Page 65 of Faking It Right
Sawyer and Gia exchanged anxious glances while Danson became very interested in his coffee cup.
“I’m so sorry,” his mom apologized, wringing her hands like she was trying to squeeze the guilt out of them. “But I can’t cancel without being rude.” Being the queen of hospitality and good manners was a point of pride for Jacinta.
“We can’t disappointher, can we?” Ryker’s voice dripped with sarcasm.
I tried to sprinkle some sunshine over the gathering storm clouds. “Look on the bright side. How many guys can brag about having both a girlfriendanda boyfriend? I don’t mind sharing for one evening.”
The scrape of Ryker’s chair against the floor sliced through the tension like my vibrator turning on while going through airport security. His face had gone pale, and his jaw clenched tight enough to crack walnuts as he stood up. “I’m not doing this,” he muttered, storming toward his bedroom with all the fury of a cartoon character having a tantrum.
The silence that followed was deafening. I pushed away from the table. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have teased him. Let me go talk to him.” I didn’t wait for a response before darting after Ryker.
I knocked on Ryker’s door before entering, finding him pacing a path between his bed and the dresser. A very short, angry path. His hands balled into fists at his sides. The stubborn set of his jaw suggested he was about three seconds away from blowing a gasket.
I shouldn’t have found his clenched jawline so attractive, but apparently, “man about to commit a murder” had just skyrocketed to the top of my new favorite spank bank material. My therapist would have a field day with that one. But who could blame me? I wanted to see what happened when Mount Saint Ryker finally blew his top. You know, for science.
“Ugh, I can’t believe her!” Ryker exploded the second I closed the door. “Sheknowswe’re dating for real now, and she still invited Maylin over? What kind of twisted logic is that? Does she think this is a sitcom?”
I settled onto his bed, crossing my legs as I watched him pace. “Let it out, snookums.”
“And how she dropped that bombshell at breakfast? Like it was no big deal? ‘Oh, by the way, I still invited the girl I wanted to set you up with over for dinner. I hope that’s cool!’ Who does that?” He raked his fingers through his hair, turning it into a spiky disaster. “I’m so tired of her meddling matchmaking. I thought we were done with this shit.”
His voice cracked on the last word, and I tilted my head, studying him more carefully. There was something in his tone that suggested his reaction was about more than just dinner with Maylin.
“And now we have to sit through an entire meal pretending everything’s fine while she plays matchmaker right in front ofyou because she can’t help herself, and—” Ryker cut himself off with a groan.
I kept my voice gentle, talking to him as I would to a spooked animal. “What’s really bothering you about this?”
He refused to meet my gaze as he resumed his pacing with the fervor of a caffeinated squirrel chasing shiny objects.
I stood up and caught his hands in mine, halting him in his tracks. His skin was clammy as tiny tremors ran through him. “Come here,” I murmured, guiding him to sit beside me on the bed.
He resisted at first but finally relented with a dramatic huff.
“Look, if you’re worried about Maylin, don’t be,” I said, keeping a firm grip on him. “After last night, I know how you feel about me. One awkward dinner won’t change anything, especially since I’m confident you have zero interest in her.”
He stared down at our entwined hands but didn’t respond.
“Hey, we could have fun with this,” I suggested, bumping his shoulder with mine. “Think about it. We can flaunt how disgustingly in love we are. Make her jealous of what she can’t have. I’ll even feed you bites of dessert for the theatrics.”
When he still didn’t crack a smile, I tried a new angle. “I know you’re upset, but look at this as helping your mom save face.”
“Right, because I want to help her after being so humiliated this morning,” he said in a sarcastic tone.
“But think of the social ramifications!” I gasped dramatically, trying to coax a laugh out of him. “Your mom’s hairdresser’sneighbor’s daughter’s mother’s book club friend would be scandalized!”
His lips twitched ever so slightly.
“Your mom’s hairdresser’s neighbor’s daughter’s mother’s coworker’s sister’s yoga instructor would never recover from the shame!”
A begrudging laugh finally escaped him. “You’re absurd.”
“Your mom’s hairdresser’s neighbor’s daughter’s mother’s coworker’s sister’s yoga instructor’s dog groomer’s second cousin twice removed would?—”
“Stop!” He shoved my shoulder with a laugh. “I get it.”
I caught his hand again, my tone turning serious. “Your mom has been our biggest cheerleader, even when she knew we were pretending at first. I understand you’re fed up with her matchmaking antics. But all she’s ever wanted was for you to be happy. And this will be the last time you have to go through a bad date. Plus, you’ll get another hilarious story to regale our friends with.”
Ryker sighed, his shoulders slumping. “I know. She means well, even if her methods are…” He waved his free hand to fill in the words he couldn’t find.
