by Sierra Rose
“Well, it’d help me get in the mood.”
Harvey stared into her eyes. “Trust me when I say I can get you in the mood.”
She blushed. “What I meant was…if you need me to act surprised, then we need to act this thing out so I can get into character.”
He flashed his perfect movie star smile, all gleaming white teeth. “Okay, we can do that.”
“So let’s start from the top.”
“Lights, Camera, Action!” one of the photographers said in a teasing manner.
Bella smirked.
“I’ve got something special for you,” he said, and took her hand, helping her to her feet.
She looked at him quizzically, and he dropped to one knee, pulling out a black velvet box.
Bella knew it was fake. Totally staged. Yet still, she gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in astonishment, just as if it were real, a true romantic gesture taking her by surprise. He flipped the box open, revealing a huge square-cut diamond set in a platinum band studded all around with tiny round diamonds. It gleamed and sparkled in the pitiless sunlight, and she gazed at it, transfixed.
Tears welled up in her eyes. “It’s beautiful.”
“Will you pretend marry me?” he asked with a huge smile.
“Why yes! I’d love to have a fake fiancé. I hear it’s all the rage with playboy billionaires who need to get out of trouble.”
He laughed. “See? That’s the kind of spirit and attitude I need from my fake adoring fiancée. Why hire an actress when I have you?”
She couldn’t wipe the smile from her face. The wind blew through her hair as they laughed and joked some more.
“Okay, lovebirds,” the photographer said. “Let’s continue this charade.”
They were just posing, after all, but photos of her reaction, of their embrace would be everywhere. So she nodded her head vigorously and he surged to his feet and kissed her before slipping the massive diamond on her finger. The ring was so heavy, and she laughed and kissed him again.
“Let’s break out the champagne,” Harvey roared as everyone laughed. He grabbed the bottle from the ice bucket and held it up in victory. “Let’s celebrate!”
The cork popped, and Bella was handed a glass. Smiling, Harvey poured champagne for everyone. He was so charming, bigger than life.
“To my beautiful, loving, and enduring fake future wife for putting up with me.”
“To Bella,” the photographer yelled. “She’s going to need it!”
Harvey laughed. “To Bella.”
They toasted, clanked glasses, and she took a long sip.
“I feel like I’m in a fairytale with you.”
His lips covered her mouth in a gentle, soft kiss.
“I need you,” he said. “Because you make me laugh more than anyone else. You make me laugh when I don’t even want to smile. You’re pretty special.” His lips pressed into grim lines. “I don’t deserve this. Why are you doing this for me?”
“Because I happen to think you’re special too, and I want you to have a second chance. Because I think you deserve it.”
They grabbed each other’s hands and, per instruction, ran and jumped into the pool together, creating a terrific splash in a show of carefree romance and joy.
“I’m crazy about you,” Harvey said, pushing a stray strand of wet hair behind her ear. “There is no one else I think of more than you.”
“I seriously can’t stop thinking about you.”
And she seriously meant every word.
After they frolicked in the pool self-consciously, their playful splashes punctuated with much twirling around in each other’s arms and passionate kissing, they sat on the edge of the pool together, drinking and talking.
“So, were you surprised or are you just a great actress?” Harvey asked.
“Oh, I’d say I was surprised. I mean, that’s the biggest diamond I’ve ever seen. It should be in a museum or in a crown or something.”
“I’m glad you approve.”
“Approve? I’d never wear that thing in real life. Someone would cut off my hand to steal it!”
“No one is going to cut off your hand. I’m not sure what kind of neighborhood you’re used to, but now you travel with security.”
A man with a fruit tray came around, and Bella picked a big strawberry and took a flute of champagne. “First the car and now the ring. You’re spoiling me.”
“That’s the idea. Both are yours to keep, of course. I told you that any gifts would belong to you, and this counts.”
“This? For real? This ring is worth more than, like, an entire house.”
“So sell it, and buy a house when we’re done if it makes you happy. Or keep it in its velvet box like a sacred thing to remember me by. The first man who fake proposed.”
She laughed.
That night, they slept in the same stateroom, with Harvey spending the night on the couch like a perfect gentleman. She thought about that movie-style kiss when he was helping her out in front of her friends. It was one of the most spontaneous kisses she ever had. And it was so damn hot.
Why couldn’t she get that kiss out of her mind?
She wished he were slightly less perfect, or at least less of a gentleman. It was impossible to sleep with him so close. She lay awake in the dark, her body so aware of his nearness and how untouchable he was for her. So far out of her league.
***
The tabloids and the gossip websites were aflame with news that so-called sources close to Ms. James said she’d been swept off her feet by her employer. The headlines all read, “CEO Sweeps Maid Off Feet!” and word of their engagement spread like wildfire. They looked at the photos and read the articles together. Members of Harvey’s board of directors called to congratulate him, and she sat by his side as they Skyped with someone called Bellows who was very impressed with their commitment to each other.
All Bella had to do was lean her head on Harvey’s shoulder, gaze at him adoringly and give a sweet, bashful nod and say thank you when congratulated. Harvey had held her hand the whole time, even though their hands weren’t visible to the webcam. It comforted her to have him hold onto her that way. She cursed herself for wanting to be closer to him, wanting to be touching him all the time.
Chapter 14
Their weekend on the boat ended with a stop in San Francisco for a business dinner. Bella wore a new white cocktail dress, her blonde hair half-up, and her lipstick cherry red.
Harvey led her into the restaurant, his hand on her back and creeping down to the curve of her backside. She swatted his hand playfully, beaming at him more sincerely than she meant to do. He introduced her to Mr. Sanchez and Mr. Domingo, men who were considering a merger with one of Bellingford Finance’s subsidiary companies.
They both kissed her hand and congratulated the couple on their recent engagement. Bella sat at the table and sipped her wine, listening to the conversation avidly. As the entrees were served, she noticed a cooling in the tone of the discussion. Mr. Domingo, in particular, seemed to grow increasingly negative as he spoke about the potential merger.
“I’ve always thought a cross-national merger would be problematic. We may need to seek an affiliate on our own soil,” he said.
“Now, Mr. Domingo,” Harvey began, “I can assure you that we have plenty of bilingual employees in our legal department ready to explain anything that you have doubts about.”
“I don’t think that’s what he’s saying, Harvey,” she put in, and everyone at the table gaped at her as if the napkin ring had started speaking instead of another person.
A man nudged Harvey. “Keep the maid in check.”
Harvey stood up. “Leave.”
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me. Leave. Now. Or I’ll have you thrown out on your sorry ass. Nobody talks to my fiancé in that matter.”
Huffing, he immediately left.
“I’m sorry about that, darling,” Harvey said.
“Well, if it’s okay if th
e maid speaks freely, I would like to say something.”
“Uh, what do you think is the problem then?” Harvey asked her.
“Well, help me out here, Mr. Domingo, and tell me if I’m wrong. I think the problem isn’t whether your staff is bilingual. I think the problem is that HR hasn’t been involved in the strategic planning up to this point, and maybe Mr. Domingo is worried about employee retention and the integration process.”
“Exactly!” Mr. Domingo said, seemingly relieved. Harvey looked from the men to Bella and back again.
“I’ve been studying mergers and acquisitions recently, and this is a major hang-up in a lot of cases and can even cause a breakdown in communications.”
“So, building on what Bella identified as the issue here, do you feel that a Skype with HR at Bellingford would be useful to you? We could clarify the exact direction we want your company to go once it’s under the umbrella of Bellingford and also work to preserve as much personnel as possible going forward.”
“Yes, that would be most satisfactory,” Mr. Domingo said, cutting his steak. Harvey looked at Bella, obviously impressed with her, and she was so pleased that she felt it right down to her toes.
Instead of being mere decoration, she had been of use to him in his negotiations and had been able to apply some of what she’d learned in her coursework. She was proud of herself, and she was proud to be a credit to Harvey as well.
When they got home—and she’d started to think of the mansion as home—Bella was happy to relax in her room with some TV and a bagel with cream cheese. After the whirlwind of Mexico and the proposal and San Francisco, it was good to have some quiet time between public appearances. After a few days of swimming, reading magazines and planning her future, she was bored. She caught up with Harvey in the hallway after he’d changed clothes to go to a dinner meeting.
“What am I supposed to be doing exactly?”
“What do you mean? You’ve come to all the appearances PR staged for us. You’re doing plenty. Our price per share is soaring and I’m back in the board’s good graces. It’s all good,” he said as he straightened his tie.
“I mean during the day. I have nothing to do.”
“Go shopping. Go to lunch. Take a yoga class. I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. She covered his hands with hers.
“Here, it’s still crooked, let me fix it.” Bella straightened the knot and smoothed the silk of his tie regretfully. She missed him already, “We haven’t seen much of each other, and I just wondered if there was anything I needed to study up on for our upcoming events or something.”
“No. After you saved the Spanish merger for me in San Francisco, you’ve more than earned your keep. Just have fun, Bella. You’ve earned it,” he said and kissed her cheek absently before he left.
Right then and there, she decided to double her course load. She was already way ahead in the classes she was taking. She could handle more work and make progress toward her degree. Bella registered for additional classes and set to work. The next few weeks were a blur of required reading, essays, and citations, mixed in with a couple of staged dates per week with Harvey.
They went to an outdoor concert, a wine tasting, and a few charity events. They did a 5K to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease and the picture of them embracing after they crossed the finish line hand-in-hand was all over the Internet and trended with the hashtag #relationshipgoals. He had picked her up and spun her around, her head thrown back laughing. They were the picture perfect couple.
She was lonely. She was using college classes to fill the emptiness she felt when they weren’t together. She realized she was falling in love with him. And now she was lost. She’d fallen for the ruse they set up to dupe the board. She’d believed things she knew weren’t real. He was just a handsome guy who was nice to her and that was all it took. That and a Corvette and a diamond, both of which existed to support his public image and probably had nothing to do with her personally at all. Still, they were trappings of the greater problem, the real feelings born from the fake romance.
Dating a fake, pretend fiancé sucks.
Bella was losing sleep. She’d go to bed at a decent time only to lie awake daydreaming about Harvey, about the dancing and talking and kissing that they’d shared and their agreement to keep it platonic. She’d overanalyzed his every word and gesture a hundred times, worse than any middle schooler with a crush, trying to convince herself that he liked her as more than a friend, a partner in crime as it were. She wanted him to feel that same damning rush of affection and lust that drove through her every time she saw him.
Chapter 15
Bella came down in a pair of jean shorts and a tank top with a hat, and her hair in a ponytail. Harvey shot her a confused look, and she grinned.
“You can’t go to lunch in that. As much as I would enjoy seeing your long legs, you’ll give Mrs. Anthony a heart attack.”
“The charity luncheon was moved to tomorrow at the very last minute. Greta couldn’t reach you and neither could I. You were out riding Sadie. And then I had to leave and make some arrangements for today.”
“Are you ready? We got places to go and things to see.”
He cocked a brown. “Go where?”
That confused look on his face was adorable. She could see he was a man that hated to give up control. But today…he had no choice. She smirked.
“Go ahead and change into something casual,” Bella said. “I’m taking you somewhere.”
“I see that big smile on your face. You love changing the tables on me, reversing the roles.”
Bella smiled. “And let you have all the fun. I think not. So change out of that suit.”
“Any hints?”
“Make sure to wear some hiking boots and a hat. And I would also suggest shorts. It’s going to be over a hundred degrees. But that’s typical Phoenix weather.”
He laughed that deep laugh of his. She loved the way he laughed.
Harvey met her out front and smiled when he saw the Jeep she rented.
“You mentioned you wanted to explore Phoenix,” he said. “I can show you everything. Give me the keys, I can drive.”
She walked up to him and smiled. “Sometimes you can’t have all the control.”
He pushed a piece of hair behind her ear. “But I like being in the driver’s seat because so I can take control of the action.”
“We’re going on some rough roads, but don’t worry. I got this.”
He winked. “I like rough.”
She playfully nudged him. “Get in the Jeep. Sit back and enjoy the ride. I’m driving.”
He climbed in and put his seat belt on. “So where are we going?”
She smiled. “Now it wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you now, would it?”
“Such a woman of mystery.”
“I like to keep you on your toes.”
“That you have.”
“You’ve taken me on boats, to fancy dinners in limos, to theaters,” she said. “And they were fantastic. But now it’s my turn to show you something else, something you’re not really accustomed too.”
“And what’s that?”
“Nature.”
She pressed the gas, and they took off. They laughed and chatted the entire way there. And when it was time to go off road, Harvey insisted he drive.
“Not a chance!” she roared as she drove over the bumpy dirt. “Just hang on!”
Bella marveled at the breathtaking desert views and rugged mountains. Cactus plants, wild shrubs, and sand stretched as far as the eye could see.
The sun shone brightly,
and the sky was a brilliant shade of blue. The wind whipped through their hair. She glanced over at Harvey and loved seeing him so happy and carefree. The trip was extremely bumpy but still exciting and thrilling. What an adrenaline rush! They sped through puddles, sliding over rocks and boulders.
The desert rocks were rough and steep, but it was well worth the teeth-jarring and jolting ride. They loved
every minute of it! At times, it was fast and exciting, and other times were slow and leisurely, giving them the best of both worlds.
They stopped and went for an amazing hike around the rocks.
When they slowed down to turn a bend, Bella saw her first roadrunner!
“They’re nothing like the typical Roadrunner cartoon.” She pulled out her phone, and tried to capture a picture. The first one was blurry. But she got the second pic just before it jumped back into the cactus.”
“Not like the cartoons at all. I’ve never seen one in person.”
She sipped from her canteen. “Me neither. I was hoping to see a desert bighorn sheep, but I’ll take this.”
The hike started off with a gentle incline as it wound its way through the rocks. They walked through the crack in the rocks and were careful to keep their footing. Harvey was fit and in shape, so he hiked like a pro. A few times they needed to use their hands to climb up a rocky spot.
Harvey reached his hand down and helped to pull Bella up. Once up top, they enjoyed the panoramic views and all the fresh air.
Bella grinned as she lifted her hands up in victory to their accomplishment, and shouted, “We’re the kings of the world!”
Smiling, Harvey lifted her up and spun her around as they burst out in laughter.
“We did it!” he said.
“We rock!”
She held up her phone and they both took a selfie to post on social media later that day.
After their hike, they took off in the Jeep once again. They drove on and over the red rocks while magnificent canyon walls surrounded them. The canyon exploded in color as the sun shone brightly.
Bella parked the Jeep and pulled out stuff for a picnic. She had packed a red and white blanket and a big picnic basket. She even brought a cooler with cold water.
“Now I have one condition,” she said. “You can’t bring the cell phone.”
“I haven’t opened it once.”
“But you could be tempted, now that we’re stopped.”
“I’ll put it in the glove box.”
Harvey laid out the blanket under the shade from an overhang, and they ate sandwiches.
