He joins me on the top step. “You really are looking at this as a business deal, aren’t you? But, come on, Penny, you have to admit what you’re about to do is pretty freaking cool. You’ll meet all kinds of people. Celebrities. Sports stars. You’ll fly first class and stay in the best places. You’ll get to eat at those fancy restaurants we’ve always walked by making fun of all the stuffy people who eat there. Now you’ll be one of those people. And just think, you might make some connections that could help you out in your career long after Sawyer Mills is a thing of the past.”
I shrug. He’s right. I am looking at this as a business deal. If I think of it any other way, I’m bound to be disappointed. Because even though I’m trying to keep my mind from going there, I can’t get over the memory of that kiss. I can’t stop thinking about how well we got along that night. And for the life of me, I can’t stop fantasizing about having him in my bed. Detailed fantasies. Ones in which I can hear him groan and call out my name.
I’d never hear the end of it if Bass knew just how many times I’ve used my vibrator in the past week while thinking of the man on the other side of this door. The man who is so untouchable he has to have a contract to get a girlfriend. Or, fake girlfriend. A guy who is so socially inept that he can’t fathom settling down.
So, yes, this is a business deal. And for all intents and purposes, I’m a hired actor.
“Ready?” he asks.
“Yeah.”
He knocks on the door. While we’re waiting for Sawyer to answer, I peek through the sidelight. It’s opaque, but I can see shadows moving about. He has company.
“Did he say Sarah was going to be here tonight?”
“I don’t think so.”
The door opens and Sawyer sees me. He completely ignores Bass while his eyes take me in from head to toe. It’s hard for me to stand here and not look affected by his heated perusal. And he should be perusing – after all, I broke out my best figure-hugging jeans for this. I’m wearing heels for Pete’s sake – something I rarely do, but I figured if I’m to be the girlfriend of a baseball star, I’ll need to look the part.
“Aspen, you’re looking good,” he says. “Come in.” He finally looks at Bass. “Sebastian, nice to see you again.”
Bass holds out his hand in greeting. “Please call me Bass. Sebastian makes me sound like a stuffy old man.”
I look around, surprised to see four strangers standing around Sawyer’s kitchen. I turn to him. “I thought we were going to talk about this,” I whisper. “I’m not sure I’m ready to jump right in.”
“Oh, my God, Penny,” Bass says into my ear. “That’s Caden Kessler and Brady Taylor.”
“Who?”
“Come on,” Sawyer says, inviting us into the kitchen. “I’d like you to meet my friends. Aspen Andrews, meet Brady Taylor and his wife, Rylee. And this is Caden Kessler and his wife, Murphy. Guys, this is Aspen and her friend, Bass Briggs.”
I don’t miss how Bass is impressed that Sawyer remembered his last name. I say hello and shake their hands. Bass is standing in stunned silence as his eyes bounce between the three other men in the room. “Bass,” I whisper loudly, hoping he’ll snap out of it and quit embarrassing us.
“Sorry,” he says, finally shaking hands with everyone. “It’s just that this is a surreal moment for me to be standing in a room with all three of you.”
“So you guys play baseball, too?” I ask Caden and Brady.
“Oh, I like her already,” Murphy says.
“Yeah, we play baseball, too,” Brady says, amusement washing over his handsome features.
“Caden is a catcher,” Bass says. “He’s also pretty good at hitting home runs. Brady’s a pitcher. He pitched a perfect game last year.”
I look at him in confusion.
“Sorry, guys,” Bass says. “Aspen doesn’t know the first thing about baseball.”
“That’s not true,” I whine. “I’ve watched some games on TV before. Just not since I was a kid. And they made us play it in middle school gym class.”
“I stand corrected,” Bass says. “She’s obviously an expert.”
I swat him. “Don’t mind my roommate. He doesn’t get out much.”
“You two are roommates?” Rylee asks, obviously as confused as I am about what’s going on here.
“Since sophomore year,” I say.
“You go to school?” Murphy asks.
“Yes. Juilliard. But Bass doesn’t go there anymore. He’s training to become a firefighter.”
“Juilliard. Wow, impressive.” She turns to Bass. “And being a firefighter is a very noble calling.”
“He had his first day of fire school today,” I say proudly. “He’s already a paramedic.”
“How was day one?” Caden asks. “Back in college, I had a buddy who became a firefighter. He said it was a bitch.”
Bass laughs and stretches his arms over his head. “Let’s just say I’ll be sore into next week. We did physical assessments today.”
“Pul-lease,” I say. “You’re in great shape, Bass.”
It’s true. I look around at the three professional baseball players in this room and think of how well Bass fits in. He looks just as fit as the rest of them.
Sawyer gives me a look and I realize what I did. Is he mad at me for talking up my roommate? I guess I’m supposed to be ‘making dreamy eyes’ at him or something. Is this all starting now? What happened to meeting to discuss how this is going to go?
“Before we get started, can I get you guys a drink?” Sawyer asks.
“Get started with what?” Brady asks. “Is this game night or something?”
“No, not game night,” Sawyer says. “Go ahead and make yourselves comfortable in the living room.”
I look around at the two couples. They seem to have no idea why they’re here, and I’m more than a little uncomfortable. Is Sawyer just going to pull me onto his lap and pretend we’re a thing? What must they think of Bass being here?
“Just water for me please,” I tell him.
“Me, too,” Bass says. “No drinking during training.”
I take a seat in a single chair by the fireplace so there’s no room for Sawyer to sit next to me. Bass sits on the couch, still star-struck and oblivious to the fact that I’ve never felt more awkward in my life.
I take in my surroundings. It’s a bachelor pad on steroids. It’s nice. Not Christian Grey nice, but modern-contemporary-bachelor nice. It looks like he’s had the entire townhouse renovated. Most New York City townhouses have been around for a while and have the old-style boxy rooms. This one, however, is an open floor plan, the entire first floor being visible from anywhere you stand.
His kitchen is huge and looks to have all the latest conveniences. I wonder if he cooks. I wonder if he would mind me using his kitchen when I’m staying here.
There’s a large sitting area off the foyer that I think would be perfect for a piano. I can’t help it. Every time I go into a new residence, I pick the place where a piano should be. Everyone should have one. Then again, I may be a little biased.
“So, what do you study at Juilliard?” Rylee asks.
“Piano.”
“You must be very talented to have gotten into such a prestigious school.”
“She is,” Bass says. “She’s the most talented person I’ve ever met.”
“Says the guy who plays guitar better than Jimi Hendrix.”
Rylee raises her eyebrows. “A guitar-playing firefighter? Watch out, ladies.”
“Thank you. See, I told you, Bass.”
“Whatever.”
Sebastian isn’t cocky. He’s humble and modest, and just about the nicest person I know. He’s as good looking and as fit as the famous athletes in this room, yet he has no idea the draw he has on women. Probably because he’s with me ninety percent of the time and women may be too intimidated to approach him with another woman by his side.
Sawyer comes over with two bottles of water, handing one to each of us
.
“Are you going to tell us why we’re really here?” Caden asks. “You’ve been acting strange ever since the plane ride home yesterday.”
“Yeah, I’m a little confused myself,” I say.
“Sorry,” Sawyer tells everyone. “I just thought it easiest to only go over this one time.”
“Go over what?” Caden asks.
Sawyer comes over and stands behind me, putting his hand on my shoulder. “I’d like to introduce you all to my new girlfriend.”
Four pairs of eyes look at Sawyer like he’s off his rocker.
“Mills, we already met fifteen minutes ago when she walked in,” Brady says.
“What the hell is going on here?” Caden asks.
“So, uh … as of today, Aspen is my girlfriend, but she’s not really my girlfriend.”
Finally, I understand what’s happening. These people are to Sawyer what Bass is to me. His best friends. His confidants. People who will be in on our secret. Now that I think about it, he did mention telling a few of his friends who he thought could help us.
“Dude … explain,” Brady says.
“I’m, uh” —Sawyer has the decency to at least look embarrassed before he tells them— “I’m paying Aspen to be my girlfriend for the season.”
Chapter Nine
Sawyer
Murphy and Rylee sit there with their jaws in their laps while Brady and Caden shake their heads and laugh.
“Are you serious?” Caden asks.
“As a heart attack, bro.”
“But … why?”
“Because I’m not going to risk getting traded, that’s why.”
“And you thought hiring someone to be your fake girlfriend was the way to prevent that?” Brady says. “You realize if this gets out you’ll have made things ten times worse. Rick will have a goddamn conniption.”
I shake my head. “It’s not going to get out.”
My friends share looks of disbelief, concern, and maybe anger with each other.
“Where the hell did you find her?” Caden asks.
“How do you even go about hiring someone to be your girlfriend?” Rylee says.
“How did you two meet?” Murphy asks. “And who exactly is Bass? Is he here to protect her or something?”
Bass stands up defensively. “I’m not her pimp, if that’s what you’re asking. And Aspen sure as hell isn’t a hooker.”
I see the color drain from Aspen’s face as I realize what’s going on here. My friends think I hired her through some kind of service. Aspen must be mortified thinking everyone is looking at her like she’s a call girl.
“It’s not like that, guys,” I say. “Aspen and I met last week at a bar.”
“You met at a bar?” Rylee asks. “As in she picked you up?”
“Do you even know her?” Brady asks. “She could be playing you.”
Aspen holds her hand up. “Can everyone please stop talking about me as if I’m not here?”
“She’s right,” Murphy says. “We should hear her out.”
“Thank you,” she says. “When I met Sawyer, I was having a really bad day. And to make things worse, a bus drove by, soaking me with dirty road water. Sawyer saw the whole thing and asked if he could help. We started talking about the fact that we both had crappy days and he invited me to have a drink. We spent several hours in a bar and then he walked me home. He showed up the next morning with this proposition and the rest is history.”
“But, why would you want to do this?” Rylee asks her.
“I’m paying her to do this,” I say. “An education from Juilliard doesn’t come cheaply. This will allow her to go to grad school and at the same time, will allow me to be seen as the kind of guy the Hawks want me to be.”
“But what about after? How long can you keep this up?” Caden asks.
“For the season,” I tell him. “After the season is over, Aspen and I will have an amicable break up. But by then, my reputation will have been repaired in the eyes of the organization.”
“And then what?” Rylee asks. “You’ll go back to your old ways?”
I shrug. “That’s the plan. I’ll just have to be more discreet about it.”
“How do you know this won’t get out?” Brady asks. “There are seven people in this room, that’s a lot of people who have to keep a secret.”
I know he’s not talking about the four of them. He’s looking at Aspen and Bass.
“Because we have a contract and they’ve both signed a non-disclosure agreement.”
“You have a contract?” Rylee asks. “What exactly does it say?”
“You know, technical stuff about how she gets paid and what she’s supposed to do.”
“You mean how I’m supposed to look at you,” Aspen says.
Murphy gasps. “You’re dictating how she has to look at you?”
“With ‘dreamy eyes’,” Aspen says.
“Oh, my God. Really?” Murphy says, looking appalled at Aspen. “Do you get bonuses for sleeping with him?”
Aspen snorts. “Hardly. I had them write into the contract that under no circumstances would I be having sex with him.”
“You did?”
Aspen nods. “Yes. And not only that, I stipulated that he not be allowed to have sex with anyone else, either, for the duration of our arrangement. I didn’t want to be made to look like a fool.”
Murphy’s face turns from a cold, hard stare into a soft smile. Then she laughs. Then my other three friends laugh.
“What’s so goddamn funny?” I ask.
When Brady and Caden are done doubling over, Caden says, “This season just got so much more interesting.”
“Listen, guys,” Aspen says. “I know what this must look like to you, but rest assured, Bass and I are good people. And I’m just a poor college student who was down on my luck when I ran into Sawyer. I don’t give a rat’s ass about him being some famous baseball player. I had no idea who he was when I met him, and if I had my way, I wouldn’t even be sitting here. But circumstances dictate I do this, so here we are.” She stands up and I’m afraid she might storm out of the townhouse. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, Bass and I are going to step out back for five minutes. You can talk about me all you want during that time, but, please, when we come back, can we just sit down and figure this out?”
She looks at Bass, imploring him to follow her. We all watch as they walk out my back door and sit on my porch.
I turn to my friends. “I know you think this is stupid, but the contract is iron-clad. If either of them says anything about it, she doesn’t get the money. Even afterwards, she has to pay it all back if she ever tells anyone.”
“You really think you can trust them?” Caden asks. “I mean, why not just go find an actual girlfriend?”
“Come on, you guys know me. I’m not boyfriend material. This is the only way.”
“Having a contract that says you can’t have sex for six months is the only way?” Brady asks.
“Yes,” I say. “This is my career on the line. I can trust Aspen. I think she’s exactly what I need. She’s got a good head on her shoulders. You should see all the shit she made Sarah add to the contract.”
“She really didn’t know who you were?” Rylee asks.
“Not a clue, I’m sure of it.”
Murphy looks out my back window. “I think I might like her,” she says.
“Ditto for me,” Rylee says. “Come on, Murphy, let’s go get them.”
When the girls leave, Brady scratches his head, still not getting it. “But why not just do what Rick asked and keep your dick in your pants? This seems so much more complicated.”
I shake my head. “Because I know I couldn’t do it. I didn’t even make it one fucking day. The day Rick said they were trading me was the day I met Aspen. We hit it off, had some drinks, and ended up back at her place.”
“Wait, you slept with her?” Caden asks. “But she said she wrote the whole ‘no sex’ thing into the contract. It doesn’t make
sense.”
“She doesn’t remember,” I tell them. “I swear I didn’t think she was that drunk. I would never take advantage of a drunk chick. I slipped out like I normally do, but then I started thinking about her grad school acceptance letter that I saw lying on the floor. She’d said the night before that the letter was why she had a bad day, so I figured she needed money. She needed money and I needed a good reputation. So I went back to her place and told her about my plan. She kicked me out, thinking I was a creepy asshole, which I probably was. But then when I went back that night to apologize, she heard me out.”
“Dude, you didn’t tell her you had sex with her?” Brady asks.
“Why the fuck would I? I got a free pass.”
Brady scolds me with his disapproving stare.
“And I wasn’t sure she’d agree to any of this if she knew,” I admit.
Caden laughs. “Oh, man, you’ve got balls, I’ll give you that.”
“Wouldn’t you guys do anything to save your career?” I ask them.
The three of us stare at each other as everyone else comes back in the room. They don’t have to say anything. I know what the answer is.
“Okay,” Caden says. “Tell us how we can help.”
“For starters, you two can validate it when I start talking about Aspen around the other guys. They won’t believe me if I say I have a girlfriend.”
“Then don’t tell them,” Murphy says. “Because, you’re right, they won’t believe you. You should let them see you together. Maybe deny that you have feelings for her. Talk about her like you’d talk about any of the others. It will seem more real to them if they watch it happen rather than being told it has happened.”
“This is why we need them,” I tell Aspen. “Okay, what else?”
“Maybe you should ‘meet’ her when you’re out with the guys,” Rylee says. “That way, they think you are meeting her for the first time.”
I nod. “Good. When?”
“We leave for San Diego on Thursday,” Caden says. “How about Sunday night after we get back?”
Stealing Sawyer Page 7
