The Fake Engagement

At the sound of musical laughter, he glanced toward it, shocked to find Eliza Drake sitting at a small table with two other women. One brown haired, the other a redhead, but his gaze was drawn to the blonde.

Her hair cascaded around her. Normally, she kept those locks tied back in a firm bun, but today, it was flowing freely all around her shoulders. He wasn’t going to deny that he felt the need to run his fingers through the long length, which was crazy.

He had never had any feelings toward his PA, ever.

Sure, he’d noticed she was beautiful, and a few times he’d caught himself staring at the curves of her ass and admiring the way her body looked in some of the suits she wore. He couldn’t pinpoint which designer she used, but they were always amazing and fit her body so well.

When he took her with him on business trips and even to conferences, men admired her, but Eliza never showed any interest. It was like she was oblivious to the looks she got.

“Excuse me,” he said.

He put his fork down, got to his feet, and walked across the restaurant. One of her friends must have alerted her to his presence because she suddenly turned and looked directly at him.

She got to her feet as he approached.

“Eliza,” he said.

“Mr. Boone.”

“I hope you’re enjoying your lunch.”

“I am, thank you,” she said. “Er, this is Juliet and Mackenzie. They’re my friends and roommates.”

He held his hand out and each woman shook his hand, offering him a smile. “Mackenzie, I’ve seen you before,” he said.

“I work at Doug’s Advertising. I’ve been on a couple of your projects.”

“That’s right.” He’d heard the bad news about Doug’s potential buyout. He didn’t say anything now as he didn’t know the workings within the company. When he heard of the takeover offer and the bid, he’d been tempted to step forward, but at the time, he’d been focused on Aguire and had no room for an advertising agency among his investments. He didn’t like to go after companies unless he had an idea or a plan on how to work them. “I’m here with Adam and Natasha,” he said, looking at Eliza.

“Actually,” Eliza said. “Can we step out a moment? I’d like to talk to you.”

He nodded. Glancing back to his own table, he held his hand up, mouthing that he was taking five minutes.

Following Eliza outside toward the small restaurant garden, he noticed there was no one at the tables. The summer heat was normally a welcome to many, but today, they chased the cool air-conditioning inside the restaurant.

“I had no idea you were eating here,” she said.

“I’m aware.”

“Look, I … I’m sorry about this morning. I was unprofessional, and between the tequila last night and the whole fiancée business, it threw me. I got a call from Mr. Aguire just before we entered.”

“Oh, you did?”

“Yes. He wasn’t wowed by your presentation, nor was he happy with your … reputation.”

“My reputation?”

“Mr. Aguire is a family man, Mr. Boone. He doesn’t like how your playboy lifestyle will reflect on the purchase of his land. He feels a family man is more stable to make better and more lasting decisions,” she said.

He put his hands on his hips, annoyance gripping him. It wasn’t the first time his playboy lifestyle had gotten in the way of business. He never allowed it to impact his life before, and he wasn’t going to let it compromise his plans now.

“So, after everything you did this morning, and I figured with your sister already knowing, and well, I’m now rambling, but I sort of told Mr. Aguire that you were engaged. That you have changed your ways and you’re not some playboy. You’re a man to be trusted,” she said.

This made him pause. He watched her take a deep breath.

“Pardon me?”

She groaned. “I will … I’m sorry about today, and I will go to your hometown for the next month and play the role of your fake fiancée. It’s the least that I can do. Mr. Aguire will be more than willing to meet you at Westcliffe Heights, to see another side of you. The side that no one gets to see.” She pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to him. “I’ve made all the necessary arrangements, including booking a hotel suite for him, and arranging a conference room for that day.”

“This will require you to play my fiancée for months after our deal,” he said.

“My job will be secured with you. I will only need to play the role for as long as Mr. Aguire waits to make the sale. Once everything has gone through, we can play break up and go about our lives until then,” she said.

Preston stared into her blue eyes. She looked … nervous. Her hands kept clenching and unclenching at her sides.