by J. S. Cooper
“Excuse my language, but what the fuck?” I was annoyed. “That’s ridiculous. He likes someone, yet he’s hiring a fake girlfriend.”
“I guess he wants to make sure that this girl is the one,” Bob said. “Look, I don’t bloody know what’s going on, but I met the guy and he seems legit. And he seems to really love this girl.”
“He loves this girl and instead of telling her, he’s hiring a fake girlfriend?”
“I can’t tell you why people do what they do,” Bob said. “But this guy is a lawyer and I think he’s legit.”
“Uh huh.” I frowned. “Anything else you wanted to ask me, Bob? Because I’m about to hang up on you, and I’m telling you that I’m not taking this job.”
“So you’re telling me I have to tell Aiden Taylor no, then?” Bob said and I froze.
“What’s this guy’s name?” I said in disbelief.
“His name is Aiden Taylor.”
“Oh hell no,” I said. “What’s the girl’s name that he likes? Wait, don’t tell me, is it Liv? No, wait, that’s his sister. Is it Alice?”
“Yeah, how did you know?” Bob sounded surprised.
“Bloody hell. Can’t this family leave me alone?” I said, my face burning as I realized that my new client was Scott’s brother.
“You know him?”
“No. Yes. Ugh, not really.” I sighed.
“So you’re going to take the job?”
“No,” I said adamantly, but then something in me started to get excited. Maybe this was a way to see Scott again. Maybe if I could just see him, I could explain. “Maybe. I want to meet this Aiden first.”
“I can set a meeting up tomorrow if you want.”
“Yeah. I guess that’s fine. Do not tell him I’ve taken the job. Just tell him that I’m willing to meet him to see if I can help him.”
“Okay.” Bob sounded gleeful. I knew he was already picturing his new pickup truck or whatever he was going to buy with the money he made. “Come to the office tomorrow at 11 a.m. and I’ll have you guys meet.”
“Okay.” I hung up and buried my face in my hands. I had no idea if I was making a mistake, but I knew that this was fate’s way of giving me a second chance. At least I hoped it was.
***
“Hi, I’m Aiden.” A tall man stood up and reached his hand out to me. He had a huge smile on his face and his big blue eyes reminded me of Scott, only Aiden had dark hair.
“Elizabeth,” I said and shook his hand. I stared into his eyes to see if my name rang any bells.
“Nice to meet you,” he said with a small smile. “Shall we have a seat?”
“Sure,” I said and sat down in the chair next to his. “Where’s Bob?”
“He said he was going to Burger King,” Aiden said, and I could feel his eyes on my face. “He had some coupon that was going to expire today or something.”
“Of course.” I laughed and sat back, pushing my breasts out. I concentrated on Aiden’s face to see if he was going to look at my boobs, but he continued staring at my face. I liked that. I was testing him to see if he really liked this Alice girl, or if he still had eyes for other women. “So tell me why we’re here, Aiden. I don’t really understand.”
“Sure.” He nodded and he grabbed his phone. “Hold on, I want to show you something.”
“Okay,” I said and watched him scroll through his phone.
“See this?” He handed me the phone and I looked down at the screen. It was a photo of a pretty girl with big blue eyes, blonde hair and a goofy smile.
“Yeah.”
“This is the love of my life,” he said, his voice light. “Her name is Alice. I feel like I’ve known her all my life and I basically have. She’s my sister’s best friend. I’ve loved her forever and I want to spend my life with her.”
“Okay, wow,” I said and gazed at him. “Why are we here again?”
“See this?” He grinned and scrolled to another photo and showed it to me. The other photo was of another pretty girl. This one had brown hair and brown eyes. I felt my heart pounding as I looked at the photo. Please don’t let him say that this was the other love of his life.
“Yeah?”
“This is my sister, Liv.”
“Oh, that’s Liv,” I said and stared at the photo some more. This was Scott’s sister, the one that he’d wanted me to meet.
“Yeah.” Aiden frowned as he looked at me. “You know her?”
“No, no, sorry, continue.”
“Oh, okay.” He looked at me carefully for a few seconds and then continued. “Liv and Alice are the most fun, beautiful, wonderful women, but they’re both very immature. They play a lot of games, have a lot of fun, and sometimes I don’t know what’s serious to them and what isn’t.” He sighed. “I love my sister and I love Alice. I really want to pursue Alice, but I need to see if she’s ready for a real relationship. And to see if she really cares for me or not.” He made a face. “I know this must seem lame, but I thought that by hiring you to be my pretend girlfriend/mystery girl in my life, I could kind of push Alice’s hand and see where we really stand.”
“That’s a bit risky, isn’t it?” I said with a frown.
“Yes.” He nodded. “But it’s a calculated risk that I’m ready to take.”
“Calculated risk, huh?” I laughed. “Spoken like a true lawyer.”
“Well, you know what they say.”
“What does your family think about it?”
“Liv doesn’t know.” He laughed. “I’ve spoken to my brothers Chett and Scott and they both think it could be a good idea.”
“Oh, really?” I leaned forward. I wanted to ask him about Scott. Where he was? What he was doing? How was he? Had he ever talked about me?
“Yeah, but it’s really my decision,” he said seriously. “I wouldn’t expect anything untoward from you. Just have you show up at a few events to see how Alice reacts, plus maybe you can leave some posts on my Facebook account and stuff like that.”
“That seems innocent enough,” I said thoughtfully.
“Yes, nothing crazy,” he said. “I’m willing to pay three grand a week.”
“Three grand a week?” I said and frowned. That bastard Bob was only paying me a grand. I was going to really confront him about how much money he was taking.
“Is that not enough?” Aiden looked worried.
“No, that’s great.” I said and leaned back for a few moments. “Are you sure this is something you want to go through with, Aiden? Sometimes games and these small lies aren’t the way to go.”
“I’m sure,” he said, his eyes determined and bright as he looked at me. I was slightly taken aback by how much he resembled Scott and it made my heart ache.
“Okay then. I’m in,” I said and leaned forward and shook his hand. “Just let me know what you want me to do and it’s done.”
“Great. Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.” He jumped up and pulled me towards him and gave me a quick hug. “Thank you, Elizabeth.”
“Thank me if everything works out with Alice.”
“Yeah.” He nodded and stepped back. “Let’s hope so.”
“If she’s the right one for you, it will work out,” I said with a soft smile. “Everything works out if it’s meant to be.”
“Yeah, I believe that as well,” he said, and then he looked into my eyes and I felt as if he were trying to glimpse into my soul. “We’ll have to grab lunch this week to chat and figure out how this is going to work, and I hope to get to know you as well, Elizabeth.” He smiled. “Seeing as we’re going to be spending a lot of time together.”
“Oh, there’s not much to know,” I said with a small smile.
“There’s always a lot to know.” He gave me a knowing look. “I’ll get it out of you.”
I laughed and didn’t say anything else. Little did he know that I had a past with his brother.
“I’ll let you go now, but maybe we can meet up tomorrow for lunch and talk?”
&nbs
p; “Yeah, that sounds good,” I said. “Meet you here?”
“Yeah, we can meet here.” He nodded. “See you later, Elizabeth.”
“Bye, Aiden,” I said and watched as he left the room. I was about to call Lacey and tell her what had just happened, when I decided to call my mom instead. I hadn’t spoken to her in a couple of weeks and I knew she was likely waiting for me to call. I’d call her while I was still in a good mood and hopefully she wouldn’t bring me down.
***
“Hello?” My mom answered the phone in a soft questioning tone, though I knew she had caller ID on her phone.
“Hey Mom, it’s me.”
“Elizabeth?”
“I’m the only one that calls you Mom,” I said in an exasperated tone.
“I was just checking,” she said defensively.
“How are you, Mom?” I asked, not wanting to get into it already.
“Okay.” She sighed, a long deep sigh that told me that she wasn’t really okay.
“What’s wrong, Mom?”
“They cut my food stamp allowance,” she said in a small voice. “I’m hungry.”
“You don’t have food?” I said in a small voice.
“Nothing good,” she said in a bitter tone.
“Do you want me to send you some money?”
“No, I’ve got my Social Security money and food stamps,” she said in a pitiful voice.
“Mom, I can send you some money if you’re hungry.”
“I didn’t think you cared,” she said. “I haven’t heard from you in months.”
“Mom, I called you three weeks ago.” I sighed, regretting that I’d even called this time around.
“I thought that I was hurt when your dad left, but nothing hurts more than when you own child, that you pushed out with no painkillers, barely calls you.”
“Mom.” I sighed. “I’ll send you some money, okay?”
“Don’t send it Western Union. They steal the money. Put it in my bank account. I have an account with Chase now.”
“They let you reopen it?” I said, surprised.
“I went to a new branch. They didn’t check the system.” She sounded almost gleeful. “That’s not my problem.”
“What if they take the money I deposit and use it to pay off your other account?”
“They can’t do that. That’s my money!” she screeched. “That would be stealing.”
“Yeah,” I said, though I was thinking that it’s not stealing if you owe them money for insufficient funds in another account.
“Can you send the money today?” she asked hopefully.
“Why?” I asked suspiciously.
“So I can go to the store,” she said. “To get some food.”
“Uh huh.” I said, but I didn’t say anything else. I knew she wasn’t going to get food. I knew she wasn’t hungry. I knew what she really wanted.
“Don’t uh huh me, young lady.”
“Sorry, Mom,” I said and stared at the wall. “So how are you, asides from being hungry?”
“Fine.” She sighed. “I’m still getting headaches, but the bloody doctor won’t prescribe me any Oxycontin. He doesn’t care about my pain.”
“I see.” I bit my lower lip. My mom had had a prescription drug problem for years, though she would never admit that she was an addict.
“It’s ridiculous. If he prescribed it, I could get it cheaper from the state.” She complained. “You should be upset too.”
“Yeah,” I said, not saying anything else. I knew that’s what she wanted my cash for. I knew she wanted drugs so she could self-medicate. I knew she was an addict. I knew she had problems. And I’d tried for years to talk to her, but she had never listened. And her addiction wasn’t bad enough to warrant the state demanding she go to rehab. I didn’t even bring it up anymore because it only made her angry at me. I couldn’t deal with the anger and stress anymore.
“How’s Lacey?” she asked, her voice soft. My mom loved Lacey, almost more than she loved me. I wasn’t sure why, but figured it was because Lacey had never-ending patience and always listened to my mom as if she were the most important person in the world.
“Good. She’s staying with me right now. She’s writing a book.”
“Good for her. Good for both you girls,” my mom said, her voice chipper, and my heart broke at how easy it was for her to go from surly to happy. I loved my happy mom. I hated my surly addict mom. ‘You’re really going for your dreams. Not going to make a mistake like me. Marry some bum who’ll leave you and your little girl and not look back.”
“Yeah, well, I’m no closer to getting married and neither is Lacey,” I said with a small sigh. “But Mom, I have to go, okay? I have to go and do something for work. Email me your bank account information and I’ll deposit some money tomorrow.”
“Okay, honey. I love you,” she said, and I hung up quickly. I walked out of Candy Grams, my heart heavy, and sighed. No wonder I was so fucked up in the head. I quickly called Lacey to try and turn my mood around.
“Hey Eliza, what’s going on?” she asked excitedly. “Was it Scott’s brother? Was Scott there?”
“Yes, it was Scott’s brother, and no, he wasn’t there,” I said softly.
“What happened? What’s wrong?” she asked, her voice concerned. “What did that jackass do?”
“Nothing.” I sighed. “I just spoke to my mom.”
“Oh.” Lacey said and we were both silent. “How is she?”
“She needs to borrow some money, for food,” I said lightly.
“Oh,” Lacey said and I knew she knew that food was the last thing my mom wanted to buy. “Want to do something this afternoon? Go somewhere fun?”
“Don’t you have to work?”
“Let’s bunk off,” she said. “We both deserve a break. Maybe we can go and catch a movie down by the lake. Maybe an old black-and-white movie.”
“Are you sure? You hate black-and-white movies.”
“I’m sure.” She giggled. “I just need popcorn.”
“Okay, that sounds good. Thank you,” I said softly and I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. Lacey was truly the best friend that anyone could ask for. I’d been blessed with two horrible parents, but Lacey made up for them in more ways than anyone could ever imagine.
“No, thank you,” she said. “I’ve just been sitting here trying to figure out a way to write ‘he had a hard cock’ in the most sensual way, without it sounding like porn.”
“Oh, what were your options?” I said with a laugh.
“Hard cock, gigantic penis, bulging manhood, sensual stick, growing erection, throbbing member, strawberry lollipop.”
“Strawberry lollipop?” I said and burst out laughing.
“Yes, strawberry lollipop.” She giggled. “I have chocolate lollipop as well.”
“Oh, Lacey.” I groaned. “What did you decide upon?”
“Hard cock.” She laughed. “Might as well keep it simple, right?”
“Yeah, you don’t want to confuse your readers. They might wonder what’s going on if they start reading about the main character eating a chocolate lollipop.”
“Or being fucked by a chocolate lollipop,” she said with a giggle.
“Yeah, you might find some reader contacting you asking you to let her know where she can find a chocolate lollipop to fuck her.”
“Eww, you’re gross.”
“No, I’m not.” I laughed. “I’m just telling you what to expect, Dr. Ruth.”
“I’m not giving sex advice,” Lacey said. “I don’t think anyone will be contacting me for advice based on a book called Play the Player.”
“You’d be surprised.” I giggled. “Okay, I’m on my way home and then we can go to the movie.”
“Sounds good,” she said. “See you soon.”
“Yeah, see you in a bit,” I said and hung up the phone. I looked up at the sky and just stood there for a few minutes, wondering what the next day was going to bring.
Chapte
r F
ourteen
“Hey Elizabeth,” Aiden said as I picked up the phone. “How’s it going?”
“Alice liked a post on my page today,” I laughed. “So we definitely know that she knows about me.”
“Oh, Alice.” He laughed. “Did she leave a comment?”
“No,” I said. “So what’s next? We’ve been fake-dating online for two weeks now. What’s your plan?”
“I’m going to call her and let it slip that we’re going on a date.”
“To where?”
“To where what?” He sounded confused.
“Where are we going on the date?” I said with a small smile. “I know we’re not really going, but if Alice asks you where we’re going, she’s going to expect an answer and you’re going to need to have something on the tip of your tongue.”
“Oh, I guess,” he said. “Dinner and a movie?”
“No,” I said. “That sounds too intimate. You want to make her slightly jealous, not have her thinking she doesn’t have a shot.”
“Then what?”
“Maybe an art exhibit?” I suggested. “It’s casual, but still a fun date.”
“Yeah, I guess. Um, should I say we’re going to the Museum of Sex? Get her mind rolling in the gutter?”
“Aiden!” I almost shouted. “You’re a typical man. No, don’t say we’re going to the Museum of Sex. Say you’re taking me to an exhibit, Picasso or Monet, or whoever. See what exhibits the museums have right now.”
“Yeah, I’ll do that. I think that there might be a Degas exhibit in town right now.”
“Okay, that’s our date, then. If she asks, we’re going to a Degas exhibit.”
“Okay then.” He laughed. “Oh, and by the way, do you play flag football?”
“Nope,” I said and he laughed.
“Honest answer, but I need you to start playing.”
“Oh, why?”
“We’re all going to be playing in this league and I want you to come.”
“Who is ‘all’?”
“Alice, Liv, my brothers, Liv’s fiancé Xander and his brother Henry.”
“Your brothers Scott and Chett?” I asked softly, my heart thudding. Oh my God, was I finally going to see Scott again? I wondered what he would do if he saw me. What would he think? Did he still hate me?
