Page 18 of The Love Lie
Just to show herself she can, Sam grabs Cooper’s hand and pulls his arm farther across her stomach so he’s holding her from behind with her entire back pressed against his entire front. She threads their fingers together and holds him in place so his corded forearm rests just below her breasts, close enough she can feel the heat from his skin. Then she gives Nina a wink. “We worked up an appetite.”
“Yeah, I don’t want to know,” the producer murmurs offhandedly, as if uninterested, yet her gaze lingers on their clasped hands. A little spark Sam can’t quite place flashes in Nina’s dark eyes before she grins. “Though I guess it can’t be too salacious if you’re out of your room already. Most couples take at least twenty-four hours before showing their faces in the bright light of day. One even spent their entire five-day vacation in the suite. It’s why we left your schedule clear for today.”
An uneasy feeling stirs in Sam’s gut at the implication. Cooper must feel the same because he wraps his other arm around her and squeezes her tight, nestling his chin against the top of her head. The loving embrace is a silent show of unity—it’s also annoyingly comforting.
“She wanted to get room service,” he explains, then dips his head closer to nip teasingly at her ear. Heat ricochets down her spine, flamed further by the deep rumble that vibrates against her back as he chuckles softly, and then whispers, “Insatiable girl.”
Before Sam can react, he pulls back and lifts his head toward Nina.
“But we have our whole lives, after all. And this is only my second time seeing the ocean. I begged her to explore.”
Sam glances up at him.
Is that true? It’s only his second time seeing the ocean? It makes sense, with him living on a landlocked ranch. Still, she grew up on the beach. Mornings fishing on her father’s boat. Afternoons splashing in the waves. Evenings sneaking out to drink beers by the light of the moon. It’s hard to imagine growing up anywhere else. The very idea makes her want to learn more.
And that’s a dangerous, dangerous proposition.
Rules, Sam immediately realizes, hating the way her heart has momentarily softened.We need some fucking rules.
Rules will take emotion out of the equation. Sam is a businesswoman and this is a business arrangement. A transaction, plain and simple. She doesn’t know why she didn’t think of it sooner. Rules, a contract, some sort of guideline—it will give them characters to play, a script to follow, just enough separation to fortify her mind against his touch. If she and Cooper are going to survive the next five days together, they need to sit down, negotiate the terms, draft up an exit strategy, and remove any and all questions from the equation. She wants a clean and clear reminder that every time he gets too close, it’s for a game, a cover-up, and none of this is real.
Rules.
Sam grins.
It’s a genius idea. So genius, Sam is too busy congratulating herself to fully register what Nina says next.
“You want to explore?” the producer asks, eying them up and down. “Why don’t you come with us? The network booked Trish, Fred, and me a yacht for the day as a little end-of-season treat. It’s too big for just the three of us anyway. You’re more than welcome to join. It’d be fun to spend a little time with you both outside of the show.”
As nice as the invitation is, Sam can’t think of anything worse than being stuck on a yacht with her accidental fiancé and the television crew they’re trying to fool. They need to go to breakfast. They need to establish a game plan. And then she really, really needs to get her phone from the front desk.
Unfortunately, before she has time to say any of this, the cowboy tightens his arm around her waist and chimes, “We’d love to.”
CHAPTER SIX
cooper
The expressionon Sam’s face when she snaps toward him is priceless. It takes all of Cooper’s effort to hold back a shit-eating grin.
“Great!” Nina says, too quickly for the fuming woman in his arms to mount any sort of defense. He could honestly kiss her—the producer…obviously. “We leave in about twenty. Go get changed into bathing suits and I’ll tell Trish and Fred to grab you from your bungalow on their way. There’s food and drinks on board, so just bring yourselves. Oh, and Em, your flip-flop is over there if you need it, you know, as another projectile missile. Just don’t throw it at me this time.” She grins. “Later!”
As soon as Nina is out of earshot, Sam shoves Cooper away and rounds on him.
“We were supposed to be going to breakfast,” she seethes. “We had a deal.”
“We are going to breakfast.” He grins. “Breakfast on a yacht.”
She throws her hands in the air. “I need to get my computer. I have work to do.”
“According to you, your boss is already pissed. What’s a few more hours?”
“That wasn’t the plan.”
“I improvised.”
“Look,” she says and jabs her pointer in the center of his chest. “Other girls may fall all over this alpha-male thing you’re doing right now, but I’m not one of them. I’m a grown-ass woman and I make my own decisions. I don’t need a man to do it for me. And when I make a deal with someone, I expect them to make good on their end of the bargain. Got it?”
His chest immediately deflates, the fun seeping away like the air from a popped balloon. That’s not what this was about, and he doesn’t want her to see him like that. He might have had some trouble following the rules in his past, might have spread his wild oats a bit, but he hates the sort of man she’s talking about—the sort that believes a woman is just an accessory on his arm, and not a living, breathing human in her own right, with her own hopes and dreams outside of his needs. If this push and pull they’ve been doing is giving her the wrong impression, he’d rather fold than raise the stakes.
