Page 64 of Faking It with the Firefighter

“Hey, beautiful,” I replied. Abigail blushed while Blair seemed to fade away. “I was just coming out. Let’s finish this job and I’ll drive you to work.”

TWENTY

ABIGAIL

I didn’t actually needa ride to work—and I needed to have my car with me, so it was more inconvenient for Rex to drive me—but I appreciated the sentiment. No one had ever offered to drive me to work without me asking before.

And no one had been so up front about their interest in me. Rex hadn’t danced around it this morning; he’d told me exactly what he wanted. I loved that.

As I smiled for the potential buyers who came through the Baker property, my mouth rattled off about the home’s features, but my mind replayed my conversation with Rex.

There was no hesitation. No murkiness. He wanted to date me—for real. And he’d said it to my face, right before he plopped me on top of the kitchen counter and kissed the daylights out of me.

I was the kind of woman who men called “intimidating.” I’d dealt with a lot of men flirting with meand acting like they were interested, only for them to back away or ghost me without a word.

Never once had a man been so clear about his intentions with me. And never once had a man apologized to me so cleanly, without pretense, without excuses or justification. Rex had been wrong, he’d hurt me—and he knew it. He didn’t try to play it down or make me feel like it was my fault. He apologized and promised to be better.

My ex-husband and I had dated in high school, and he’d hung around, slowly circling me until I finally got sick of the uncertainty and asked him out. When it came time to get married, I sat him down and told him that I wanted a ring on my finger within the year. I was clear about my career aspirations and how I saw my life.

And when we broke up, he had the gall to tell me that I’d been too forward. Too masculine. Too pushy.

So when Rex left last night, I’d been pretty sure it was the end between us. We’d keep faking it for a couple of days, and then we’d go back to being casual acquaintances only connected through my brother.

I was wrong.

When I pushed Rex, he stood tall and pushed right back. He didn’t seem to dislike it when I showed my strong personality—helikedit.

It almost seemed like a dream. I hadn’t realized I’d been craving this until now. I didn’t have to make myself small. I didn’t have to pretend to be Suzie Homemaker. I could just be myself and be accepted for it.

By the time I got home after work, I had almost convinced myself that itwasa dream—until Rex greeted me at the frontdoor with a soft smile and a kiss on the tip of my nose. He wore a navy suit with a crisp white shirt, and I ducked upstairs to get ready for the rehearsal dinner.

As I slipped on gold drop earrings and smoothed my black dress over my hips, Winston watched from his perch on the windowsill. “How do I look?” I asked the cat, and he gave me a slow blink.

Grinning, I went to give him a few goodbye scritches, then headed downstairs. Rex was waiting in the living room, and when I entered, he jumped to his feet and froze. His eyes ran down the length of my gown and back up to the simple knot I’d put in my hair. He traced the high neckline of the dress and smiled when I spread my arms and gave him a twirl.

“Winston says I look fabulous,” I informed him.

Rex prowled toward me, a soft smile on his lips. “For once, I agree with the cat.”

When he hooked his arm around my back and tugged me close, I put my fingers up to block his lips. “I’ll get lipstick all over your face.”

Growling, Rex pressed a kiss to my fingertips. “Later, then.”

A flush went through me, and I let Rex tangle his fingers with mine as he tugged me to the door. Donny and Blair had already gone ahead to the restaurant with the bridal party, so I locked up the house and turned to follow Rex to his truck.

But there was no truck.

A sleek, black Maserati waited in my driveway, new tires gleaming in the fading sun. Rex pressed the fob, andthe lights flashed.

“What’s this?”

“Sebastian said I could borrow it,” he said. “Didn’t want you getting all dolled up just to get in my old truck.”

I sashayed toward the passenger seat, which Rex held open. “I happen to like your old truck.”

“Still,” Rex said, smiling at me as I slid into the car. “Figured you’d enjoy this too.”

“Rex Montgomery,” I marveled, “you are a romantic.”

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