Fake Dating My Rockstar Roommate: A Sweet Standalone Romance (Fake Dates Book 3)

by Maggie Dallen

  He let out a huff of amusement.

  “Why is it so important to you that I want something in return?” she asked, honest curiosity in her tone.

  He shrugged, his gaze fixed on the crowd waiting outside those doors. “I don’t trust someone doing something for nothing."

  This was met with silence before she muttered under her breath, “And I thought I had trust issues.”

  His neck muscles bunched with tension. She had no idea how much was riding on this ruse. “You need incentive.”

  She frowned up at him. “And you need manners.”

  His brows shot up. “Excuse me?”

  She turned to face the door, her shoulders going back and her spine stiff and straight. “You could just say thank you, you know.”

  His jaw worked as they stood there side by side, waiting for word that it was safe to walk to the car. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  He could practically hear her smug smile, and it had his lips curving up for no reason he could possibly explain.

  “Okay, you two,” Vanessa said. “It’s go time.”

  She shoved open the door and they followed. If she stiffened when he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, he ignored it.

  Funny how such a short walk could feel so long. The sheriff and deputy were keeping the crowd at bay for them, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t hear what was being shouted.

  Mostly his name. Requests for autographs. The usual.

  But then there was the one, “Are you really with that girl?”

  His arm around her tightened.

  “Is that really little Gina Parker? I thought she was still with Billy.”

  At the mention of Billy’s name, she tripped slightly.

  “Gina, what happened with you and Billy?”

  He groaned. This was the power of groupthink. He’d guess whoever had shouted that out would never have asked such a rude question if they’d run into Gina on the street. But here in this mob scene, anything went.

  In their eyes, she wasn’t human anymore. She was famous.

  Her head came up like she was looking for the owner of the voice, but he nudged her forward.

  “Does Billy know?” another person called out.

  They’d just reached the car door, which Trent threw open. But they paused long enough for him to look down and see the paleness of Gina’s face.

  Her lips trembled.

  Billy.

  Of course. She’d barely even processed the fact that her boyfriend had cheated on her.

  Rage was an ugly, twisted thing. It hit him fast and fierce, and filled him with a rush of adrenaline.

  If Billy were there, he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from throwing a punch. But Billy wasn’t here. There was only Gina and her impossibly hurt expression.

  Billy would pay. That much he could promise her. And right now he knew exactly how he could get revenge on her behalf.

  “Trust me?” he asked, his voice barely audible over the crowd.

  She shook her head. “What?” Her brows drew together in confusion.

  Before she could turn to climb into the car, he cupped her face between his palms and gave this crowd what they’d been waiting for.

  He leaned in close and when his lips closed over hers, the contact was brief but electric. The ground jolted beneath his feet as she gasped in shock.

  It was a hard kiss, nothing gentle and sweet about it.

  It was over almost before it began.

  But as he pulled back and Trent shoved a stunned Gina into the backseat, Aston knew without a doubt that it was a kiss he would never forget.

  Nine

  Gina’s soon-to-be sister-in-law was leaning over Gina’s kitchen table, her hands clenched around a cup of hot coffee and her eyes impossibly wide. “Okay, but can we just get back to the part where he kissed you?” Addison hissed.

  Addison’s gaze darted to the hallway behind Gina which led to the spare bedroom—formerly Colton’s bedroom—where Aston was settling in.

  She hadn’t had a moment’s peace ever since she and Aston had arrived at her little house not far from Main Street. First there’d been some crew members who’d worked for the festival. They’d come by with Aston’s luggage while he was on the phone reaming out the PR guy who’d gotten them into this situation.

  Then there’d been Trent, Colton, and a few other deputies. They’d installed a deadbolt on both doors and an alarm system. Just in case, Colton had said about eight hundred times.

  Just in case of what? He hadn’t clarified. But if the crowd outside the sheriff’s office was anything to go by, Gina could guess.

  The deputies had no sooner left when her friends had shown up. Thoughtful as always, Addison and Vanessa had taken it upon themselves to make sure she was stocked up on groceries since they assumed correctly that she’d be staying inside for a while.

  Like, for a month, preferably. Or however long it took for Aston to leave and her world to go back to normal.

  Normal. She flinched at the memory of Billy’s breakup and her new status as unemployed.

  Normal wasn’t looking so hot.

  But still, whatever that new normal would be, she was ready to go back to it. Single, heartbroken, and broke wasn’t exactly ideal, but it was a far cry better than being in the spotlight.

  She now knew this very well.

  Gina was officially not cut out for the limelight. The tiniest taste of being the center of attention, and it had just about killed her.

  And then Aston had gone and made the crazy scene outside the sheriff’s office a million times worse by kissing her. It was like he’d walked into an already raging fire and set off explosives.

  And she didn’t just mean the fireworks that had erupted inside her. Yes, there had been sparks. Crazy, downed-power-lines levels of sparks with that one crushing, brief touch of his lips to hers. But that wasn’t the only explosion. The crowd around them had clearly been blown away as well.

  It was the kiss heard round the world.

  There’d been a sudden silence. Then gasps. Then shouts upon shouts.

  All questions. How long has this been going on? Are you getting married? What about Billy?

  The last had been from locals who clearly knew who she was and who she’d been dating as of this morning.

  So yeah, there’d been questions. His fans had a whole lot of questions.

  And now, apparently, Addison had questions of her own. “What was it like?”

  Vanessa laughed. “What do you mean ‘what was it like?’ You’ve seen the video.”

  “Everyone’s seen the video,” Gina moaned.

  Neither of her friends tried to deny it. She might have been housebound since they’d left the sheriff’s office, but Gina still had the internet. She’d gotten caught up on the ridiculous make believe tale about her insta-love story with Aston. Apparently they’d met when he’d pulled over to help her when her car broke down.

  Yeah, because that story was just so airtight.

  If Aston hadn’t already reamed out the PR guy, she’d have wanted a word of her own with the moron.

  But she’d also seen the pictures. And the videos. Not to mention the comments.

  Holy schnitzel, those comments.

  Social media was flooded with news of Aston Rogue’s new relationship. She’d stared in horror as she saw her own name become a trending hashtag. She’d stared so long that she hadn’t even noticed Aston walk over until he’d clicked shut her laptop.

  He’d walked away again with a low growl about how she shouldn’t take it personally.

  Yeah. Okay. That was definitely easier said than done.

  He wasn’t the one being called names by every female music fan on the planet.

  Gina frowned down into her mug of coffee as her friends watched her with concern. “The world thinks I’m a two-timing jerk.”

  “Stupid Billy,” Addison muttered.

  “I’m going to kill him,” Vanessa
said.

  Gina sighed and lifted her mug to her lips. Billy hadn’t helped matters, that was for sure. He’d taken to social media and told anyone who would listen about how he’d been dating her when Aston had come along and stolen her away.

  As if she were his prized hog or something. He’d talked about her like she was a possession. And all the while she’d been screaming in her head. He’s the cheater, not me!

  The unfairness of the situation made her coffee taste bitter.

  “I can’t believe he was cheating on you,” Addison muttered.

  Gina winced. “You and me both.”

  Vanessa frowned. “Any idea who it was who texted you that photo?”

  Gina shook her head. After the day she’d had, it hadn’t even been on her mind.

  “We can look into it for you if you want. It can’t be too hard to track down a local number,” Vanessa said.

  “No,” Gina said slowly. “But thanks.”

  “You’re not curious?” Addison asked.

  Gina shrugged. “A little. But whoever it was did me a favor, and if they didn’t want me to know who they were, I’m happy to respect their anonymity.”

  Vanessa’s brows arched. “You are officially a nicer person than I am.”

  Addison laughed and raised her hand. “Nicer than me too. I’d be dying to know.”

  Vanessa leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. “I’d figure out who it was and then ask them to post that picture on every local social media site so everyone knows who’s really to blame for your breakup.”

  Gina blinked at Vanessa’s sudden anger. She squirmed in her chair. “Is it that bad, what they’re saying about me?”

  Her friends exchanged a look that only made Gina feel worse.

  Addison patted her hand. “Anyone with an ounce of sense can see that Billy is a schmuck.”

  Gina’s brows shot up. “I didn’t see it.”

  “Oh.” Addison winced. “Right. But I meant…” She looked to Vanessa for help.

  Vanessa flinched. “Addison just meant that you were blinded by your feelings for Billy. But no one else will believe him.”

  Gina slumped down in her chair. She wasn’t sure which was worse—that she was the only idiot to believe Billy’s act or that the world at large believed her to be just like him.

  Addison brightened. “Even if they don’t know that he’s lying, no one can fault you for choosing Aston Rogue.”

  Vanessa nodded. “Right. His fans won’t judge you for choosing Aston. They just want to know all the juicy details.”

  “They want to live vicariously,” Addison added with a nod.

  Gina supposed Addison might understand that more than most. As the daughter of a mega-successful tycoon, she’d fled to Cyrano precisely to avoid being in the public eye.

  “This will all be old news soon enough anyway, right?” she asked her friends.

  That’s what she kept telling herself. She might be big news today, but in no time, this gossip would be replaced by something more scandalous.

  Her friends nodded eagerly. “Of course,” Addison said.

  “And in the meantime…” Vanessa’s smile turned knowing. “Use it to your advantage.”

  Gina frowned. “How?”

  “Aston wants to do right by you,” Vanessa said. “Let him.”

  Gina was shaking her head before Vanessa was done talking. First of all, her friend made it sound like Aston was some altruistic giver.

  He was not.

  He just didn’t want to owe anyone anything, that much he’d made abundantly clear. And to take money from him so he could put an arm around her and kiss her in public?

  That just made her feel like she needed to take a shower.

  “I don’t want anything from him,” she said.

  Addison’s lips hitched to the side, her eyes narrowed in thought. “Then maybe you could think about how he could help others.”

  Vanessa nodded, her features brightening with understanding. “Addison is right. Your rockstar is looking to make a better name for himself, right?”

  “He’s not mine,” she muttered. “But yeah.”

  Vanessa tapped a finger against her mug. “You know I don’t approve of how his PR team handled this mess, but I do get where they were coming from.”

  Gina and Addison shared a look. Addison turned to Vanessa in clear disbelief. “You do?”

  “Sure,” Vanessa said. “If I had a client who was losing public favor because he no longer had the excuse of being young and dumb, I’d probably do the same.”

  Gina’s lips parted on a protest.

  “Obviously without harming innocent bystanders like yourself,” Vanessa added quickly. “But I’d do my darndest to make him seem...reformed.”

  Gina blinked. Her mind’s eye was calling up that sexy smirk, the cocky attitude...the blistering kiss. “Reformed?” she echoed.

  Addison giggled at her tone of disbelief.

  “I said I’d try to make him seem reformed,” Vanessa laughed. “I didn’t say it would actually take.”

  Gina laughed, Addison’s suggestion making more sense the more she thought on it.

  Addison perked up. “I know the kids would love to hear him play.”

  Addison was a volunteer in the local hospital’s pediatric ward.

  “Or the library,” Vanessa said. “The new librarian is sweet, but she’s not exactly winning over the donors with her personality.”

  “She’s just shy.” Gina frowned, defensive on her new customer’s account.

  Former customer.

  Gina’s heart sank at the reminder that her home away from home was no longer hers.

  “Shy or not, she’s not doing a good job with the annual fundraiser,” Vanessa said. “Trent asked me to help her out, and I’m trying, but we could use all the star power we could get.”

  Gina nodded. The library’s annual fundraiser was crucial for keeping the children’s program alive and well. “I’ll ask him.”

  “It’ll be an extra bonus for his new good-guy rep so it’ll be good for him too,” Vanessa pointed out. “Make sure you tell him that.”

  Gina nodded. So Vanessa had seen it too, the way he only seemed concerned with saving his own hide. Maybe that it’s-all-about-me mindset was part of being a celebrity.

  Or maybe it was how he came to be a celebrity.

  But all Gina knew was that it was a bummer. She would have been completely content to go on believing the fantasy version of Aston Rogue was real.

  And she imagined that was exactly what all those raving fans on social media wanted too.

  Ugh. She sipped her coffee. She was just like them.

  How depressing.

  “We should go,” Addison said, coming to her feet. “I’m sure you and your new roomie need some get-to-know-you time.”

  Vanessa laughed, and Gina just barely resisted the urge to stop them. She didn’t need alone time with Aston. She was facing way too much of that already. A solid month’s worth of quality time.

  After they left, while Aston was still in Colton’s old bedroom, she put the groceries away and then pulled out the ingredients for a pasta dinner.

  The dinner was a little more elaborate than the simple meal she would have made for herself if she was home alone. But cooking gave her something to do with her restless self. Not to mention, she loved cooking. The hardest part of Colton moving out was that she had no one to cook for anymore.

  So she got to work in her small kitchen, all the while telling herself she would not call Addison and Vanessa and beg them to come back.

  She was being ridiculous. It wasn’t like her friends could move in here indefinitely just to spare her from being alone with Aston Rogue.

  I’m going to be alone with Aston Rogue!

  “Ugh, shut up,” she growled to her inner fangirl.

  “Um, okay,” Aston drawled behind her.

  She spun around, her homemade marinara sauce flying from the end of her spoon. “Oh! You s
cared me.”

  “So you’re not telling me to shut up then?” His smile was slow and lazy. But it was genuine and so the butterflies in her belly put on a full-blown air show worthy of the Blue Angels.

  “No. Not you,” she said.

  She ignored his arched brows. The silent question of ‘who were you talking to then?’

  My inner fangirl would just sound insane.

  Instead she looked down at the food she was cooking. “Um, are you hungry?”

  “Starving,” he said. “I haven’t eaten all day.”

  “Then have a seat.”

  “You know you don’t have to cook for me, right?”

  Something in his wary tone had her looking over. “I’m sensing a theme here,” she said. Pointing the spoon at him playfully, she narrowed her eyes. “Are you going to freak out and insist on repaying me for the food? Because if so, you can just order takeout right now.”

  He chuckled. “I wouldn’t dream of saying no to whatever it is you’re making that smells so good. I just don’t want you to think you have to, that’s all.”

  She grinned. “Trust me, it’s my pleasure. I hate cooking just for myself.”

  “Then allow me to be of service.” He put a hand to his chest and gave a short, gallant bow that made her give a little snort of laughter.

  “So, I’ve been thinking,” she said slowly as she went back to the stove.

  “And?”

  “And I have an idea for how you can repay me for...this.” She waved her spoon to encompass her whole upside-down world.

  He straightened in the chair, the relaxed expression gone. “Name it.”

  “It’s, um...it’s a favor,” she started. She stopped, staring into the sauce like it might be able to help.

  Why was this so hard?

  “Okay,” he said slowly. “That’s a start. So it’s a favor…” The scrape of the chair against linoleum was her only cue that he was coming to join her by the stove. “Is this favor for you?”

  His tone was teasing now.

  Teasing and...sexy.

  Was that possible? Could teasing be sexy?

  Her breath caught when he came to stand just behind her, so close she could smell the soap from the shower he’d taken a little while ago.

  “You have some ideas on how we can make Billy lose his mind with jealousy?” He moved closer, his voice low and intimate. “Because I have some thoughts.”