Page 764 of One More Kiss

Riley

The fundraiser is tomorrow,and I’m still dateless. Everyone in my very thin black book is busy or married. Even the one guy I met at a bar and never spoke to again. He had more to say than my ex-boyfriend of three years.

The only person I can ask now is Ross. Of course, he’ll be there for me, but it’s the convincing I’m worried about. Ross’s personality is airy, light, and snarky. He doesn’t do broody well, so he’s not the best option for making Nicholas jealous, but he’s the only one I have.

Picking up the phone, I press his profile picture in my favorites. It’s a picture of us in the tenth grade. We both tried to dye our hair red, and it turned orange. It was one of the best nights we ever had together, even if we ended up looking like flaming Cheeto heads.

“Yes, my darling. How may I be of service today?” he asks, his chirpy voice makes me smile.

“Be my date for the fundraiser,” I blurt out. Better to rip the bandaid off than to beat around the bush, I suppose.

“Why does it sound like you mean that in a different way than you normally would? We’ve gone to these things together before, but something tells me this is different. ”

“That’s because it is.” I try not to sound as dreadful as I feel. “This time, I need you to act like you’re my boyfriend. Like we’re in love, and plan on having two point five kids and building Ikea furniture together for the rest of our lives.”

“Are you shitting me right now? Does this have anything to do with Sexy Elevator Boss? You want me to pretend I love lady parts, for him?” I don’t even get the chance to respond before his screech fills the line, causing me to hold the phone away from my ear or risk a ruptured eardrum. I can’t help but chuckle when he says lady parts. He’ll say cock, dick, and hammer all day, but vagina makes him cringe. Such a boy.

“I do, and you must. It’s in the best friend code. Also, you love me, even if you don’t love my vagina.”

“Eww. Stop saying gross things. I do love you, like my sister or ugly step-cousin. But just to be clear, we don’t have to like make out or anything, right? I’m strictly dick.”

“Ross! You’re impossible. No. All we have to do is pretend that we’re dating. Maybe a little hand holding, or touching. We can leave after I’ve made the rounds. All that matters is that I don’t show up alone.” I cringe as I speak my next sentence. “I kind of told everyone I had a boyfriend.”

“This definitely has to do with Big Dick Elevator Guy. Is he pursuing you? You have so much shit to tell me.”

“If you agree, I’ll divulge all the information, but if not, then I guess you’ll never know.”

I bite on my thumbnail, a nervous habit I picked up when I was little. I don’t do well with anticipation.

“Why not? Not like I’m doing anything interesting, anyway. Besides, I’m the best actor you know. I can play the shit out of being straight. I mean, I had to pretend for years. They won’t know I like penis at all. And if all else fails, we can tell them I’m bisexual and we’re in an open relationship.”

I roll my eyes. Before I can tell him no, he asks, “Hey, do you think Big Dick will want to do a threesome? I can wear a mask or something so I don’t see your bits.”

“Goodbye, Ross.”

“Bye, darling.” He chuckles.

I hang up the phone and exhale. Shit just got real, and now I have to make sure I put on the performance of my life, because if Nicholas finds out this is all a lie, I’m never going to be able to face him again.

Now that I settled my date, I move onto the next mission I need to accomplish. I’ll need a dress, and since funds are low because of the hospital bills, something from my closet will have to do. I meander to my bedroom and open the closet, which contains my entire life, including shoes and clothing. This crappy apartment didn’t come with ample storage. Pushing a couple boxes aside, I go through my clothes, stopping once I reach the very thin layer of dresses that I own.

Emerald green or purple? I pull both of them out and lay them on the bed. The purple is from prom, a night I’d rather forget, and the green is from my cousin’s wedding. Both looked great on me at the time, but that was over five years ago. I have changed little in weight or height, so they should both still fit.

Flipping open my laptop, I google ways to repurpose dresses. After a few YouTube videos, I get out a pair of scissors and the little emergency sewing kit my mom gave me when I left home for the first time. I told myself I would never need it, even though she swore up and down that I would. Looks like Mother knew best after all.

After two hours and a couple of bloody fingers, I have a dress that’s acceptable. I chose the green with its sweetheart neckline and full skirt. I took off the cap sleeves and made it strapless and tighter, giving myself a bigger bustline.

It’s the right amount of sexy, without being tacky, and the silhouette is perfect for this type of work function. I know Naomi’s dress is going to be way better and more revealing, but I’m proud I could pull this off. I smile as I place the dress back onto the hanger. Now I just have to survive the night.

* * *

I dragmyself into work the next day, not ready to face the morning meeting. Every part of my body feels drained, and I don’t want to face him again. Keeping secrets, trying to evade Nicholas, is doing something to my insides.

When I open up the door to the conference room, I send up a thank you to the universe that Mark and John are there. I don’t need to be alone with Nicholas again. God knows what might happen.

I take my seat and pull out the new files I sorted last night, the designs of the nap rooms. Mental Health doesn’t stop with the patients. The doctors and nurses need to be in top shape in order to provide the best care. And I figured everyone loves a thirty-minute nap, or at least I do.

I glance in his direction, trying my hardest not to, but when your mind and heart want different things, there is little control you have over it. He looks great in his blue suit, dark orange tie, and chestnut-colored shoes. I want to slap myself silly for being drawn to him.

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