Page 32 of Night and Day
Mia chuckled at the pun. “I thought you were looking for true love?”
Deke raised an eyebrow. “I am! He’s not. Casanova has a girl in every harbour.” With the bird poised on his shoulder, he marched out of the room, shooting a hurt look at Izzy on the way.
Mia couldn’t hide her amusement. “So, you don’t like birds?”
Izzy’s face softened. “It’s a clever bird and all, but Deke’s not great at cleaning after it. He put on a show for your benefit, but most of the time, the shit stays on the floor until someone steps on it.” He jerked a thumb at himself.
“Yeah, that’s not great.” Mia winced.
“Should we go shopping then?” He asked. “We can get you some clothes for the barbecue, and for the next few days.”
Mia bit her lip, feeling awkward. “I feel really weird spending your money.”
Izzy cast her a frustrated look. “What do you suggest, then?” He gathered their dishes into the sink and opened the tap.
Mia shot to her feet. “I’ll do that!” She leapt to the sink and tried to shove him out of the way. “You’re making me feel like... I don’t know, but it’s not good. I need to do something. Otherwise I’ll never be able to pay you back.”
Izzy didn’t move an inch, but turned to give her a wary look. “Write it in your notebook if it makes you feel better, but you’re in my house and I’m going to treat you like a guest.”
“Guests do dishes! If you stay overnight, you help out! Or is it just in Finland?” Mia let out an exasperated sigh. “Why are you being weird?”
Izzy grunted and stepped away from the sink, letting Mia in. She looked around, searching for dishwashing liquid and a brush. There was nothing. “Okay, where do you keep... everything?”
Izzy flashed her an infuriating grin, opening the cupboard under the sink.
Mia grabbed the dishwashing liquid and searched the cupboard in confusion. “There’s no brush.”
“We use this.” Izzy handed her a sponge.
Mia shrugged off her confusion and filled the sink. She’d wash the dishes with her palm if she had to.
“You know,” Izzy said. “If you think about this whole thing from the fake relationship perspective, it’s not that weird.”
“What do you mean?”
He leaned on the counter and watched her every movement, making her nervous. “I mean, if we want to sell this fake relationship, we should live it...” He cleared his throat, finally looking away. “I don’t mean physically, but things like me buying you what you need. If you were my girlfriend, and you’d just lost everything, you’d be okay with me buying you things, right? You contacted your boyfriend in Finland and asked for help. How would this be any different?”
Mia kept her eyes on the soapy plates, trying not to let them slip off her shaky hands. “Are you saying you want to pretend we’re dating even when there’s no one around?” Her voice felt thick and syrupy in her throat and she tried to cover it up with laugh.
Izzy took a tea towel and dried the dishes Mia had washed. “I’m saying it would make lying easier if we didn’t have to lie about everything. We wouldn’t have to worry about every little detail, if it’s mostly true.”
Mia felt hot all over. “How about we just sleep together?” she blurted. “Then we wouldn’t have to lie at all if it’s so hard for you.” Her laugh fizzled out. She shouldn’t have used the word ‘hard’, or let her gaze dip down to his crotch. Too late. She could barely tear her eyes off the bulge in his jeans. She heard his sharp intake of breath and there was an honest-to-god twitch behind the zipper.
Izzy’s voice was a gravelly whisper that resonated through her whole body. “Not saying I wouldn’t enjoy that, but obviously, it’s not an option.”
She swallowed against the thickness in her throat and forced a smile. “Obviously. It was a stupid joke.”
He didn’t return her smile. “But seriously, your boyfriend’s offering you something... you should talk to him.”
Mia let out a wobbly sigh, staring back at the man her body clearly preferred. “I will.” How, she had no idea. She couldn’t even contact bloody Mikko. There were no moves left to make, other than keep her mitts off this bearded guy.
The admission of their mutual attraction hung in the air, sending a constant pulse to her core. How would she survive this?
“Let’s go shopping then, faux boyfriend?” She said brusquely, setting the last cup down. “I’ll get changed into yesterday’s clothes. They should be fine for one more trip.” Her heart thumping in her ears, she rushed down the stairs into the basement.
