Fake Dating the Unsuspecting Heiress Page 16

  “And then, when you kissed me—”

  She cringed at the memory. Not because she regretted it, but because it hurt too badly to think about it. How certain she’d been that he felt their connection too, how proud she’d been of making the first move…

  How humiliating it was when he’d run away, and knowing now that she’d been all wrong.

  He sighed and closed the distance between them, gripping her arms and pulling her stiff frame against him. “Don’t look like that,” he said. “Please.”

  Her brows drew together in confusion and frustration. “Like what? Like I could kick myself for being such an idiot?”

  “I loved that kiss,” he said, his voice soft but urgent. “I loved our night together. I loved every minute that we spent together.”

  She tried to block out his words, but she couldn’t ignore that look in his eyes. Hot, sexy, sweet…that look was everything.

  It was everything she’d ever wanted to see reflected back at her, and it was everything she told herself she could never expect from this man.

  “You hurt me,” she said. It came out annoyingly weak; she could all but feel her resistance waning. She didn’t want to resist him. All she wanted was to let him hold her, let him tell her it was all a mistake.

  “I know,” he said softly, his grip tightening as he wrapped his arms around her. “I am so, so sorry. I wish I had better words for it.”

  She bit her lip and nodded.

  His brows drew down and he leaned in closer. “I was going to tell you, Addie. After that kiss, I knew I had to come clean and I was going to tell you everything, I swear it.” He drew in a deep breath and it looked like he was going to keep going.

  “I know,” she said.

  He arched his brows.

  “My father told me that you’d stood up to him. That you wanted to be honest with me.” If she’d had any doubt about what that meant, she didn’t now.

  Hope flickered in his eyes, and it echoed exactly the sort of fluttering excitement that she was finally letting herself feel.

  “So you believe me?”

  She hesitated briefly. Her gut warred with protective instincts that told her to do or say whatever it took to make sure that he never hurt her again. But his gaze was filled with such hope, such a genuine need for her to believe him. And what was more…she couldn’t lie. She didn’t want to lie. “I believe you,” she whispered.

  He crushed her to him, his lips firm and hot against hers. Perfection. She sighed, her whole body melting against his as his lips moved over hers, washing away the lingering fears. All that mattered in this moment was this kiss—it said everything. It said so much more than words.

  It said he cherished her. He wanted her. He needed her in his life.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on. Something told her this was just the start.

  This was the beginning of the rest of her life.

  When he pulled back, his hands moved up to cup her face, his gaze fierce and urgent. “Will you give me a chance, Addie? Let me show you the kind of man I can be.” He took a deep breath and rested his forehead against hers. “The kind of boyfriend I can be.”

  Boyfriend. Her head swam and the butterflies in her belly burst into flight. She let out a shaky breath and nodded.

  “Yes?” he said. “Say yes.”

  She grinned. “Yes.”

  His smile was sudden and wicked before he kissed her again, sealing the deal. “No more lies,” he said as he pulled back.

  “None,” she agreed.

  His eyes, so bright with happiness, held her gaze. “No more lies from here on out. I promise.”

  The joy very nearly knocked her off her feet, and with it came a hint of mischief. “No lies whatsoever?”

  His eyes narrowed at her teasing tone, a smile hovering over his lips. “None.”

  She tilted her head to the side. “Colton Parker, are you afraid of Ferris wheels?”

  His eyes widened in surprise before he burst out in a laugh that made her lungs stall. Goodness, he had an amazing laugh. She wanted to hear it more often. Every day, to be precise.

  “You know, I’m an officer of the law,” he said, dropping his voice to sound even more pompous than usual. “I’m pretty sure this counts as entrapment.”

  She laughed. “Come on, Parker. We’ve agreed. No lies, and that means no lies of omission.”

  He tilted his head back with a groan, but he was still smiling. “Okay, fine. You caught me. I, Colton Parker, am afraid of Ferris wheels. There, are you happy?”

  She beamed. “Very.”

  “Your turn,” he said, his eyes narrowing dangerously.

  “My turn for what?” she asked, all innocence.

  “Be honest now, Addison.” He leaned down closer. “You were just hoping a Prince Charming would come along and sweep you off your feet, now weren’t you?”

  She gasped. “What? No, I—”

  And then he did it. He literally swept her off her feet and into his arms, grinning at her shocked squeal. “I was kidding,” he said with no hint of remorse. “I just wanted an excuse to hold you in my arms.” He still wore that smug smile as he carried her back toward the party.

  She feigned shock. “So you’re not really Prince Charming, then? This costume had me fooled.”

  He grinned down at her. “Enjoy this while you can. The moment I get out of here, I’m going to pretend this never happened. Say goodbye to Prince Charming.”

  She cocked her head to the side, studying his dimples, that cleft in his chin, and the strong jawline. “I don’t know,” she said slowly. “Even without this costume, I’m pretty sure you’ll always be Prince Charming to me.”

  Epilogue

  One week later…

  Trent leaned against the counter at Java Lava’s as Gina made his drink. “They’re disgusting, aren’t they?”

  She handed over the steaming mug with a huff of laughter. “Totally nauseating.”

  They both watched as Colton and Addison canoodled in a booth in the corner. Trent wouldn’t typically use a word like ‘canoodle’ but there was no other way to describe the scene before them.

  “I’ve never seen Colton like this,” Gina said.

  Trent shook his head. Neither had he. He’d known Colton since Kindergarten and he’d never once seen the guy lose his cool like this. Trent winced as Colton spooned whipped cream into Addison’s mouth before they both burst out laughing over something that Colton’s new girlfriend had said.

  “Don’t get me wrong,” Trent said slowly. “I really like Addison—”

  “She’s the best,” Gina said.

  “And it’s great to see Colton so happy—”

  “He’s never been happier,” Gina agreed.

  “But this is just plain weird,” he finished.

  Gina made a sound of agreement. They stood there in silence for a moment, transfixed by the sight before them as Colton and Addison bent their heads together to whisper. What were they whispering about? He had no idea. He had a feeling he didn’t want to know.

  “I’m happy for him, you know,” Gina said.

  He nodded. “Yeah, me too.”

  “Do you think—” Gina hesitated and he turned to face the young woman who was the closest thing he had to a sister.

  She was gnawing on her lower lip. “Do you think maybe we’re…jealous?”

  His scoff was a reflex. “Nah.”

  Her lips tugged up at the corners. “Yeah, you’re right. I mean, I’ve got Billy—”

  He tried not to wince. He had a bad feeling about that Billy guy, but as much as he thought of her as his little sister, he wasn’t sure it was his place to give her advice on relationships. Really…what did he know about the topic? Sure, he’d dated a lot. But that was precisely the problem. He dated a lot. He was pretty sure he’d dated every available woman in Cyrano and had never come close to…that.

  He watched with a mix of horror and fascination as Colton’s grin grew downright goofy.


  Nope, Trent had definitely not experienced anything like that.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever looked at Billy the way Addison is looking at my brother,” Gina said.

  Trent glanced at her, and for a second there he wished he could feel any sort of attraction for this woman. They cared about each other, they got along just great…it would be so perfect if they could only have that bizarre connection that Colton had miraculously found with the new chick in town. He eyed his best friend’s little sister, hoping to maybe feel something. But no. There was no way he could see her as anything other than a sister, and he knew the feeling was mutual.

  He turned back to the room with a sigh. Maybe there was something wrong with him. Or maybe the dating pool was just too small in this small town.

  The door to the coffee shop shot open and Trent was pretty sure his heart did a double take as a tall, striking, black-haired goddess stepped foot in the coffee shop.

  Hello. Who was this?

  Gina laughed beside him. “Close your mouth, Romeo. You’re catching flies.”

  He clamped his mouth shut but his eyes continued to watch the gorgeous woman sporting the slinky red dress. He waited for her to approach the counter where he was leaning but she surprised him by turning abruptly to head over to Colton and Addison’s table once she’d spotted them.

  “Who is that?” he asked on long exhale. The mystery woman literally took his breath away.

  When Gina didn’t immediately reply he glanced over to see her watching him with arched brows.

  “What?” he said.

  She grinned, looking strikingly like her older brother with those dimples and the laughing blue eyes. “Seriously?”

  “What?” he said again, his tone defensive.

  “That’s Vanessa Shea,” she said slowly.

  He turned from Gina to the woman who’d knocked the wind out of him. The name sounded familiar…

  “She grew up here?” Gina said, her tone prompting. “She was only a grade below you in high school.”

  He frowned at that. No, that couldn’t be right. Surely he’d remember a woman like that. “She’s from here?” he asked. And he hadn’t dated her?

  Maybe his luck was looking up.

  Gina laughed beside him. “I can’t believe you don’t remember her.”

  He shrugged, a newfound optimism making him grin as he watched the beauty smile at something Colton said. Suddenly he wasn’t nearly as disgusted by the sight of the love-struck couple.

  Maybe, just maybe, there was hope for him yet.

  * * *

  Thank you for reading Fake Dating the Unsuspecting Heiress! Stay tuned for Trent & Vanessa’s story in Fake Dating the Hometown Deputy.

  In the meantime, check out Maggie Dallen’s next sweet romance, the YA rom-com Charming the Cheerleader.

  Keep reading for a FREE SAMPLE of her first-in-series sweet adult romantic comedy, Dating Prince Charming

  Be sure to join Maggie Dallen’s monthly newsletter for a FREE sweet novella, along with the latest on freebies, giveaways, sales, and new releases: http://eepurl.com/bFEVsL

  Dating Prince Charming

  Jacob woke to the sound of metal clanging. Before he could even open his eyes, the misery set in. His head throbbed and his stomach churned, and even though his eyelids were squeezed shut, the light behind them seemed to stab his brain like an ice pick.

  “Rise and shine, princess,” a low voice boomed, echoing through his skull and making him wince as the throbbing intensified.

  But physical misery was nothing compared to the cold, hard pit of despair that had him moaning out loud as his brain slowly kicked into gear and the reality of his situation became clear.

  He was in jail.

  “Up and at ‘em, sunshine,” the voice called. The tone was mocking, the volume mercilessly loud. And close.

  Jacob finally managed to open his eyes and found himself staring up at an overweight cop with a haircut that hadn’t been seen since the eighties.

  He tried to say something, peeling his sandpaper tongue from the top of his mouth and cringing at the horrible taste of death and decay. He wanted to ask questions—where am I, maybe, or what day is it? Either would have been a good start in sorting through the jumbled collections of drunken, scattered memories from the night before. But all he managed to croak out was, “Water.”

  The throwback cop smirked down at him. “What do I look like, room service?” He turned and headed toward the hallway. “Come on, hotshot, we don’t got all day.”

  Jacob managed to ease himself up into a sitting position, unleashing a whole new set of aches and pains. He thrust his hands through his hair, attempting to wake up fully, but the move only managed to make his left cheekbone scream with pain. With tentative fingers, he touched the sore spot and found it swollen.

  Wonderful. He had a shiner.

  “Good news, kid,” the cop said from where he was waiting in the hallway. “They aren’t pressing charges.”

  Jacob nodded. He should be pleased, he supposed, but at that moment it was difficult to conjure up any positive thoughts. He just wanted to be home, in his own bed, buried under the comforters with a giant bottle of aspirin by his side.

  The cop continued speaking at a volume that was better suited to the hard of hearing rather than the hungover. “That means,” he said slowly, as if speaking to a child. “That you are free to go, your highness.”

  Jacob gave a short nod. Free to go. That was good. He shoved himself up and out of the hard cot, trying not to look at the dirty metal toilet to his left, afraid his body might succumb to the urge to vomit at the sight of it.

  He followed the cop out of the cell, into the hallway and up to the door leading to the public area. Stopping mid-step, he froze as a horrible thought occurred to him, temporarily overshadowing his physical misery. “Are there any reporters out there?”

  The officer smirked at him. Oh yeah, this guy knew exactly who he was. And by the looks of it, he was enjoying his misery. “Just one,” he said.

  “Tell him there’s no story here,” Jacob said, rubbing his eyes trying to force himself fully awake. Even as he said it, he knew this cop wasn’t about to do him any favors.

  “You tell her yourself.” The cop sounded highly amused.

  So glad he could entertain. Jerking his head toward the door, he said, “All right then, let’s get this over with.”

  The moment the door opened Jacob was blinded by a flash.

  Jeeze, that was rude.

  He blinked until his vision returned and when it did he blinked some more to ensure he was seeing correctly. The reporter who had thrown herself in front of him to snap what was sure to be a hideous photo… she looked familiar.

  No. It couldn’t be.

  Her wild curls were blonde now, not dyed black. Gone was the nose ring. Her lips, curled up in a mischievous grin, weren’t sporting the siren red lipstick she’d always worn in high school. But that pixie face, those vivid blue eyes, the petite figure… there was no doubt.

  “Morning, Prince Charming,” she sang in a ridiculously chipper voice.

  He groaned, dropping his head into his hands. This couldn’t be happening. As if his morning wasn’t bad enough, she had to be here to witness his humiliation?

  When he dropped his hands and looked up, she hadn’t gone anywhere. She was still blocking his path, that camera going off with a dizzying display of flashes and an incessant whirring-clicking sound.

  Belatedly the pieces clicked together in his fuzzy hungover brain. “You’re the reporter?”

  Her grin grew wider. She looked entirely too pleased with herself. The cat that ate the canary. Or the reporter who’d gotten the scoop on the newspaper heir’s latest debacle.

  He let out a string of curses under his breath, ignoring her soft laugh. Her laugh—that hadn’t changed at all.

  “Anything you’d like to say for the record, Jacob?”

  His eyes snapped open at that. The reality of his
situation sinking in as details fell into place. He’d heard that she’d become a reporter. And she was here. Now. With his picture.

  He bit back another groan, which he was sure would only add to her amusement. She’d always disliked him and now she had his picture coming out of jail. When his father found out….

  No. He wouldn’t go there. Not now. Not until he had coffee in hand.

  Straightening his shoulders, he met her gaze with as much dignity as possible. “A pleasure as always, Cinderella.”

  Her laugh followed him as he strode out the front door of the police station and into the unforgiving sunlight.

  * * *

  Now that had not been expected. Mackenzie watched her mark head out into the sunshine and turned to grin at the cop who was standing next to her. “Thanks again, boys. Catch you on the flipside.”

  One of them called out that reporters like her weren’t welcome back. But that was just Pat with his gruff sense of humor so she turned back to give him a jaunty salute.

  “Thanks for the coffee, Mack,” Angelo called after her. Angelo, sweet and dependable Angelo. He’d been the inside source to tip her off that a celebrity was being held overnight. “Celebrity” was a bit of a stretch, as far as Mackenzie was concerned. Entitled brat was a far more accurate description. But Jacob Hartley’s last name alone made him newsworthy, whether she liked it or not. The only son of the city’s version of royalty—the Hartleys, the media moguls who just about monopolized the world of TV and print news. Luckily they hadn’t yet gotten their hands on Mackenzie’s little corner of the online news world—she’d created a unique niche with her HeatMap site—or her struggling company would be put out of its misery once and for all.

  Stepping out of the dark, dingy police station and into the glaring morning sun that was pounding down on the Lower East Side, she took a quick look at the pictures she’d taken.

  Oh man, he looked bad. Really bad. His classically handsome face was marred by a nasty bruise, a five o’clock shadow, and some seriously dark circles under his eyes. His dark hair was matted and sticking out in all different directions. But the best part was the look of horror she’d captured the moment his eyes had focused on her. She shouldn’t find that so satisfying, but….she did. Call her petty but being able to witness Mr. Perfect’s humbling morning-after firsthand made her day.