“Is there really a difference?”
Good point, but she opened her eyes to glare at him anyway. His gray eyes weren’t stormy today, they were a shiny silver. And damn, he had long dark lashes that wouldn’t require mascara. “Unfair,” she whispered.
“That I lied?”
“That you have ridiculously long eyelashes.”
His lips quirked and her gaze went rogue, dropping to his mouth, which slowly curved as she watched.
“Jane?”
“Hmmm?”
“We going to finish this climb?”
“Yes. And I’m going to beat you to the top.” She had no idea why she said that. Oh, wait, yes she did. She couldn’t handle losing.
Apparently amused by her competitive spirit, he laughed, but she went back to climbing. And a few sweaty minutes later, she had to admit, it actually was a huge rush, even when she faltered or took a moment to find the right hold. And when she scrambled to the top and rang the bell, she found herself sweating and smiling from what felt like Mount Everest. A twelve-foot-high Mount Everest. “I did it.”
Levi grinned at her. “You did.”
She nodded and then sat right there at the top because her knees were knocking. He handed her a bottle of water and sat with her. “I’m impressed,” he said. “Turns out, you’re a badass in an emergency, and a badass in a competition.” He smiled. “I like it. I like you, Jane.”
She snorted the water up her nose and then choked.
He rubbed her back until she could breathe. “So you aren’t comfortable with compliments. Noted.”
Actually, it was the “I like you,” which she hadn’t expected. Or her own reaction. She played with the condensation on the water bottle. “So . . . about that pretend girlfriend thing. I’ve got questions. And stipulations.”
“Hit me.”
“You’ve got a close-knit family.”
“If by close-knit you mean half the time we want to kill each other, then yes.”
She met his gaze then. “Look, I assume from how important it was to you that you call them when you thought we were going to die, that they love you very much. I just don’t want to be the one to screw that up for you.”
He looked baffled. “How could you possibly screw it up?”
“Trust me. Families don’t like me.” Starting with her own . . .
“Jane, there’s no way they aren’t going to immediately fall in love with you.”
She felt her face heat up and got annoyed at herself. “I’m . . .” She searched for a way to make him understand. “I’ve got a weird sense of humor. I laugh at things no one else thinks is funny. I’m sarcastic. I say what I think, and it’s not always . . . nice.”
“There you go,” he said. “You’ll fit right in.”
She stared at him. Why wasn’t he scared off?
“What else?” he asked.
She took a deep breath. “What would this thing entail exactly? I mean, nothing . . . physical, right? Pretend or otherwise?”
When he spoke, his voice was serious now. “I wouldn’t want pretend physical anything from anyone. Especially you, Jane.”
She frowned. “Because . . .”
That got her a small smile. “I think I’ll let you wrestle with that one.”
She drew a deep breath. Oh boy . . .
“You mentioned stipulations,” he said, sounding amused.
She nodded and tried to remember what they were. “You have to promise me that this thing stays pretend no matter what, that you won’t fall for me.”
He smiled.
She pointed at him. “Hey! It could happen!”
His smile faded. “I have no doubt.”
Her heart did a somersault. “Promise me,” she whispered.
He was quiet a moment. “I get it,” he finally said. “Us falling for each other wouldn’t be smart. We’re both leaving Sunrise Cove sooner rather than later, and we lead very different lives that would make it nearly impossible to maintain a relationship.”
Well, if he was going to be all grown up about it . . . And yet, she appreciated that. His honesty. She appreciated it a lot, and it made her feel a whole lot better about things.
“My turn for a question,” he said. “You mentioned not really having a family. What happened to yours?”
Moment of truth. She looked away, eyed the high warehouse ceiling and the lighting, the people milling in the store—
“Jane?”
“I’m not in contact with them.”
Gently he turned her face back to his. “None of them?”
“Not in a long time, no.”
“Jane,” he said softly.
“Believe me, it was for the best.”
“What happened?”
She shrugged. “I got bounced around a lot as a child between anyone even halfway related to me. Kind of soured me on the idea of family.” She shrugged again and even smiled, though she hated to talk about her childhood.
Hated.
And then there was the way Levi was looking at her, like he felt sorry for her. The thought of anyone pitying her made her feel anxious again, and though she knew how much worse it could have been—that she’d had her basic needs taken care of, had never gone hungry or without clothes—thinking back on her life never failed to make her feel like a spare button, the ones that came attached to new sweaters but were easily removed and tossed aside. “My turn now,” she said. “Do fake girlfriends get the friends and family discount?”
He laughed, breaking the emotional tension, but his eyes remained serious. “Fake girlfriends get whatever they want. Why?”
“I was hoping to buy my roommate the jacket sitting at the checkout counter.”
He smiled. “Smart. Funny. Sexy. And a shrewd businesswoman. You got it. So . . . we’re doing my parents’ dinner party?”
“Yes.”
He nodded. “We should probably spend a little time getting to know each other before the dinner.”
She blinked. “Like a date?”
“Great idea,” he said. “Yes, a date.”
She stared at him.
He smiled.
She narrowed her eyes. “Did you just trick me into going out with you?”
“Or . . . did you just trick me into getting the discount?” he countered.
She had to laugh. “Smooth. We’re talking a pretend date, though, right?”
“Whatever you want, whenever you want. Just name the time and place.”
She hesitated, shockingly tempted. “I don’t know . . .”
“If it helps, you could consider it a fact-finding mission on your pretend boyfriend. We can get to know each other.”
“When I’m ready.”
“When you’re ready,” he agreed.
At just the thought of what she was agreeing to, meeting his family while playing a role that she’d never been any good at—doting girlfriend—she quivered with more nerves than she’d battled while climbing up this wall.
Levi’s mouth curved, like maybe he was reading her thoughts. “You trust me, Jane?”
“No.”
“Damn.” But he was grinning again, clearly, unabashedly not worried. “Then this isn’t going to be nearly as much fun.”