Page 2 of Practically Perfect Together

"Well, this changes everything." Bennett stands, extending his hand to me. "I think we have the beginnings of a productive partnership, Ms. Carter."

I rise to shake his hand, relief flooding through me. "I'm thrilled to hear that."

"Dorothy and I arrive Friday for the weekend. A proper site visit before bringing my team." His grip is surprisingly firm. "We'll want to meet your fiancé, of course. Nothing like seeing a happy couple to remind me why I built this business in the first place. Securing futures for families."

The relief freezes in my veins. "My fiancé?"

"Yes, yes. Have him join us for dinner Friday evening. Dorothy will insist once I tell her your news."

"That would be..." Disastrous. Impossible. Career-ending. "...lovely."

"Excellent." Bennett gathers his coat. "We'll finalize the details by email. Twenty-three executives, Ms. Carter. Our core leadership team. Quite the feather in your cap if you pull this off."

Twenty-three executives. Small in number but massive in influence. All hinging on a fiancé who doesn't exist.

"Looking forward to it," I manage, my professional smile firmly in place as I escort him from the conference room.

As soon as the door closes behind him, I slump against it, pressing my forehead to the cool wood. I need a fiancé. Fast. And not just any fiancé. I need someone charming enough to impress Harold Bennett, convincing enough to fool his wife, and connected enough to the lodge to make sense.

* * *

I find Jules Callahan in the lodge's main office. If anyone can help me navigate this disaster, it's the sharp-minded woman who married into the Callahan family. She’s bent over a stack of invoices. When I knock on the door frame, she looks up with a smile that quickly shifts to concern.

"You look like you just saw a ghost," she says, setting down her pen. "Bennett meeting didn't go well?"

"Oh, it went well." I step inside, closing the door firmly behind me. "So well that he's bringing his wife this weekend for a site visit before finalizing the contract. And they want to have dinner with me and my fiancé."

Jules blinks. "Your... fiancé?"

"The one I don't have." I sink into the chair across from her desk, finally letting my professional mask slip. "The one I accidentally invented when Bennett started going on about family values and long-term commitment."

"You told a potential client you're engaged?" Jules's voice rises slightly, though her expression is more amused than judgmental.

"It just came out." I press my fingers to my temples. "He was talking about his wife of forty-seven years and looking at me like my answer determined whether I was worthy of his business, and I panicked."

"Savannah Carter, queen of meticulous planning, panicked?" Jules leans back, a smile tugging at her lips. "I'm not sure whether to be concerned or impressed."

"Be helpful," I plead. "This is a twenty-thousand-dollar commission, Jules. And I need a fiancé by Friday night."

Jules purses her lips, tapping her pen against the desk. "You could just tell him the truth."

"That I lied to secure his business? That would go over wonderfully." I open my planner, already flipping to Friday's page as if a solution might magically appear there. "If I cancel now, I'll lose the account and probably my job. McLoyd Event Strategy doesn't take kindly to failure."

"So you need a fake fiancé." Jules nods slowly, as if processing a complicated equation. "Someone charming enough to be convincing, connected enough to the lodge to make sense why he'd be here, and available enough to pull this off on short notice." A smile spreads across her face. "I know exactly who you need."

Something about her expression makes me pause. "Who?"

"Jameson Callahan."

My stomach drops. "The activities coordinator? The one who wears flannel to business meetings?"

"The very same." Jules's smile widens. "He's single, charming as they come, and literally works here. It makes perfect sense why your 'fiancé' would be at the lodge during your meeting."

I've seen Jameson around the lodge during my previous visits. Always surrounded by laughing guests, always with that easygoing smile, usually with a massive golden retriever at his heels. The kind of man who seems to float through life on a cloud of natural charisma and unearned confidence.

"Absolutely not." I shake my head firmly. "He's... he's..."

"Handsome? Charming? Perfect for the role?" Jules supplies helpfully.

---