Uhhh.
He was standing in the doorway. Tall. Tanned. Muscular. And wet.
Very, very wet.
His dark hair hung over his forehead, dripping water onto his shoulders where the droplets trailed over his chest. I saw one even trickle right over his abs and into the fluffy white towel he had secured at his waist.
“Red? You listening?”
I jerked my attention from his waist back up to his face. His lips were twisted in a knowing smile, and he wiped his face with another towel.
“I’m listening,” I said. “You asked how we’re going to convince my family this weekend isn’t a ruse.”
“Oh, good. You retained the information. I thought it might have gotten lost somewhere between my shoulders and my cock.”
I glared at him. “I’m regretting this already.”
“Don’t. I’ll remind you later why this is a very good idea.” He winked. “Well? Do you have any ideas?”
“Yes, but, honestly? Please put on some pants. If the person who brings our dinner is a woman, you’ll have her fainting in the hall.”
He stared at me for a second, then burst into laughter and turned back to the room. He emerged again two minutes later, this time wearing light gray sweatpants.
“All right,” he said, sitting with me on the sofa. “What’s the plan?”
“For you to wear more clothes so I stop getting distracted,” I muttered, ignoring his quiet snort. “I think we need to agree on the most basic things: where we met, when we met, and how serious the stage of our relationship is.”
Adam nodded and scratched his jaw. “Well, I vote we stick to the truth where possible. We met in a bar, so let’s actually use that.”
“I agree. But when?”
“Let’s say a few months ago. That’s vague enough to make our relationship serious enough that you’d bring me to a wedding, but not necessarily needed to bring me up in conversation with your family.”
“You’re good at this. Have you done it before?”
“No. Believe it or not, I’m not in the habit of accompanying random, hot women to family weddings.”
I blushed at him referring to me as “hot.” Damn it. He was charming. “Okay, so, we met in a bar a few months ago and just recently stepped toward being more serious. How does that sound?”
He nodded. “I think that’s good. We should be able to deflect any others. The key is to not be split up, and if we are, find each other to fill any gaps. Agreed?”
I took a mouthful of water and returned his nod. “Agreed. Failing that, we pay someone to cause a distraction so we can run away.”
His grin made his eyes sparkle. “I saw those heels in the bedroom. Do you think you’ll be able to run in them?”
Shit. “Absolutely fucking not.”
“Don’t worry, Red. I got you. I’ll throw you over my shoulder and we’ll run into the sunset.”
He looked so damn serious I couldn’t help but laugh. Of course, that made him break the serious persona he had on, and he laughed, too. “No, but seriously, if you can’t run, I’ll handle it.”
“You have my full confidence,” I managed to eke out between giggles.
He got up at the sound of two knocks and a call of, “Room service!” He pulled open the door and shot the poor young woman on the other side of it a dazzling grin. “Thanks. I can take this in. Don’t worry about it. Do you have the check?”
Wordlessly, she handed him a slim leather wallet and a pen. Adam opened it and scribbled on the bottom with a flourish.
“There you go. Thanks.” He smiled once again, pulled the tray inside, and shut the door on the poor thing.
“Well, that was smooth,” I said. “And they were supposed to charge it to my card. It’s on file.”
Adam shrugged. “I set up my card on my way up. They didn’t question it.”
“What? You’re here doing me a favor. I can at least buy you room service.”
“Hey, I get something out of it, too. Fake boyfriend, real sex. Remember?”
I did remember.
“And if there’s real sex, you need sustenance, and I’m happy to pay for it. So…” He pushed the tray right in front of me. “Eat up, Red. You’ll need it to get through the party…And for what I have planned for you later.”
“What—what you have planned?”
He grinned and picked up his burger.
Oh, man.
I should have ordered a shot of vodka with this Pepsi.
***
“Are you ready to do this?”
I looked at Adam. He was dressed in a white shirt, sleeves rolled to his elbows. His black pants were perfectly tailored to fit him like a glove, and even his black shoes were so shiny that, if I got close enough, I’d probably be able to see my reflection in them.
Aside from the obvious? No. No, I wasn’t ready. I regretted telling Rosie I’d be there at six. Nobody else would be there to distract my family from the fact I was bringing a super hot guy as my date.
Hell, I needed distracting from that. I’d already seen his ass in those pants.
Never mind two people meeting eyes across a crowded room—I’d be searching out his ass to find him.
I just wanted to…you know. Reach out and pinch it. Like a crab. Pinch, pinch, pinch.
“Red. Pay attention.” Adam clapped his hands sharply.
“Oh my God, if you want me to focus, get ugly or something!” I snapped, smoothing out my tight-fitting dress.
He laughed. “Right. This from the woman who has my cock twitching right now.”
“It’s not the only thing that’s twitching.” I moved uncomfortably. “I’m not a fancy-dress kind of person. I prefer t-shirts that make my mom feel awkward.”
“Is that why there’s a t-shirt in the closet that says, ‘I’m sorry, I’ll try to stop swearing,’ followed by a claim it’s a lie and someone can fuck off?”
I nodded solemnly. “I was going to wear it to breakfast tomorrow, then change into the one that says, ‘I’m allergic to stupidity, I break out in sarcasm.’”
“What is that? A warning to anyone who talks to you?”
“All my t-shirts are. Including the one that claims I’m winging it, and the other that says, ‘Not today, Satan.’”
“Is that one for your mom?”
“No, but it’s about to be.” I smiled. “Thanks. That’ll really piss her off.”
He snorted and walked over to me. “You’re welcome. Shall we try this conversation again? Are you ready?”
“Uh, no.”
“I figured. You look like you’re about to walk to your death.”
“I might as well be. If my mom figures out that we’re faking this, I’ll never hear the end of it. She’ll mention it at my future birthdays, my wedding, my funeral.”
“She won’t figure it out.” Adam ran his hands up my arms. “I promise. We’ll pretend the fuck out of this relationship.”
I peered up at him. “This would be so much easier if we knew anything about the other person beyond how good they are in bed.”
“It was your crazy idea, Red. Now you have to deal with it.”
“I didn’t expect you to agree to attend a stranger’s sister’s wedding.”
“Neither did I.” He chuckled. “Come on. Four days. How hard could it be?”
“You are not prepared for my family, Adam.”
His chuckle quieted, and he twisted his lips. “Maybe not, but by the sounds of it, you’re not either, and you know them.”
“Get ready for the crazy.”
“I’m ready. But, first…” He dipped his head, bringing his face close to mine.
I took a short, sharp breath, my eyes fluttering closed right as his lips touched mine.
It was better than I remembered.
The kiss was firm, but his lips were soft. Warm and slow, he kissed me thoroughly, sliding one hand into my loose curls and cupping the back of my head.
My heart thundered against my ribs.
“There,” Adam murmured, lips barely a breath from mine. “Now we can go.”
I nodded. “We can go.”
He pulled away and darted his gaze over my mouth. “No lipstick smudges. You’re all good.”
“Thank God for that,” I muttered under my breath, following him toward the door.