Dirty Bad Boys Box Set: Forbidden Romance Collection

“She was tied up with some movie shoot. We met her assistant instead.”

“This is so exciting,” Charlie squeals, changing her tune. “Can you imagine if you marry her? You’ll be Mr. Winters. And imagine the guest list at the wedding? It’ll be like an episode of Dynasty.”

“What the hell is Dynasty?” I say out loud.

“Never mind. Not a TV show from your generation,” Charlie rambles on. “I could be related to Scarlett Winters. She could end up being my BFF which would bring me closer to Ryan Gosling because they star in that new movie together. It’s like six degrees of separation.”

“What exactly do you think will happen if you meet Ryan Gosling?” Lex questions her, jealous and clearly not impressed by her enthusiasm.

Charlie grins. “Two words for you, baby… Hall. Pass.”

The two of them get into a mini-argument, and to stop the pettiness, I throw in my two cents. “Listen, can you guys seriously lay off the marriage talk?” I warn them. “You’re jumping the gun a little don’t you think? Plus, do we even know if she’s single?”

“According to her Glamorous Stars interview, she’s single. She just broke up with that guy, the one that was photographed naked in Cabo and was hung like a horse,” Charlie informs us, spreading her hands to measure the length. Thank God the girls are busy playing in their toy room.

“Oh,” Kate mouths, followed by a cheer. “Hung, like hung hung?”

“Hung,” Charlie drags out with her eyes wide open.

Lex stops the conversation. “Will the two of you stop saying hung? I’ve completely lost my appetite.”

I nod, agreeing with Lex. The image alone is disturbing. Is this what women really talk about? Again, the only woman I spend a lot of time with is my mom. If she spoke about hung horses, I think I’d send myself to a mental institution.

“Interesting,” I voice curiously. “So, Scarlett just broke up with a hung horse, which means the next guy she’s with will be somewhat of a rebound. I thought I was supposed to stop prowling for the brokenhearted?”

“This doesn’t count. It’s Scarlett Winters,” Charlie repeats. “This is where your experience will come in handy. Sure, she may be looking for a rebound, but why not turn that rebound into something more?”

How convenient for them. It wasn’t long ago they were all up in my business about my past, but now, they’re encouraging me to fall back into my bad habits for the sake of finding true love. I feel like a pawn in their sick and twisted game.

“Uh, are you forgetting the deal?” Kate interrupts, zipping her bag shut. Checking the clock on the wall, she grabs her things then waits for me to answer.

“No,” I groan. “The deal is to find someone to settle down with. It doesn’t have to involve marriage. De facto relationships are up fifteen percent in the last year.”

Both Charlie and Kate stare back at me with confused faces.

“It’s true,” Lex intervenes, his eyes diverting from his laptop.

Thanks. The lifejacket—five minutes too late.

“I don’t even know where to begin with that.” Charlie shakes her head. “Of all the facts you can retain in your head, it’s the percentage increase in de facto relationships? Yet, when it comes to the car keys, you have no idea where you’ve placed them.”

“That’s because car keys have these tiny legs like a robot and move when you put them somewhere,” Lex states seriously, shortly after breaking out into a silly smile.

“Do you see who I married?” Charlie says, laughing, grabbing his chin and bringing his face close to hers.

Ugh, honestly, these two are so in love.

“Yes. A guy with a logical answer,” I respond, distracted by the beep of my cell. Opening the message, I see an unknown number sitting on the screen.

Unknown: I’ve got an opening tomorrow afternoon if you’d like to begin working on the marketing plan for Miss Winters. Regards, Morgan Bentley

Morgan. Cute name. It’s a very formal message, and with Charlie and Lex talking in the background, I think of an appropriate way to respond.

Me: I’ll take your opening. Just name the place and time. Sincerely, Noah Mason

After hitting send, I regret it and worry that it came off as unprofessional. I’m glad she finally has an opening, I just wonder if she can read between the lines. I would love to see her opening. Fuck, you need to let this one go.

Jokes aside, I want to text her back and see if she has an affirmative date for when I’ll meet Scarlett. I decide against it and check my emails instead. There’s an email from Presley. She says that Ms. Bentley has contacted her for a meeting. The same meeting she just invited me to.