He doesn’t take his eyes off me even as I sign the contract and hand it back to Frank.
“Because?” he prods once Frank is gone.
“I forgot what we were talking about.” I slide my seatbelt on and stare at the windshield, waiting for him to drive.
“Uh-huh. Sure.” He finally starts the truck and begins to drive down the long gravel driveway, but he doesn’t take his eyes off me. I can tell that he isn’t going to let this go easily.
As we reach a stoplight, my phone lights up with another new text message. We both look at the screen, but it’s not Tina this time.
Malcolm
Do you prefer strawberry or chocolate?
I frown, puzzled by the odd question. I look up at Oliver to see if he read it. His eyes are on me again, but the amusement that was there before is gone. He clears his throat and looks back at the road.
“I guess there’s my answer,” he says.
I look back at my phone, then up at him again. I open my mouth to speak, but he beats me to it.
“You don’t owe me an explanation.” He stares at the road, his expression hard.
I watch him. Even though he’s right, because this is none of his business, I get this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I feel like I need to explain myself. I try to loosen the seatbelt around my chest. “I honestly don’t know why he would ask me a question like that.”
“This is the second time he’s texted you late in the evening while we’re together.”
“Odd timing.” I don’t know why I feel so bad about Oliver thinking that I’m lying to him. What we have isn’t real. I don’t owe him anything. Even so, I don’t want him to think that something is going on between me and Malcolm.
“Or maybe him texting you at night is a common occurrence?” Oliver says.
My phone buzzes again. I turn it away before Oliver can read it.
Malcolm
I just realized how weird that question might have seemed out of the blue. My assistant is ordering crepes for our meeting tomorrow morning. Just trying to figure out what kind to order.
I let out a laugh, then turn my phone around for Oliver to see. “There. Now you can stop being weird.”
As he’s reading my phone, I can feel a quick buzz as another text message comes through. I resist the urge to snatch my phone away from him to see what else Malcolm says. Oliver’s face remains serious as he reads, and then he smirks again.
“If you’re really not into him, then I think you have a problem on your hands.”
I frown. “Huh?” I turn my phone back to see the new message.
Malcolm
Really looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!
I look back up at Oliver. “He’s just being nice.” I send a quick text to Malcolm to tell him that I like strawberries, then put my phone away.
“Yeah. Nice,” Oliver says. “He’s going to find a way to ask you out tomorrow.”
I watch him, trying to figure out why he’s being so weird about this. He’s made it very clear that our pretend relationship is just a show for Tina and Ryan. I was only joking when I told him he didn’t need to be jealous the other day, but if I didn’t know any better, I might think he is. I don’t know why he would feel that way. It’s not like he’s ever had a shortage of girlfriends, and I’m sure I’m the last person on his mind when he goes to bed at night.
I shrug. “Maybe I’ll say yes.”
We reach Lana’s dance studio where my car is parked. Oliver stops the truck and leans back in his seat, quiet for a moment.
“Thanks for the ride,” I tell him. “See you later.”
