“Yes! But you didn’t need to just whip it out like that.”
“I didn’t whip it out. I took my towel off. My cock is kind of attached to my body in case you hadn’t noticed.”
“Oh, I noticed.”
“I know you did.” God, I want to wipe that smug smile off his face. “And no, I don’t have weird sex dreams about you. Just normal ones.”
My jaw drops. “You, sir,” I point a finger at him, “need to stop that.”
He throws his head back and laughs uproariously.
“Why are you laughing?” I demand, hands on my hips.
“I can’t exactly control my dreams, Van.”
I frown. He’s right, of course, but I still can’t tell if he’s fucking with me or not. I decide to drop the conversation.
“What are we watching?”
“No, idea.” He picks up the jeans from the chair and puts them away. “You can decide. Remote’s there.” He points beside his bed.
I reluctantly pick it up and turn the TV on as he putters around his room, straightening things that are already neat and tidy. He hasn’t bothered to put a shirt on, and dammit if the sight of all that rippling muscle isn’t distracting as fuck.
Clearing my throat, I force myself to focus on the task at hand. After logging into my Prime Video, I go to the section with everything I’ve bought and bring up season one of Beverly Hills, 90210.
“Any boyfriend of mine, fake or not, needs to be well-versed in my favorite show. Plus, you remind me of Luke Perry.”
Teddy arches a brow. “I remind you of a 90s heartthrob?”
“You know who Luke Perry is?” I counter.
He chuckles and my nipples tighten in response to the husky sound. My body refuses to catch up with my brain on how I can’t be attracted to him.
He rolls his eyes playfully. “I know I’m a beauty, but there are brains here too.” He taps the side of his head. “Yes, I know he is.” He proceeds to start fluffing the pillows. “Do you care if I order pizza?”
“No.” I stand awkwardly in the center of his room, hands in my back pockets. “Pizza is always good.”
“Cool.” He picks up his phone and his eyes scan my body. “You should change into something more comfortable. I’d suggest the nude, but I have a feeling you won’t go for it.”
“You’d be correct.” I purse my lips, totally giving him a mom-glare. “I wouldn’t mind changing,” I admit, picking up my bag. I clear my throat. “You can leave.”
A slow grin spreads over his face, sticky and sweet. “Are you sure you want me to leave, babe?”
I swallow past the lump in my throat.
No.
“Yes.”
He smirks as he heads for the door but pauses when he reaches me, the scent of his body wash—woodsy and masculine—clinging to his skin. “I’ll leave, but just know that your eyes gave me a very different answer than your mouth.” He wets his lips with his tongue. “I’d like to see you use your mouth for far more … pleasurable things than lies.”
The bastard doesn’t give me a chance to respond before he slips out the door, closing it soundly behind him.
I quickly flick the lock before he decides to barge back in and find me half-naked. Pulling out my favorite pair of sleep pants with little cherries on them, a jog bra—with boobs as big as mine I’m not about to free-boob it in the presence of Teddy and Jude—and a tank top. I change as quickly as possible and stuff my backpack under his desk.
Opening the door back up, I poke my head outside the bedroom. Jude is reclined on the couch, but it’s almost comical how small he makes the couch appear. It’s not big to begin with, but with his height and musculature it looks more like a chair.
Teddy leans against the counter in the kitchen, smiling when my gaze finally lands on him.
“Pizza is ordered. You want a drink?”
I tiptoe out of his room, my heart racing with nerves. It feels … intimate to be hanging out in his space like this. Sure, he’s been to my dorm, but I was doing homework. We weren’t going to watch a show together and spend the night.
“Um, whatcha got in there?” I bite my lip as he opens the fridge.
“Zombie Dust, some blue Gatorade, orange juice, water, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, uh…” He squats down, moving things around. “A random ass Juicy Juice no idea why the fuck that’s in there. Some Coke—the drinking kind, not the nose candy one.”
I try not to laugh; it only encourages him. “I’ll have the Coke.”
He grabs a can and passes it to me, taking a water for himself.
“Come on, babe,” he smirks when I bristle at the endearment, “let’s watch your show.” He places his hand low on my waist, fingers rubbing idly against the skin exposed between my bottoms and tank top.
The touch sends a shiver up my spine, but I have to not pull away.
I feel like this entire night is going to consist of me, constantly telling myself don’t be suspicious, since we need to Jude to believe this relationship. I feel bad for deceiving his friends, but Teddy seems to think it’s necessary.
Settling on his bed, I cross my legs and hit play on the first episode of season one. The bed dips with Teddy’s weight as he settles beside me. “Do you want a blanket?”
“N-No,” I stutter. There’s no way I could be cold, not with him so close and the heat of his body practically like a furnace. No, I won’t be needing a blanket—not unless it’s to smother the flames of my stupid desire.
“Why do you seem so nervous?” He grins at me, clearly delighted that he has some sort of effect on me. “If you want to jump my bones, all you have to do is ask? Or don’t ask, just jump me.”
I narrow my eyes on him. “I thought you were going to keep the sexual innuendos to yourself from now on.”
“I’ve tried and failed.” He fluffs the pillow behind him, getting comfier.
“Try again,” I bite out.
“I mean, I’ll do my best, but anyone that knows me would think it was suspicious if I wasn’t my usual vulgar self with you.”
I exhale heavily. He always has to have a freaking point and it’s annoying. “Just … try to keep them to a minimum.”
“Do they make you uncomfortable?” He sits up, suddenly serious. His easy smile vanishes.
I rub a hand over my face. “Not … not uncomfortable. Just…” I search for the right words. “I know what this is and what it isn’t, and when you make comments like that, it confuses me.” I relax a little, satisfied with my answer.
“Look.” He rubs his stubbled jaw. “I know this isn’t real, and you don’t actually want to have sex with me.” His green eyes flicker over my face like they’re searching for something. “But my attraction to you? That is real.”
I think I stop breathing. My heart might even stop beating.
My fake-boyfriend, one of the hottest guys on campus, is admitting to being attracted to me?
I know I’m not ugly, that’s not where my surprise comes from, but in the back of my mind I assumed Teddy chose me to play this role because he wasn’t attracted to me and there would be no chance of him fucking up things further. I’ve chocked a lot of his innuendos up to this point as just him being his usual flirty self—not that he was genuinely interested in me in that way.