Sophie: Hey Lil! Mia and I were wondering if you’d like to be part of the planning committee for the team’s next fundraiser. Might be a great way for you to make some connections, too. We’re meeting at the Turtle Tide tomorrow for lunch. Hope you can come.
Somehow, Sophie got my phone number. And she’s calling me Lil, as if we’ve been friends for ages. An odd warmth fills my chest. Probably because I’m about to get mad at Payton for giving her my contact information before checking with me first, he’s the only one who could have. I stare at her text, trying to figure out one, how she got my number, and two, how to get out of this.
“Sophie just texted me.” I lower my phone and stare at him.
“Did she?” His attempt to appear innocent is almost laughable.
“Why did you give my phone number to her?”
He gives me a thoughtful look, but that competitive gleam is back in his eyes. “I figured that would be the normal thing to do. You know, for believability.”
“For believability…” For lack of a better comeback, I repeat his words. That warmth I felt a moment ago is definitely shifting to something more hot. And angry.
“You might enjoy it.” He opens his book and starts reading again as if there’s nothing abnormal about this.
I take a step closer to him, like a cat ready to pounce. “Did you forget we’re not really married? That my focus is supposed to be protecting you, not playing house?”
He lowers his book again. “I’m perfectly safe inside my apartment. And your partner seems to have outside surveillance well under hand. Do you want to sit around here and watch me read?”
I don’t miss the soft chuckle he counters my growl with as I head into the kitchen. Not only do I have to figure out a way to get out of Sophie’s invitation, but how to out maneuver Payton, who’s proving to be quite proficient at more than just hockey.
Chapter Eleven
LILY
“You let him outsmart you.” Del’s laugh screeches in my ears.
I filled Del in with the details of the morning when I checked in to ask her for some ideas to navigate my way out of helping Sophie and Mia. Even though the door is shut to my room, I keep my voice down so Payton won’t hear.
“I did not! And why are you on his side?”
“I’m always on your side, luv. But I’ll always be honest with you, too. He got you on this one. Might want to change tactics.”
With a harrumph, I drop to my bed. “I only made it a competition because he was struggling with deceiving his friends.”
“And it worked bloody well. Better than you expected, I’d say.”
I fall back on the bed with a grunt. “Helping to plan a fundraiser wasn’t part of the job.”
“Well, it seems it is now, so I say roll with it. Who knows, you may wind up making some new friends.” Her carefree tone is seriously grating on my somewhat frayed nerves over this situation.
“You sound like Payton.”
She laughs again. “My, my. Has the happy couple hit their first bump on the proverbial road?”
I snap back to a sitting position. “Will you stop enjoying this so much?”
Del lets out a long sigh. “You really don’t have a choice. Just go and make the best of it. If you come up with excuses, they’ll think you’re being evasive or snobby, which will only complicate future interactions. You don’t want that, do you?”
“No, I don’t. I don’t want this either, but I’ll go just to make you happy,” I quip.
“And Payton?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I’m merely saying?—”
I end the connection so I don’t have to hear the rest of that sentence because she might be right. What if I am doing some of these things out of concern for Payton? I mean, of course, I’m concerned for him as his bodyguard, but am I overly worried? Or unnecessarily so?
