Page 49 of Can't Help Falling in Love
He turned into her, lifted her hair off her shoulder, sweeping it behind. “I hate that label and what do you mean a girl like you?”
Why couldn’t he see how different their lives were? Growing up, she and her friends were all from middle-class families; there were kids more fortunate and definitely some less fortunate. Lexi never thought much about money until her dad died and she realized how bad he was at hanging on to it. For someone like Will, who’d grownup rich and privileged, she’d expected him to be more aware of their social statuses. Especially since she’d sort of fibbed: one article she saw painted Lexi as a down-on-her-luck opportunist. She’d stopped looking after that. It wasn’t like she was trending on X or Threads or whatever the hell the popular app was these days. She didn’t even go on Facebook. She definitely never checked theSeattle Timeswebsite. Or regular newspapers. Did they even still make those?
“I’m not really a country clubber,” she said, trying to laugh it off.
“Neither am I. Having a membership somewhere doesn’t really make a person belong. For the record, I’d rather be here with you, doing this, than anywhere else right now.”
Going up on tiptoes, she pressed her mouth to his, hoping she could get a handle on her jumbled emotions. His free hand came to her waist, holding her close.
“Keep it family-friendly,” a deep voice said from behind them.
Will pulled away, taking Lexi’s hand in his again. “That’s as PG as I can make it, man.”
Ethan strode up to them. Dressed in jeans, a sweater, a puffer vest over top, and a beanie that readSIDE TAP, he looked like a swag advertisement for his own business. Which, according to her marketing class, was an excellent tactic.
“Lexi, it’s nice to see you again. I was actually going to ask Will for your number,” Ethan said, which made Will frown.
“Bro code,” Will growled.
Lexi laughed. Like Will had anything to worry about. Despite his mother trying to marry him off, he seemed unaware of his many charms.
Ethan laughed too. “Chill, man.” He looked at Lexi. “Will mentioned you’re in school for business and marketing. I wondered about your areas of expertise and whether you might be looking for some work.”
Lexi glanced between the two friends. “Oh. I… I’m finishing my degree. I’m not done yet.”
With a tenderness that flipped her stomach like a pancake, Will stroked a hand down Lexi’s hair. “I told him that, too. Even though I don’t think it’s that big a deal. A degree isn’t everything.”
Lexi laughed. “Only people with degrees say that.”
Ethan laughed as well. “Or people running businesses who know sometimes there’s more required than just a piece of paper. Not that I’m disparaging your degree. It’s an excellent path, just agreeing with Will that it’s not the only thing that matters.”
The muscles around her heart tightened, taking her breath away. It was one thing to say those things to herself but to have someone else validate the thoughts was almost too much. She didn’t want Will clearing paths for her, but she had a feeling that wasn’t what he intended. He was more genuine than anyone she’d met. In the romance books her mom read, the couple usually faked the whole relationship. But she and Will were actually dating. Weird that dating him complicated their pretend engagement.
Ethan’s phone rang, drawing Lexi’s attention. He looked at the screen, cursed, and shook his head. “I have to take this. Brady’s wife is on bedrest. He can’t oversee the new place and I’m stuck here right in the middle of all of our holiday events.” He looked at Lexi, any traces of humor gone. “That’s why I wanted your number. I’m in a jam. Give me a few minutes? Pick some apples, drink some beer.” He put the phone to his ear and hurried off in the direction of the pub.
“Why would he want to talk to me about a woman on bedrest, and who is Brady?”
Will laughed, stepped them both to the side as another couple walked by. “Brady is his brother. The woman on bedrest, Lori, is his sister-in-law. I didn’t know about the bedrest either but they have two-year-old twins so it must be pretty difficult right now. I’m not completely sure but if I had to make an educated guess, he’s probably curious what area of business you’re majoring in and whether or not it’s applicable to what he needs. Which, while I may be biased, it sounds like it could be.”
Her pulse jumped with excitement but her brain, of course, poked holes in the story. “Is it because we’re together? Because we’re pretending to be engaged?” She didn’t want to sound ungrateful, but Will wasn’t a permanent fixture and she didn’t want to rely on him for things. Especially not his connections. She knew, even from their brief relationship, that he got enough of that.
Will gave her a wide grin. “Of course not. He’s met you himself and can read people. You’re smart and work in an area he currently needs help in. Why wouldn’t he want to talk to you?”
Lexi looked around, unsure what to do with this information. With this…possibility. “I’m a Dress Hut manager and a waitress.”
Will grasped her hand, pulled her close enough she had to tip her head back. “I believe the title was buyer for a retail store? Also, I don’t think waitressing should be your long-term plan.”
“Hey!”
He laughed. “People who plan to get married shouldn’t lie to each other. As I was saying, there are lots of reasons he might want to chat with you.”
Before she could respond, he tugged her hand so they were walking one of the rows. Thick, beautiful trees, heavy with multicolored, crisp-looking apples surrounded them. It smelled earthy and fresh. Lexi took a deep breath.
“He doesn’t even know if I’m doing well in school,” Lexi said, reaching for a shiny green apple that looked almost too pretty to eat. With a slight yank, the apple came free and she placed it gently in the basket, wondering if her mother would actually bake a pie.
When she glanced back up, Will was watching her. “Are you?”
She pursed her lips. “Yes. I work hard. I got an A on my last two assignments.”
