I took a deep breath. “If I tell you, promise you won’t be angry at Mike.”

“Really? We’restilltalking about Mike?”

“He told me you paid for some of my car repair fees.”

Alec pursed his lips. “Did he, now? First date, and you’re already sharing your innermost secrets with each other?”

Deciding to ignore the snarky comment, I reached into my bag and took out the check I’d written for two thousand dollars. “This is yours. I appreciate your help, but I’m paying you back. Did I tell you, by the way, how I got hired at my last job?”

Confusion crossed his face at my abrupt change of subject. “No.”

“My mother secretly paid them. To hire me.” I chewed on my lower lip, trying to keep my bubbling anger in check. “And then to fire me, too.”

The confused look slowly cleared, replaced by understanding. “I didn’t know.”

“Neither did I, until a few weeks ago. I know you were just trying to help, and I really, truly, appreciate you so much. That,” I pointed at the box of éclairs, “is me saying thank you. But in the future, please don’t go around paying people behind my back without letting me know about it.”

“I won’t. I promise.” His face turned sheepish. “I’m sorry. I was only trying to help because you’ve been having a rough time with your finances. Eric—”

“Would have done the same for your sisters, I know.”

Alec nodded, his expression slowly softening. “Why don’t you hold on to this for now? Pay me back once you’ve made some money.” He handed me the check. “I’ll keep the éclairs.”

“Please take the check. And the éclairs. You’ve done more than enough.”

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