Page 26 of Movers and Fakers

A laugh escapes me. “Probably,” I mumble. “And thanks, but I don’t think that will be necessary.”

I force myself to look up at my friends’ faces. They all wait with expectant expressions. Marigold may hate Hayes, but she doesn’t hate me. If she did, she wouldn’t bother apologizing. My chest rises as I draw in a deep breath.

“When I went outside, Hayes was talking to this girl. Mckinleigh.” I try not to scowl when I say her name. “Apparently, she’s been acting weird around him—borderline stalker behavior.”

Marigold’s eyebrows rise. Saylor leans in like she’s watching a true crime documentary. Jasmine nods for me to continue.

“So, when he was trying to tell her they weren’t dating or in love, he told her that he was dating me. To get her off his back,” I explain. The girls nod in understanding.

“What about you leaving together? Wearing his jacket?” Saylor asks.

I tip my head back and groan. “How do you know about that?”

“It’s a college party and he’s a billionaire. People are going to talk,” Marigold says wryly.

Mascara flakes onto my fingertips as I rub my eyes.

“This is why I told him I didn’t want to keep fake dating.”

“Wait, he asked you to keep going?” Jasmine presses.

I drop my hands and sigh.

“Yeah, he told me to think about it for a few days, but that it would be good if we could fake date for a little while so Mckinleigh believed the story.”

“I’m guessing you told him no immediately?” Marigold asks. “You’ve been turning him down for months now.”

“I’ve shot down actual dating, yeah,” I mumble. “I told him I’d think about it, and I did. Or, I was. Then my mom texted me about another blind date—” I lift my head off the couch and decide to rip off the Band-Aid. “I texted him that I’d do it, then I threw my phone so I couldn’t take it back.”

All three of my roommates’ expressions go slack with shock.

“You’re fake dating Hayes Rosewood!” Saylor’s voice is three pitches higher than usual.

“I guess so.”

“You are the exact opposite of a person I’d imagine in a fake relationship with a billionaire,” Marigold states.

I shoot her a flat look. “Thanks.”

“I think what Marigold is trying to say,” Jasmine interjects, “is that this doesn’t seem like you. Dating Hayes will bring a lot of attention, which you hate.”

“This is the only way aside from real dating to get my family to stop asking me about boys and parties and events,” I explain. “That’s why I said yes. A few weeks of fake dating and then a breakup might get me through the next year or so if all goes well.”

They’d attribute my reluctance to date to heartbreak rather than a lack of desire for interacting with the human population as a whole.

“A few weeks? So you agreed on a timeline?” Saylor asks, practically bouncing on the floor like a rubber ball.

I shake my head. “No, we haven’t talked over any details, but I’m guessing he won’t want to be tied to me for long. He usually has a new girl every couple of days.”

Marigold’s nose scrunches in disapproval.

“You know, I heard he’s never had a girlfriend,” Saylor whispers as though someone might overhear us. “You’re his first.”

I’d heard that too, and it didn’t surprise me. Hayes isn’t Mr. Commitment. Not to anything but boxing, apparently. And even then, he could have a talent for it. The same way he didn’t need to study until Digital Logic. Maybe boxing just comes naturally to him.

“No, I’m not, because this is all fake,” I remind her.

“Yeah, but everyone else doesn’t know that. They’ll think you put a spell on him or something,” Saylor replies.