Chapter Three

“Fasten your seatbelt, slut puppy. This ain’t gonna be no cake walk!”

-Sophia Petrillo

“Lola has a rebound boyfriend. A super-secret rebound boyfriend,” Frankie announced to their group of friends assembled for their weekly bocce game.

Lola sighed, even as the rest of her friends oohed and aahed and moved closer for more details. “It’s just a secret from his family. Besides, it’s not real,” she said. “We’re only pretending.”

“That’s why I said super-secret,” Frankie said.

“Is he hot?” Katie asked.

“Ohmigod,” Frankie said, fanning herself with her hand. “So effing hot. He looks like a movie star. Or a cowboy. Or a cowboy movie star. He’s tall and built, and oh-so-yummy.”

“Then why is he pretend?” Olivia wondered out loud. “Why don’t you take the super-secret out of your relationship and just get with him?”

“Because I lied to him, and then he asked me to lie again. I hate lying.”

Frankie sighed dramatically. “We all know your penchant for the truth. But honestly, Lola, we barely stretched the truth.”

Lola snagged one of the light beers from their cooler bag, covertly popped the top, and poured it into a red solo cup. They weren’t technically allowed to drink in this park, but what was a game of rogue bocce without some beer?

“I used a fake name.”

“I always use a fake name when I meet guys in bars,” Olivia said.

“This was different,” Lola said. “We dressed up and pretended to be other people. In public.”

“Huh?” Olivia asked.

“Frankie and I crashed Kennedy High’s ten-year reunion on Saturday night.” She filled them in on how she won the coveted Jane Austen basket and how she was supposed to attend his family reunion in exchange for his silence.

“That’s awesome,” Hannah said.

Katie jumped up. “They did that on an episode of The Golden Girls.”

“Exactly,” Frankie said emphatically. “Thank you.”

“Frankie had this crazy idea that I needed to have a little rebound fling.”

“Crazy?” Frankie huffed. “Um, hello, it worked. You met Luke, and now you have your rebound.”

Lola rolled her eyes. “Whatever. The chance of me seeing Luke again is slim to none.”

Celeste, who was the keeper of the balls for their bocce game, looked up from her crouched position on the ground where she was setting up the game. “What are you talking about? Didn’t you just say you’re going to his family reunion?”

Lola shook her head. “It’s not like that’s going to happen. I’m sure he was just making conversation.”

Frankie picked up one of the red balls. “We’ll be Team Christmas this week,” she said. That meant her team would throw the red and green balls. “You and Luke exchanged numbers.”

“Right, but he’s not going to call or anything. I mean, he didn’t text me yesterday. More than likely he’s forgotten all about it. He probably had one too many drinks that night.”

Part of this statement was wishful thinking on Lola’s part. She’d never done anything so impulsive as crashing a reunion before. To go a step further and pretend to be someone’s girlfriend was insane, especially for someone she barely knew. No matter how hot he was.

And, man, was Luke Erickson hot. Against her will, she’d thought about him for the rest of the weekend and most of today. She adjusted her glasses and remembered his smile. It had almost brought her to her knees. Then there was his body. When she’d tried to help him clean up his shirt, her hands had paused on his rock-hard pecs. It had taken everything inside her not to continue feeling him up. But none of that mattered. She was more likely to crash another reunion than see Luke again.

“You really don’t think you’re going to hear from him?” Frankie asked.

“No,” she said, exasperated. She loved Frankie, but the girl never let it go.

“Are you sure?”

She aimed a hard, no-nonsense stare in Frankie’s direction. “Yes,” she said through clenched teeth.

“What would you say to him if you did?”

Lola wanted to strangle her best friend. She stood up and faced her group of friends with one hand on her hip and the other holding onto her cup of beer. “What do you want me to say? The truth? Oh Luke, you’re the hottest guy I’ve ever seen and I would absolutely love to pretend to be your girlfriend.”

“Now that’s what I like to hear.”

Lola spun around so fast, her beer sloshed over the edge of the cup, dampening her light-blue tank top, and she almost fell over. When she saw Luke standing there looking like sex on a stick, she wished she had fallen—fallen into a deep, dark pit where she could hide for the rest of her life. She peeked over her shoulder at Frankie who seemed very pleased with herself. She winked at Lola.

Lola would kill her later.

“Ohmigod,” she squeaked out. “Luke. Uh, what are you doing here?”

“You told me you and your friends play bocce here on Mondays, and I work not too far over in Old Town. But let’s get back to that declaration you just made.” He grinned.

Lola’s cheeks felt like they were on fire.

“Hey, Luke,” Frankie called. “Want a beer?”

“Sure,” he replied. “I’ve never seen a rogue bocce game, so I thought I would come check it out. Actually, I’ve never seen a regular bocce game come to think of it.” He accepted the red solo cup from Frankie. “Thanks. So how do you guys play?”

“It’s super simple,” Hannah said. “We throw out the pallina first.”

“The what?” Luke asked.

“It’s that little white ball,” Katie said. “Then we start throwing the colored balls. Essentially, whoever gets closest to the pallina, wins.”

“Seems simple enough,” Luke said.

“It’s harder than it looks, especially because our court is a little uneven. But that’s part of the fun. So is the beer.” Frankie tapped her cup to Luke’s and smiled. “Want to play?”

“Good call,” Celeste said. “Our friend Summer couldn’t make it tonight, so the teams are uneven.”

Did her friends really just ask hottie Luke to play bocce with them?

Lanette, who had been quiet until now, spoke up. “You can be part of Team Ikea with Katie, Celeste, and Lola, of course.”

“Team Ikea?”

Olivia laughed. “Yeah, you guys are blue and yellow. Like Sweden.”

“Like Ikea.” Luke nodded. “Funny.”

As they gathered up the balls and filled up their solo cups with beer, Frankie grabbed Lola’s arm and whispered to her, “This is fabulous.”

“It’s awkward,” Lola hissed back.

“What are you talking about? This is the perfect opportunity for you to bond with your pretend boyfriend. Show him how you work the balls.” She wiggled her eyebrows.

Lola shoved her friend. “You’re disgusting.”

“But you love me anyway.” With that, Frankie made her way toward her team.

Lola sighed and grabbed two balls from the ground. She crossed to Luke. “Here are your blue balls.”

She froze. Kill me now. She did not just say that. Lola closed her eyes tight and wished for a major do-over. But the sound of Luke’s husky laughter brought her right back to reality. She peeked through her lids, but she was still standing in the middle of the bocce court.

“You continue to amuse me, Lola McBride.”

He put his arm around her shoulders, allowing her to take in his amazing cologne. Together, they joined the rest of the rogue league. Blue balls and all.

…

Who would have thought that an evening spent drinking cheap beer and playing bocce with a bunch of girls would be so fun? But Luke was thoroughly enjoying himself.

Turned out he wasn’t half bad at bocce, either. Although Team Christmas still ended up with the win.

Lola’s friends were really funny and a blast to hang out with. He knew several of his friends would have loved the opportunity to hang out with seven gorgeous women. He was certainly relishing it.

Then there was Lola.

He glanced over at her. She had her head tilted back as she laughed at something Frankie said. Her smile lit up her entire face. A soft breeze blew her long brown hair around her shoulders.

She’d been nervous earlier. It was adorable. But after the first couple bocce throws—not to mention some beer—she’d calmed down. When she did, he learned that she was extremely funny. And bright. And down to earth. And sexy.

Ah hell. He was starting to like her. Not good. He needed to put the kibosh on any feelings, because he simply wasn’t interested in a relationship. Besides, they had a whole ruse to think about. Falling for his pretend girlfriend was way more complicated than he needed things to get.

“Well, I guess I should be going,” Frankie announced rather dramatically.

“Going home?” Lola asked. “What about ice cream?”

“Ice cream?” Luke looked from Lola to Frankie. The other girls were dispersing, offering their congrats to Team Christmas and saying goodbyes until next week.

“Yeah,” Lola said. “Frankie and I always get ice cream after bocce. It’s our tradition.”

“Beer and ice cream. Hmm. Not my first choice in combos,” he said.

“Sorry, Lo. I, uh, have a thing.”

Lola put her hands on her hips. “What thing? It’s almost eight at night.”

Frankie scrunched her nose. “Exactly. My thing is really early tomorrow morning.” She let out a very loud and fake yawn. “I need to get to bed. Sorry to miss out on the ice cream. Oh wait, I know.” Frankie gestured as if she’d just received the answer to the world’s greatest question. “Why doesn’t Luke take you for ice cream?”

Luke stifled his laughter. Frankie was quite the character and watching her ruffle Lola’s serious feathers was beyond amusing. In terms of personalities, they were definitely the odd couple of roommates.

“I could go for some ice cream,” Luke said.

“Did someone say ice cream?” Olivia asked as she swung her backpack on her back. “I’d love some—arghhh,” she finished when Frankie hit her in the stomach. The two of them exchanged meaningful glances. Finally, Olivia nodded. “I mean, I’m lactose intolerant. That’s why I’d like ice cream. Always. But I can’t have any because, you know, my lactose problems. Well, Frankie, let’s get going.”

“I’ve literally never seen the two of them move so fast in my life,” Lola said as they watched Frankie and Olivia’s retreating backs. “They’re ridiculous.”

“They’re hysterical. All of your friends are. I had fun tonight.”

“I’m glad. And listen, you don’t have to get ice cream if you don’t want.”

“Pass up thick milky goodness after all that lite beer? Are you crazy?”

She eyed him for a moment, probably weighing if he was teasing her or not. Finally, she said, “Okay then, follow me. There’s a great parlor down the street.”

They walked a short distance to a hole-in-the-wall place with a long counter and room for only one tiny table and two café-style chairs. Luke didn’t expect much, but when he started perusing the glass display cases under the counter, he realized the little ice cream parlor had some weight. All of the usual flavors were there, but half of the offerings were for unique pairings like lavender honey, basil, and even a maple syrup mix.

The line moved quickly, and when it was their turn, Luke ordered a waffle cone with chocolate marshmallow. He stepped to the cashier. “And please add on whatever the lady is ordering.”

“Thanks, Luke.” Lola smiled. “Vanilla in a sugar cone please.”

Luke shook his head and paid for the two cones. Then they made their way outside to a bench.

“Vanilla? Seriously? All of those flavors and you get vanilla?”

She shrugged and turned her nose up at him.

“Plain Jane vanilla. You didn’t even add any toppings. No sprinkles. No chocolate chips. No syrup.”

“Maybe I don’t need anything extra to enjoy my vanilla ice cream. My ice cream happens to be delicious and refreshing.” She poked him the chest. “Not everything has to be sparkly and glittery, and unique and different, you know. Some things are amazing just as they are.”

He took her in as she defended her boring ice cream. She’d pulled her hair back in a ponytail while they walked to the ice cream shop. She was wearing jean shorts, a baby-blue tank top, and plain white sneakers. Her face was scrubbed clean of makeup, and the only jewelry she had on were tiny hoop earrings and a delicate silver chain with a small circle charm. There was nothing fancy about her. Yet, she took his breath away.

“I think I see your point,” he said on an unsteady breath.

“How’s yours?” She nodded at his cone.

“Really good. Want to try some?”

“Duh. It’s chocolate.”

He couldn’t remember the last time he sat outside an ice cream shop and enjoyed a cone. His dad used to take him and his sisters every Friday night. One of them would always spill their ice cream. Then they would start to cry. But Luke’s dad would laugh and simply buy them a new cone. After, they’d walk through this park that was near their house, and their dad would push them on the swings. Luke used to get so high on the swing he felt as if he were flying.

He almost gasped at the unwelcome memory. It was rare for him to have thoughts of his dad. In fact, he worked hard to keep his old man out of his mind. Then he saw Lola take a big lick of his ice cream and all thoughts—of his dad or anything else in the world—simply disappeared. She lapped at the chocolate, her tongue devouring the ice cream in one fluid motion. Her eyes fluttered shut as a sensuous moan escaped her lips. She delicately dabbed at the corner of her mouth with her finger before licking that as well.

Luke didn’t move. He didn’t breathe. He didn’t think.

“Mmm, so good,” she whispered.

The sound of her voice shot straight to his groin, and suddenly his pants were feeling snug. He could have dumped every tub of ice cream in the joint on top of his head and still felt overheated.

Lola’s eyes opened, and she trained her gaze on his face; she cocked her head. “Are you okay?”

I want you. “Uh, yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

“Because you’re breathing really hard. Do you have asthma?”

Shit. She was so damn perceptive. Thank God she wasn’t also a mind reader, because the thoughts running through his would definitely drive her away.

“Um, no asthma. I have allergies though.”

Everyone in the D.C.-area had allergies. The place was notorious for it.

Lola nodded as if his explanation cleared up everything. “The pollen is really bad this week.”

They sat in silence for a while, enjoying their ice cream and people watching. The setting sun had helped cool down the sweltering June temperature, and there were lots of people taking advantage of it. Dogs were being walked, parents were pushing babies in strollers, and kids were running around in the park. Some with ice cream-stained faces, Luke noted.

When Lola finished her boring ice cream cone, she turned to Luke. “So do you still want to do this whole family reunion thing this weekend?”

He took the last bite of his cone and threw his napkin away. “You mean, do I still want you to pretend to be my girlfriend?”

She bit her lip and a light-red blush colored her cheeks. “Yeah.”

“Of course. Did you think I forgot about it?”

She tugged on her ponytail. “More like, I hoped you’d forget about it.”

Luke couldn’t resist. He ran his fingers through her shiny hair and also gave a little yank on her ponytail. “No such luck. Although, I’m not going to force you to do anything, especially if you’re uncomfortable with it.”

She was quiet for a long moment. Luke could tell she was deeply considering what he’d said. “No, I made you a promise. I’ll be there. Besides, I don’t want you to turn me in for taking the Jane Austen basket the other night.”

He leaned toward her and lowered his voice conspiratorially. “I was never going to turn you in for that.”

“Really?” she squeaked.

“Really. I thought it was funny.”

“I promised to come to your family reunion for nothing.”

“Pretty much.”

She nodded solemnly. “So who will I be meeting this weekend?” she asked.

“My mom Lorraine and my Aunt Sally. A bunch of cousins will be there, too. Plus, you’ll meet my three sisters. I think I told you they’re triplets. Mia, Winnie, and Gwen.”

“Wow, I’ve never met triplets before. Are they identical?”

“No, thank God. They are a handful as is. I can’t imagine if they had the power to switch places on us. It would have been extreme pandemonium growing up.”

“How old are they?”

“They’re twenty-seven, a year younger than me.”

“Are you guys close?”

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. No doubt it was one of his sisters. Pains in the butt that they are, he thought with a grin. “Yeah, we’re pretty close. They’re ecstatic that I moved back to the area. Gives them even more ways to annoy me.”

She smiled, but it didn’t last long. A shadow passed over her face. Even behind her glasses, he could tell that her eyes had turned a deeper, darker blue.

Luke replayed their conversation and tried to figure out what could have bothered her, but he came up at a loss. He was about to ask when she spoke up.

“You said you moved back here. Where were you?”

“Guess,” he said.

A curious smile spread across her face. “You were being a cowboy on a ranch in New Mexico. A super hot ranch. And bandits tried to rob it of cattle or whatever, but you stopped them.”

Again, Luke wasn’t sure what he’d expected her to say, but that definitely wasn’t it. “Um, nope. I wasn’t on a ranch.”

“You weren’t being a cowboy?” She sounded disappointed.

“Sorry, no. I don’t even know how to ride a horse. I lived in San Francisco and then Manhattan.”

“Wow. How cool. Which city did you like better?”

He considered her question. Lately, it seemed like his family only cared about the fact that he’d returned and never asked about his actual time there.

“I loved both of them. San Fran is unique. No place like it. And then there was New York. It was frenetic and fast-paced. So many interesting people and great restaurants. I don’t know if I could live there forever, but I’m really glad I did for a couple years.”

They continued talking about different cities they’d been to as people went in and out of the ice cream shop. Lola hadn’t been to a ton of places, but those she had visited clearly left a big impression.

“I have to wonder about you.”

“Oh yeah?” he asked in an amused voice.

“Yeah. You’re successful and well-traveled and funny. Plus, you’re…good looking.” She blushed again. Damn, he loved when she did that.

“I believe you already said I was the hottest guy you’ve ever seen.”

“Yeah, I totally knew you were standing behind me when I said that.” She laughed awkwardly. “But seriously, I would imagine you could get a date to your family reunion like that.” She snapped her fingers next to her face.

“Probably, but my family doesn’t want me to bring any old date. They want me to be in a relationship.”

“And this would be a problem for you?”

“I’m not exactly the world’s biggest fan of relationships.”

“Really? Why?”

Because of my dad. The thought came and went so quickly he was almost shocked by it. Unfortunately, it was true.

Luke had been five and his sisters only four when his father announced at the dinner table that he was leaving. Luke hadn’t understood. He thought maybe his dad was running out to the store or going back to work, but his mom had started crying, which made him and all of his sisters do the same.

The next thing he knew, his grandmother and aunts had come over. His mother stayed in her bedroom for an entire week. Eventually, she returned to her job as a nurse. But his dad never returned to their house, to their family.

The first couple of years, he would send cards with money in them for their birthdays and holidays. Then the cards stopped as well. His dad signed full custody over to his mom, and Luke hadn’t seen him since.

He didn’t want to see him.

“Luke?” Lola’s voice pulled him out of his mind and back to reality. She was staring at him with curiosity.

“Sorry.”

“Where’d you go?”

“Just thinking about your question. I guess I’m not into relationships because I don’t see them working.”

“Ever?” she asked on a half laugh.

He shrugged. A piece of paper—legal or otherwise—wasn’t able to stop his dad from going his own way. “It’s rare. Most don’t last very long. Someone gets bored and leaves. It’s human nature, I guess.”

“Does your family know you feel this way?” she asked.

He nodded. “I’ve mentioned it once or twice or a million times.”

“Then why bring someone—real or pretend—to this reunion at all?”

It was a fair question. He tried to answer honestly. “I had an excuse not to go to our reunions all those years I lived out of state. But since I moved back to the area recently, they’ve been driving me nuts about settling down, no matter how many times I tell them it’s never gonna happen,” he said when Lola started to protest. “I thought if they could see me with someone one time, they might lay off for a while. Bother one of my sisters or cousins about something for a change.”

“What about after the reunion?” she asked.

Luke had already considered this point. “Afterwards, we’ll fake break up. Then my family will feel bad for me, which will buy even more time for them to lay off me. Give me a little reprieve.”

“Well, I’m not really onboard with your logic. I don’t approve of lying, especially to your family. Lies have a way of hurting. Trust me.”

“It’s only a small lie.” He was rationalizing, and he knew it. Still, bringing someone to meet his family would save him from a million headaches. “Telling my mom and sisters that we’re together is a little fib that has no possibility of hurting anyone.”

She removed her glasses and rubbed her eyes. “When you’re masking the truth, there’s always a way that it can backfire. Trust me.”

Her eyes filled with sadness. Luke had to wonder why she was so averse to lying. Who had hurt her? Who’d lied to her? “Lola—”

She shook her head and put her glasses back on. “I’ll still help you anyway.”

She reached over and squeezed his hand. As soon as her fingers touched his, it felt like a bolt of lightning shot through him. Awareness and heat and something much more primal bubbled to the surface.

“I’ll be your reprieve,” she said.

Luke could barely talk. She was still holding his hand, and whatever feeling her touch had incited, it was still coursing through him.

If anything, he knew that pretending Lola McBride was his girlfriend would be anything but a reprieve.