Chapter 6 Amanda

Chapter 6

Amanda

Taking a dip in the lake wasn’t what I expected this morning, but chasing Chili with Dane all the way out here made it an easy decision.

“Go dry off,” Dane says to Chili as he helps the dog to the shoreline.

Chili grins at him.

I stifle a laugh while I tread water. I’m not far out—just far enough that it’s too deep for me to stand up. “You should come back and swim,” I call to Dane after he’s made sure Chili’s settled in the shade again. “We can finish talking out here. It feels so good .”

Especially after yesterday’s heat.

How did I forget how much I love a dip in the lake?

Dane gets Chili leashed to a park bench, and then he strips off his wet T-shirt and his shorts, going down to black boxer briefs.

It’s not the chill of the lake making my nipples tighten.

That’s the effect of looking at my hometown best friend’s brother practically naked.

When I say I don’t date, it’s not that I’m opposed to the idea.

I just rarely find a man who’s interesting enough to take along with me while I sightsee and enjoy the city. Or who’s worth giving up the time I’d otherwise spend seeing shows and exploring museums and discovering new restaurants.

Especially when there’s always that lingering question in the back of my head: Will my family approve? What if they find something wrong with him?

Grow up hiding your best friend from your parents because of a generations-long feud, and you get paranoid about how your family will react to the people you want to bring into your life.

Yazmin says my preference for not dating is a defense mechanism.

She’s probably not wrong.

But here in Tinsel, Dane Silver is fascinating. I already know my family doesn’t like him and we’re pretending to be engaged anyway, so why not enjoy the fact that he’s legitimately sexy as hell?

Plus, he got me fruitcake.

You don’t want to know the number of people who’ve mocked me for liking it. Actually, you can probably guess.

It’s not a small number.

So people who feed it to me without mocking me get extra bonus points.

Dane wades out. His dark hair is standing up at all angles after the dog chase into the lake, and he runs his fingers through it, pushing it back one last time before he does a shallow dive and slips under the surface.

He appears beside me a few seconds later. “Little colder than my pool back home.”

“You have a pool?”

“Condo complex does.”

“You swim?”

“Most days.”

I can see it. He has that long, angular swimmer’s body, and he’s far more solid than I would’ve given him credit for in high school.

Actually, I wouldn’t have thought about him like this in high school.

But my brain and my libido are on overdrive this morning.

“You?” he says.

My face goes hot. “Hm?”

“Do you swim?”

Right.

Swimming.

He’s not asking about my libido.

“I’m more of a splasher-arounder,” I tell him.

He smiles, and damn .

I haven’t had enough coffee yet today, but that blue-eyed smile that brings out two matching dimples is waking me up more than the cool water in the lake.

Especially in various parts of me that I usually handle all on my own.

Am I having a reaction to this fake fiancé thing?

Or is this some kind of Tinsel woo-woo magic?

Or maybe just gratitude that he’s a nice guy? It’s so weird to me that Lorelei and Dane are both fabulous people, but my mom and Grandma insist on hating on the Silvers.

“Am I in danger of being splashed?” he asks.

Is he flirting with me? Or am I hearing things? “Only if you want to be.”

His smile deepens, making his eyes crinkle at the edges.

Wow.

He has long eyelashes.

Incredibly long eyelashes.

How did I not notice that yesterday? Or ever?

“How about you stay here and do your splashing-arounding while I go for a swim. Then we can go grab some breakfast and continue with all of those questions.”

“Deal. But I might head back to the house to finish my coffee. And I’ll take Chili if I do.”

He chuckles. “Good luck with that.”

“With Chili?”

“Yep.”

“He’s a good boy. He’ll come with me.”

“He just used a week’s worth of energy chasing a squirrel and then fairies in the lake. He’s gonna have to be carried inside.”

I suppress a shiver at the idea of a soaking-wet Dane in nothing but his underwear carrying a fluffy fifty-pound dog.

And then I shake my head.

This is fake.

Yes, we could be real friends, but sleeping with Lorelei’s brother while we’re pretending to be more than we are will make things complicated quickly.

And who’s to say he’s feeling the same thing?

He’s already told me he’s in this to make our families quit fighting both for himself and for Lorelei.

Not for me. At least, no more for me than for me being able to hang out with Lorelei openly when I’m home.

“I can carry your dog,” I tell him.

He studies me, smile still lingering. “I believe you.”

“But I’ll talk him into walking on his own before I’d have to.”

“You deal with difficult dogs a lot?”

There’s something about being home that puts me on edge whenever someone wants to talk about my job. It’s not normal . It’s not a job that’s needed in Tinsel because people walk their own dogs here, and dogs have yards to play in that are just one door opening away. But Dane seems genuinely curious, not judgmental or mocking, so I shake my head. “Not often. But occasionally. Usually when we cross paths with another dog that one of mine doesn’t like.”

His gaze dips to my lips— hello , belly on a roller coaster—and then shifts like he’s studying my shoulders.

Like he’s curious how strong I’ve gotten from walking dogs.

I suppress a shiver again, but not well enough.

“Cold?” he asks, lifting his gaze to meet my eyes again.

“I like it,” I reply. “It’ll be a good balance before the day gets really hot. Do you have a dog walker for Chili?”

He nods and starts to answer, but a voice interrupts us from shore.

A familiar, guilt-inducing voice.

“Yoo-hoo! Amanda! We need you at the bakery, sweetheart!”

Grandma Vicki.

She’s here.

At the edge of the lake in her bakery pants and a reindeer T-shirt.

“Is that—” Dane starts.

“My grandma,” I whisper.

He and I stare at each other for a moment.

“Time to get out?” he says at the same time I blurt, “We should kiss.”

We stare at each other again, but this time, his face is telegraphing about a million conflicting thoughts going through his head while I’m sure mine is telegraphing horror that I just said that out loud.

“I mean, she’d expect it,” I whisper. I’m not wrong. But I’m suddenly feeling awkward as hell.

“No, yeah, you’re right. Kissing is normal for an engaged couple.”

“So, yes to the kiss? We don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“We’ll kiss. Once. You go to shore and tell her I’m doing my morning swim and I’ll be in later.”

Oh my god.

He’s in his underwear.

He can’t get out now.

He’d flash my grandmother.

And I forgot that, and once again, he’s used that quick brain of his to save the day.

“Amanda?” Grandma calls again.

“Okay,” I say. “One kiss, then you go swim, I’ll get her to town. Do you want to get Chili, or do you want me to see if I can convince him to head back to the house?”

“I’ll get him.”

“Okay. Okay. So now we kiss.” I am never this awkward onstage.

It’s different when it’s real life.

“Amanda!” Grandma hollers.

“Just a minute!” I call back.

When I look back at Dane, he’s smiling again. “Grandparents, man.”

And just like that, all my tension leaves me, and it’s the most natural thing in the world to propel myself closer to him and press a quick kiss to his lips.

But he wraps an arm around me and tugs me closer, clearly tall enough to be anchored on the lake bed, and the next thing I know, I’m having a real kiss.

One that has our bodies flush and him gripping me under one leg and parted lips and mingled breath and chilly noses and a flush breaking out over my entire body.

I don’t live for physical touch. For kisses. For sex.

Other people are not the adventure that I crave.

Yazmin is right. I have too many hang-ups around relationships, all rooted in having to grow up hiding my best friend.

But I don’t want to break this kiss.

It feels safe .

And at the same time, it’s an absolute thrill.

For one fleeting moment, I let myself pretend that it’s real.

That Dane wants to kiss me. That it’s not just for show.

That I can trust him.

“Amanda!” Grandma hollers again, breaking into the moment and making me break the kiss.

“Sorry,” I gasp.

One of his eyebrows twitches. His smile is gone. “For what?”

“For—I don’t know.” For my grandma? For me liking the kiss? For me getting us into this situation? For me forgetting why we’re doing it?

He quirks a half grin. “Then don’t be sorry. I need to check in with work, and then I’ll join you in town. Don’t make up too much about me without texting me what I’m supposed to know, okay?”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Amanda?”

“Yeah?”

“We have to plan this wedding, or the town will plan it for us.”

“Right. Crap. Crap. Okay. Okay.” I’m babbling, and I need to stop. “You’ll come to the bakery, and then we’ll say we have to go get lunch to plan the wedding. That’s good. Really good. Cut them out and make them want to be involved. Or maybe they’ll come with us. Or maybe—you go swim. You go swim, and then you text me how we’re going to solve this, okay?”

He nods, his grin growing. “I’ll text you.”

And then he’s gone, pushing off for a swim.

I linger in the lake for just a moment, watching the powerful way his body cuts through the water, his long arms making it look easy in a way that I very much know it’s not.

I have a failed semester of swim team in high school to prove it.

After watching Dane for long enough to sell the ruse—probably longer than necessary, but I’m enjoying the view—I turn and head back toward shore.

It’s time for me to face the music.