I clench my jaw, anger rising from the pits of my stomach. It doesn’t matter though. I accepted the bet and I lost.
I get up from my seat, feeling absolutely defeated, ignoring all the eyes on me. “I’ll transfer the funds to your account in the morning,” I say, keeping my tone even, even though I’m fucking pissed with myself. I don’t know what the hell I was thinking.
It fucking sucks losing that much money, but it’s not going to break me, though it’s sure going to hurt.
“I’m done for the night. That’s gonna put me on tilt if I keep playing,” I tell them, turning to leave.
“Wait,” Gavin says, standing up.
I turn, arching an eyebrow. “Yeah?”
Gavin glances around at the other men. “Are we done for the night? Let me talk to Oliver alone.”
Without saying a word, Kevin, Jason, and Joe get up, gather their things, and leave the room, each one casting sympathetic looks my way as they file out.
“What’s this all about?” I ask. “It’s a lot of money, but you know it’s not going to break me.”
Gavin stares at me for several moments before asking, “What if you could keep your money?”
I frown. “What do you mean? I got overconfident and lost fair and square.”
Gavin goes silent, studying my face. Finally, he speaks up. “I have a proposition for you.”
“What—”
“You do a favor for me and we’ll call it even.”
I want to tell Gavin to go fuck himself. I’m a man, and I pay my debts. But a part of me is intrigued now, and I’m dying to see what Gavin has up his sleeve. “What kind of favor?”
Gavin steeples his fingers together, staring at me, appraising me.
“Well?” I ask, the anticipation killing me. “What is it?’
His next words shoot across the table like a speeding bullet. “I need you to pretend to be a friend’s fiancé for a week.”
I let out an incredulous laugh. I was totally not expecting something like that. “What?”
Gavin proceeds to tell me all about his friend, who’s the godmother of his child and best friend of his wife, and how she’s gotten herself into a bind because of a lie.
“Absolutely not,” I say firmly when he’s done, shaking my head. I’m not gonna lie, his offer is tempting. But there’s no way I can accept it. I have too much lined up. Business meetings, lunch dates . . . and there were those repairs to my mom’s attic I’d promised her I’d fix myself instead of paying some stranger to do it. “I’m not disrupting my life and plans to be some chick’s cuckold for a week.”
Gavin leans forward in his seat. “Just think of it this way . . . you get to spend a week with a chick for over half a million dollars.”
“My half a million dollars,” I say dryly.
“Was your half million,” Gavin corrects. “And you can keep it if you just do this one little thing.”
I stare at him long and hard. His words are tempting enough, but it suddenly dawns on me how invested he is in this.
“You set this whole thing up,” I accuse. “You knew I was the only single guy in our circle. You’ve been waiting all night to try to get me in this position.”
Gavin manages to look guilty but doesn’t say anything.
I begin to get up from my seat. “I’m done—”
Gavin reaches into his pocket and tosses a small photograph across the table. As soon as I lay eyes on it, my mouth goes dry. The young woman in the photo is drop-dead gorgeous, with beautiful golden brown hair, gorgeous green eyes that sparkles with mischievousness, and an impish smile to match.
“Yeah, so what? I was getting shit for cards and had to make a move. I didn’t expect to flop those sevens—that was a miracle. Anyway, it’s one week,” Gavin nearly purrs, watching my intense interest in the photo. “And you have your money.”
His words hardly register. I can’t seem to bring myself to take my gaze off the picture. The playfulness in her eyes seems to call to me.
When I finally look away from it, I have only one question on my mind.
“What did you say her name was?”
Mindy
“You owe me,” Brianna says as she hangs a right turn. “Like . . . give me your firstborn owe me.”
I laugh. I can’t help it. We’re driving to her ranch, and it’s an amazing day. The sunroof is down on her convertible, and for the first time in months, I feel like I’m getting back to normal. With the wind rustling our hair, I feel like a woman in my mid-twenties who has a million options in life. Not an overworked coffee shop manager stuck in day-to-day drudgery.
I was a little surprised when Bri came by to pick me up, telling me we’re meeting the new mystery guy. It’s so not her style. She’s always been the conscientious one of us. And despite all my needling, Brianna’s been mum about how he looks. It’s intriguing.
“How on earth did you find someone so fast?” I ask as we leave town and head out toward the ranch. Honestly, I didn’t and still don’t expect much. After all, who the hell would be willing to do this? There’s likely not a man who could live up to all the hype that I’ve made “Harold” out to be.
“I didn’t,” Bri says with a twinkle in her eye. “Gavin did.”
I’m a little surprised. I mean, Gavin’s a friend and all, but damn, that’s the sort of stuff you don’t even expect from your sister. Actually, thinking of Roxy, she would hook me up with a guy . . . and I’d regret it.
As long as he can remember what I tell him, it’ll be fine, I try to tell myself.
“Do I even wanna know how Gavin got Mr. Mystery Man to agree?” I ask, slightly curious. I remind myself to never underestimate Gavin Adams.
Bri smiles. “I’m not even sure myself. All he said was the guy owed him a favor. I didn’t ask any questions.”
“What do you know about him?” I ask, unable to contain my curiosity.
“I really don’t know anything, Mindy. I’m as in the dark as you are. I jumped on it because, well, you got anyone else lined up?”
I stick my tongue out at her. “Bitch, you don’t even know if he’s hot?!” I can’t help myself. I feel like a little school girl and it’s so unlike me.
Brianna shakes her head. “I have no idea. But he made it seem like your problem was solved. Maybe it’s an old football buddy . . . you could be shacking up with a stud for a week.”
“Great, just what I need. A dumb jock who thinks he’s—sorry, I know Gavin’s not like that.”
Ugh. I feel like I’m going on a blind date and I’m getting all antsy. I hate this.
Brianna waves me off. “I trust Gavin to not do you wrong. Just relax. We’re almost there.”
I’m not so trusting. We’re always joking with each other, but I hold my tongue. I mean, I did have a role in hooking him and Brianna up. I hope he remembers that.
We get to the ranch, and when I step out of the car, Gavin greets us outside, a smile on his face. Bri scoops up Rafe from next to him, tickling him and making her son giggle while Gavin and I exchange hugs. “I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for me,” I tell him. “Miracle worker.”
Gavin shrugs, smiling a secret smile that tells me he’s got something up his non-existent sleeves. He’s at home, and he’s got no problem showing off the body that made him into a football star. If anything, he’s even more ripped, if possible. “It’s no big deal.”
“So how do you know him?” I say suspiciously, getting right to the point. “Bri’s keeping me in the dark.”
“We’re good friends.”
I gawk at Gavin, alarm bells going off. Friends, sure. But this . . . “Good friends? You just asked him to be some stranger’s fake fiancé and he said yes?”
Gavin smirks, that maddening twist of the lips that I know makes Bri both weak in the knees and ready to choke him. Right now, I’m ready to choke him. “We have an arrangement. That's all that really matters.”
I scowl. He’s really getting a kick out of this. “Well, where is he?”