If We Pretend: A Fake Dating Scottish Sports Romance (Interconnected Standalone) by Chrissy Hopewell

If We Pretend: A Fake Dating Scottish Sports Romance (Interconnected Standalone) by Chrissy Hopewell

Author:Chrissy Hopewell [Hopewell, Chrissy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fox Hollow Publishing LLC
Published: 2023-10-09T16:00:00+00:00


I canna stop thinking about you.

“Shit.” I don’t mean to say it out loud, and Britt’s eyes open wider. My acting abilities suck. I slam the screen face down on the table, feeling sick to my stomach.

“I didn’t mean to pry, Ree. But . . . when I asked him if he had kids on the first day, he said no.”

I can’t stop myself from flinching.

“He lied, which is so weird. Why would he want to keep his son a secret?” Britt continues talking. “I’m sorry if I’m getting too involved. But I’m worried. I just want us to be a happy, blended family. You, me, Adrian, Chelsea, and Jackson.” She pauses, her hand twitching on her mug, as if she wants to reach out to me. “We both know how hard the tween and teenage years are on kids. His son is around ten. Remember ten? Right before all hell broke loose with puberty and social drama?” Britt crinkles her eyes. “And if Oliver’s not worried about that, if he’s lying about being a dad, then . . .”

So much for her being so happy for me. Or is she only looking out for me, like a true friend should?

I think of Oliver saying he’s only a soccer player, and that’s all he’ll ever be. That he escaped to Ireland, then came back to deal with family issues. How he was so desperate for me to come to the family party with him. Is his son going to be at this party? Oh, shit. I bet he is. When the hell was he going to tell me?

It all has new meaning now. I lean back, keeping my hands a safe distance from Britt’s. I think about his stories about his cold parents, his lonely childhood, the rejection he’s faced as an adult. A stab of sympathy for him flares inside me, melting away one small sharp edge of the hurt at being lied to.

No. He left out something huge. Too huge. What else might he be hiding?

I look at my phone. “Oh, wow. I have a call in fifteen minutes. Better get back to my flat.” My voice is high-pitched as I push back the chair, its legs making a loud stuttering sound against the wood floor.

“What are you two going to do once Chelsea’s camp is over and we all go back to New Jersey?” She leans in and tugs at her braid.

“We haven’t gotten that far. I guess we’ll break up. I’ll be fine. I always am.” Fine seems to be the word of the day. I abandon Britt and what’s left of my vanilla latte, striding out through the glass front door, away from her. The rain falling from the gray Scottish sky brings me back to reality.

The whole point in fake dating Oliver was to protect me from the prying eyes and ears of Adrian and Britt. But all it’s done is make Britt feel bad for me. Worry about me.

The exact opposite of what I was going for.



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