Operation Fake Relationship

“You’re welcome, love.”

Relieved that his mission was almost accomplished, Nick headed to the far end of the shop. As he rounded the corner he stopped short, staring a shelf full of assorted lubricants—but not the sort that would be any use to him and Jackson. WD40 might be useful for many things, but there was no way Nick was putting it anywhere near his arsehole, the same went for engine oil.

“For fuck’s sake! This is no bloody help!”

“Nick. What’s up?” Nick whipped around to see Maria standing just behind him. “What are you looking for?”

His cheeks burnt hot as his mouth fell open, but no useful explanation came to mind. “Um.” He swallowed. “Nothing. It doesn’t matter.”

“Is there something wrong with your car?”

“No. Nothing like that. Don’t worry about it. Let’s just head home.” Maybe he could sneak out again later without anyone noticing.

“Why are you being so weird?”

“I’m not being weird.” He walked away with Maria on his heels.

“You really are.”

He unlocked the car and got behind the wheel. As he started the engine he knew Maria was watching him.

“Nick, what the hell is going on with you today?” she asked.

Fuck it. If he confessed, then he could just go and buy some bloody lube, and then Jackson could fuck him tonight. That was enough motivation to deal with the awkwardness.

He turned to face her. “I was trying to buy lube, but they didn’t have any. Well… not the sort I needed anyway. Hence my frustration.”

“Lube?” She narrowed her eyes.

“Yes. Lube. Personal lubricant. Intimate lubricant… whatever the fuck they call the type that doesn’t go in your car.”

“But I thought you and Jackson were only pretending?”

“We are! I mean… we were. Look. I don’t know exactly what we’re doing, but we need lube, okay? So I’m going to go to Tesco. They’ll be open during the day today, and they’ll definitely have some there.”

“Okay.”

Nick put the car in gear and started to drive. The big Tesco store wasn’t far, and neither of them spoke on the way there. Nick parked and left Maria in the car. “I won’t be long. Do you need anything?”

“No. I’m good, thanks.” She gave him a thin smile.

The lube was nice and easy to find in the supermarket. They actually offered quite a selection, but Nick bypassed the stuff that tingled or tasted of strawberries for something more traditional. He paid at the self-service checkout, and the bottle was small enough to fit in his pocket along with the condoms.

When Nick got back to the car, Maria waited till he’d started to drive back before asking tentatively, “When did things change between you and Jackson?”

“Yesterday.”

She was silent for a moment. Nick gripped the wheel more tightly and kept his gaze on the road. The light was starting to fade now and the rain was still hammering on the windscreen.

“Oh right. So… I guess it’s too soon to tell whether it’s going to be an ongoing thing?”

“Yep.” Nick could already tell from her doubtful tone what she was thinking, and he didn’t want to hear it. “Anyway, we’re nearly back now, so can you just drop it?” He sounded defensive and brittle, but that was exactly how he felt.

“Jesus, Nick. I didn’t even say anything much.”

“Yeah, well. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Fine,” she snapped back at him, but there was an edge of hurt to her tone.

Nick sighed.

“I’m sorry.” He glanced sideways. Maria sat hunched in the passenger seat, her face unhappy. “I didn’t mean to be an arsehole about it. It’s just that I know what you were going to say, and you’re probably right. Getting involved with Jackson would be a daft idea. But it’s nothing really. We’re just….” He waved one hand vaguely as he searched for the right words. “Having some fun together. It’s never going to be anything serious, and I’m pretty sure both of us know that. So where’s the harm?”

“How do you know that?”

“Know what?”

“That it’s never going to be anything serious? Why couldn’t it be serious? You guys are so close already. It could be amazing.”

That wasn’t what Nick had been expecting her to say at all.

“So you don’t think I’m an idiot?”

“I didn’t say that. Don’t get carried away.” She snorted. Then her voice turned serious. “I don’t think getting involved with Jackson is a terrible idea, but messing around with him sounds dangerous. There’s way too much potential for things to get complicated if you aren’t both totally clear about what you want. So if you think you’re just going to have a bit of fun with Jackson and it’s not going to change anything, then you are an idiot.”

Nick’s stomach lurched at the truth of her words. “Yeah. Fair enough.” He had no good comeback because he knew she was right. It was too late, though. This thing with Jackson had already been set in motion and things were going to change whether he wanted them to or not. So he figured he might as well see it through. “We’ll work it out, I’m sure.”