Chapter 21

Evie

Iopen my eyes, confused. Where am I?

The open-concept living space is filling with morning light, highlighting the luxurious finishes and carefully curated decor.

Adam's place.

The night had been the most fun I've had in . . . forever.

Adam and I stayed up, exchanging tidbits from our lives from where we grew up to what we ate for breakfast.

Given my current location, it seems I fell asleep, never making it to the guest room. I must have fallen asleep before he could tell me about his past love life. Bummer.

I stretch, yawn, and get off the sofa, smiling at my odd attire. Adam's clothes.

I walk to the glass doors, sliding them open. In the growing daylight, what I couldn't see clearly last night is perfectly visible now.

The house is perched high on a ridge. Rays of sun filter through the glistening dew-laden trees, casting a warm glow over the valley below. Barefoot, I step outside, the concrete cold on my toes. The pool is surrounded by expertly designed landscaping of tall grasses and colorful columbine.

The air is crisp and clean, with a hint of pine and wildflowers carried on a gentle breeze. A stunning panorama of rugged peaks and rolling hills stretches out as far as the eye can see. It's the perfect morning and I feel blessed to be alive to witness it. Blessed to have made it to the half-century mark.

"Good morning," a gruff sounding voice comes from behind me.

I turn to see Adam, his hair adorably standing on end. My heart skips a beat and a smile creeps onto my lips. I can't deny the attraction I feel towards him, but I remind myself this is nothing more than a fun way to pay a debt to a man I nearly killed.

A hot-as-hell man.

I offer a friendly wave. "It's so beautiful here," I say.

He comes closer. "It's my favorite place on the planet."

I get it. In an alternate universe, I'd live here and never leave.

We stand side-by-side in silence, deeply present in a world coming alive.

"Coffee?" Adam asks, breaking the quietude.

"Definitely, but I should probably get cleaned up first."

"You look beautiful."

His eyes are shining at me and my face heats up.

Adam is a conundrum. He's bold but not in the way I'm used to. Not in the Big City dog-eat-dog way. More like he oozes a chilled-out confidence, laced with a touch of vulnerability. There's something about Adam that's undeniably charming.

All of which I find incredibly alluring. His mere presence beside me is an intoxicating elixir.

I clear my throat, trying to break the spell I seem to be under. "Sorry about sleeping the whole night on your sofa."

"No problem. You were exhausted. I didn't want to wake you."

A dog barks in the distance, giving me a chance to regroup.

Adam says, "You'll find all the toiletries you need in the hallway bathroom."

I excuse myself and head to the guestroom where I wash up, donning my freshly laundered clothes. I find Adam in the kitchen. The house smells of fresh ground coffee. "Hey," I say.

"Hey, back."

He hands me a steaming mug, gesturing to milk, sugar, and cinnamon sticks. "Help yourself."

I pop a cinnamon stick into my mug and sit across from Adam at the kitchen island.

Something occurs to me. "If we have to pretend to be in love for the entire weekend, we can't break character for even a second."

Adam nods. "That's the gist of it. My sister will be all over us if she suspects anything is amiss."

"So, how do we make this work? Do we have to hold hands and gaze into each other's eyes all weekend?"

Adam chuckles. "Nah. We just need to act like we're comfortable around each other. And maybe throw in a few touches and kisses here and there."

I look at him skeptically. "Kisses?"

Adam grins. "Oh, come on, Evie. It'll be fun."

I roll my eyes, trying to make light of the whole crazy scenario, but deep down, I can't deny the flutter of excitement in my stomach.

"Okay, I'll try,"

"Thanks, I'll do my best to not make it torture for you."

If he's offended, he's hiding it well.

"What's our backstory?" I ask, straightening up in my seat. "How did we meet?"

Adam takes a sip of his coffee before answering. "We met on a dating app, and we hit it off right away. We've been dating for a few months now, and we just got engaged three weeks ago."

"Seems crazy fast."

"Not when you're madly in love."

His face is so sincere that I start to wonder if he was a drama major. I nod along, trying to keep up with the lie. "Right. And what do we like about each other?"

Adam leans in conspiratorially. "Well, I like that you're smart and funny, and you don't take any crap from anyone. And that you're independent and beautiful."

I feel my cheeks flush. "Thanks. And I like that you're . . . tall. And you have a nice house."

Adam laughs. "Well, I'll take what I can get. But seriously, Evie. I'm lucky to have you as my fake fiancée."

I smile at him, feeling a sudden warmth in my chest. Maybe this isn't such a bad idea after all.

Adam purses his lips. "What about the ring?"

My eyes widen. "The ring? We need a ring?"

Adam nods. "We're getting married, right? We need a ring."

I shake my head. "I don't have a ring."

Adam gets up from his chair and walks out of the kitchen, returning with a small box. He opens it to reveal a beautiful oval-shaped diamond ring with intricate filigree detailing. The stone is dancing in the sunlight that streams through the windows.

My jaw drops. "Where did you get that?"

"It was my grandmother's," Adam says. "May I?"

Before I can say a word, Adam is slipping the ring onto my finger. Like magic, it fits. Not too big, not too small. Just right.

"It's lovely," I say, aware this fiasco is turning stranger by the minute. We've only known each other for one day. A moment of awkwardness settles between us.

"So, what else do we need to plan?" I ask, trying to change the subject, the ring like a boulder on my finger.

Adam takes a deep breath. "Well, we should probably decide how we got engaged."

"Okay."

Adam thinks for a moment. "We could say it was a surprise proposal. Like, I took you on a hike and then got down on one knee at the top of the mountain."

My eyes widen. "That's actually kind of romantic."

Adam grins. "Yeah, I thought so too."

My stomach growls. "Oops, sorry."

"You're hungry."

"Maybe a little."

"How about some oatmeal?"

"No Froot Loops?"

He laughs. "Nah, let's go crazy today."

I stand, looking for a pot.

"You sit, I got this."

I do as I'm told, glancing down at the rock on my finger, certain the day is only going to get a whole lot weirder.