His scowl deepened and he braced an arm on the doorway, blocking her entrance.
“Okay.” She sighed. “I can see I’m moving you along too fast on the path toward not being a dick. Lesson number one: invite me in.”
“Jenna’s not coming.”
Sophie blinked at that. “Why not? Is everything okay?”
“Oh, everything is fine. Just some apparent stomach bug,” he replied.
She chewed her lip. This was not ideal. Although Sophie was technically here to provide a buffer among the Wyatt siblings, what she really needed was a buffer between her and Gray. This would be all the more awkward with just herself, the two brothers, and no fellow female influence.
“I hope she’s okay,” Sophie said. “You and Jack must be bummed to not see her on her last night in town.”
“Oh, I’m not so sure Jack won’t be seeing her,” Gray muttered, still not inviting her in.
Sophie had gotten pretty good at interpreting this man’s moods and mumbles, but she was now officially confused.
“What’s going on?” she asked pointedly, folding her arms self-consciously across her chest.
“We’ve been set up,” he said, not meeting her eyes. “Jack thought dinner tonight was canceled, and I don’t think Jenna ever had any intention of showing up.”
Suddenly everything became clear in Sophie’s mind, and she couldn’t help but laugh at how well Jenna had played her cards. The setup was even more blatant than Sophie had expected.
“Why are you giggling?” He glanced at her sharply, as though surprised to see her still there.
“Just admiring your sister’s tactics. Well, the least you can do is let me in. I’m guessing you cooked for four, right? You may as well feed me.”
“I’m not so sure this is a good idea,” he said.
“Oh, it’s a horrible idea. This will be a complete disaster,” she agreed, slipping under his arm and scooting into his apartment. “But it’ll build your character.”
“Fine, but don’t expect me to entertain you. You eat, then you leave. I have things to do.”
She laid a hand on his arm. As expected, he stiffened, but she kept her hand there anyway. She couldn’t help it. She was by nature a warm, affectionate person, and she was tired of always trying to hide that around him. Besides, if anyone needed a little dose of harmless human contact, it was this man of stone.
“I’ll leave if you want,” she said, meaning it. “But I’ll be stuck going home to a dinner of cereal, and whatever you have cooking in here smells amazing.”
He stared at the spot above her head before nodding shortly. “Sorry about this. I never meant for you to get caught up in the disaster that is my family dynamics.”
“Relax, Gray. I’m glad to be here. Besides, it might be good for you. I know too well that one-on-one interactions are not your forte. Practice can’t hurt.”
Sophie froze, realizing how that had sounded. She had practically proposed a date. With her boss. Who didn’t like her.
She ordered her impulsive brain to back the heck out of this impending disaster. But then Gray frowned. And for some reason, his reluctance solidified her resolve. She had promised to help him with his innate lack of social skills. Who said that had to be exclusive to the office?
And besides, she was starving.
“You’re my assistant,” he said. “This just seems…wrong.”
“Don’t be such a stiff. It’s just one night, and nobody has to know. On Monday you can go back to grumbling orders to Ms. Dalton. And if you’re on good behavior tonight, I may even start calling you Mr. Wyatt in the office as a little reward.”
“Indefinitely?”
“Let’s say for one day. For Monday, I promise to be perfectly respectful and boring. If you can go the entire night maintaining the facade that you’re interested in me for more than my filing skills, then I’ll even call you sir. Deal?”
His eyes lit at the idea of a challenge. “You’re meaning to tell me that you’ll actually be docile and unobtrusive for an entire day if I pretend you’re my girlfriend?”
Sophie’s heart seemed to skip for a split second at the word “girlfriend.” That hadn’t been what she’d meant by this little experiment.
And yet she still wasn’t turning and running. She pasted a smile on her face as though she played these kinds of charades every day.
“Eh, let’s say almost-girlfriend,” Sophie said with a nervous smile. “Let’s pretend it’s the third date, and that we’re moving in the direction of a committed relationship.”
There. That seemed harmless enough.
He ran a hand over his short dark hair. “This is insane. I don’t know why the hell I agreed to this dinner in the first place, and now I’m stuck with you.”
“That’s lovely. I have to say, you’re a pretty awful boyfriend so far.”