Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 41373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 207(@200wpm)___ 165(@250wpm)___ 138(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 207(@200wpm)___ 165(@250wpm)___ 138(@300wpm)
“You let me fuck you like that when you had to be at work?” I said, propping myself up on my elbow. “Come on. Let’s go. I don’t want to make you late.”
He lifted his eyebrows. “Trust me, doing this with you was worth it. I needed a good fuck.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. “Well, I’m glad I could provide. But I don’t want to screw up your work life. Get up. I’ll get dressed and head out, too.”
Shane sighed. “You’re too kind to me, Rowen,” he said.
Because I care about you, I thought, something tightening a little in my throat. Way more than I even realized.
11
SHANE
“We will be in touch,” Nathan said to me over the video call, smiling the same friendly way I’d seen him smile into the camera hundreds of times.
Nathan freaking Wood.
Because I was on a video call with Shawn and Nathan Wood. Not an assistant or manager or producer for the Fixer Brothers—but the actual, real, live Fixer Brothers themselves. I wasn’t sure how I was still able to breathe, but somehow I’d managed it.
“Amazing,” I said. “Incredible. Thank you both, so much.”
I reached over to Rowen beside me, gripping his hand for probably the twentieth time. He’d been by my side, playing the part of my boyfriend absolutely fucking perfectly the whole time. I’d been on autopilot for the entirety of the video call, hoping that I was putting together words in ways that made sense, but mentally I’d basically been on another planet the whole time.
But Rowen had been amazing. He was damn good in front of a camera, and this call had been no different.
“There’s just one more thing I want to ask,” Shawn said, leaning forward and looking out at us.
Nathan laughed beside him. “He’s been asking this with every couple we interview.”
“Hey,” Shawn protested, looking over at his brother. “It’s a couples edition Fixer Brothers show. Of course I want to ask coupley things.”
“I agree. Go for it.”
“It’s a simple question,” Shawn said. “What was the moment you fell in love?”
I felt like I’d just been caught red-handed.
We didn’t have an answer for that. We had nothing close. We’d practiced talking about how we’d met, what our families thought of each other, even potential future plans. But this question was a curveball.
I bit the inside of my cheek, my nervousness ratcheting up even more. Rowen had been schmoozy and quick to talk for the whole call, but for the first time, there was a pause in the flow of the conversation.
I glanced over at him, feeling panic settle in my veins.
This was it.
This was when we were going to lose our shot at being on my favorite show of all time.
But a slow smile spread over Rowen’s face, and he glanced over at me, squeezing my hand again.
“It was the first time he offered to make breakfast for me,” Rowen said, looking at the camera and talking to the Fixer Brothers.
I felt like he’d just pinned me against a wall. All at once, I was grateful for him and so confused.
“Breakfast made you fall in love, huh?” Nathan asked.
“It wasn’t just the promise of food, although that was nice, too,” Rowen said. “But it was the way he showed he cared about me. He was barely awake but he was already offering me coffee and food and being the way only Shane can be: thoughtful and sweet without even thinking about it. He’s not a kind person because he feels like he should be, he’s just naturally that way, every moment of his life. How could I not fall in love with that?”
I felt like my heart was lodged somewhere near my throat. My cheeks got hot as Rowen looked back over at me, leaning in and kissing me on my temple.
Holy hell.
“That’s the simplest answer we’ve ever gotten,” Nathan said, “but to be honest, I think it’s my favorite one.”
“And I can get a sense for that true kindness, even on this short video call,” Shawn said. “We have to hurry to a meeting now, but thank you so much for chatting with us. You’ll hear from us within the next week.”
I swallowed, my throat a little dry. “It’s been incredible,” I said. “Thank you both.”
“Have a great day, you two,” Shawn said, waving out at us.
When I hung up on the video call, my hands were still shaking.
I closed my laptop, looking over at Rowen. Were my hands shaking now because I was talking to celebrities, or because of what Rowen had told me? Hearing him talk about falling in love with me, even if it was fake, did something to me that I couldn’t process.
Something I shouldn’t have let my heart even feel, honestly.
“Wow,” I said. “I feel like I’m dreaming right now.”
Rowen gave me a little pinch on my arm. “Not dreaming. You did so well. I could tell they loved you.”