While he reclined against the corner of the couch wearing just his sweatpants, she sat one cushion over, her legs crossed in front of her. She’d put on her camisole and shorts, and he tried not to let the hard peaks of her nipples pressing against the silky material distract him. The least he could do was let Raevynn finish a rare treat she hadn’t had in forever before he ravished her again.
So, instead, he summoned up the determination to finally address the one thing they hadn’t talked about the past few days.
“Rae, there’s something personal I’d like to ask you.”
She lifted her gaze to his as her spoon dipped back into her ice cream, an easygoing smile on her lips. “Sure. Anything.”
He could tell that she meant it. She was opening herself up and giving him the opportunity to fill in the gaps of the past seven years. But now that he’d brought it up, did he really want to go there? Did he really want to hear about Zane and Raevynn together, as a couple for three years? Not really, but he needed to know so he no longer had to speculate about the depth of their relationship. And if she was truly over him.
“Tell me about you and Zane Bishop.”
Her eyes widened for a second, like a deer caught in headlights, before she glanced away and paid more attention to her pint of Chocolate Fudge Brownie.
He frowned, finding her reaction strange. “You don’t want to talk about it?”
She sighed and set her carton of ice cream on the coffee table in front of them before meeting his gaze again. “It’s not that I don’t want to talk about it. It’s that I shouldn’t talk about it.”
He scratched at his temple at her confusing explanation. “Okay . . . why not?”
“Because I signed an NDA as far as my relationship with Zane Bishop is concerned.”
He blinked at her in surprise, finding it extreme that she couldn’t discuss certain aspects of her personal life because she’d been expected to sign a confidentiality agreement. “Is that normal between celebrities?”
“Some, I suppose,” she said with a shrug. “But there were extenuating circumstances surrounding my situation with Zane. I want to tell you everything. I certainly owe you the truth . . . and I trust that what I’m about to tell you isn’t going to leave this house?”
“Of course.” He’d never betray her confidence.
She rested her hands in her lap, her expression subdued. “It was all a publicity stunt, created by my mother and Zane’s publicist.”
He stared at her for a few extra seconds as he digested that information, not sure he understood what she was saying. “So, the relationship wasn’t real?”
“No.” She shook her head. “It was fake. And all for show.”
“For three years?” he asked incredulously, even more bewildered by the situation.
She nodded, her fingers playing with the hem of her camisole. “It happened when I started headlining my own shows. Zane and I were both up-and-coming singers in the music industry, and my mother and his publicist saw an opportunity to promote both of our careers by linking us together. But we weren’t together in that sort of way.”
“You never kissed him?”
A small, slightly amused smile appeared on her lips. “Only in public, and mostly at award shows throughout the year when there were cameras around to capture the moment. It was usually a chaste kiss on the cheek or lips and hand-holding. That was the extent of our physical affection.”
“And you never slept with him?” He wasn’t sure why he needed that affirmation, but he did.
She laughed, the sound tinged with humor. “No. Not even close. Part of the reason for the publicity stunt was because Zane Bishop is gay and his publicist didn’t want that to get out. It was a cover-up. I was his beard.”
Collin’s jaw dropped in shock, and he pulled it shut again. “Holy shit.”
She waggled a finger at him, grinning. “NDA,” she reminded him.
He wouldn’t say a word, but her sexual inexperience now made sense. The one guy she was linked to for three years wasn’t interested in girls. He was floored by the realization. And ridiculously relieved. “So, why did the two of you break it off?”
“It was actually Zane who wanted to end things about eight months ago. He just didn’t feel the situation was fair to me, not that I was interested in dating anyone. So, we made it an amicable split, though his female fans raked me over the coals on social media for breaking his heart,” she added wryly. “He’s still a great friend that I keep in touch with, and I really hope he eventually goes public with the truth. He deserves to be happy.”
“Why did you agree to do it?” he asked quietly.
She thought for a moment. “Three reasons, actually. My mother insisted it would be a great career move,” she said, and rolled her eyes at that. “I really liked Zane and I wanted to help him. But mostly, I wasn’t over you when the whole fake relationship scenario was proposed to me, and being linked to someone just made things overall easier.”
“How so?”