“A meeting with my mother has me running behind this morning.”
Bea smiles politely, like she’s minding her own business, but also patiently waiting to find out every detail. She’s like my mother that way.
Moving into my office with Bea on my heels, I set the coffee cup on my desk, then drop my wallet and cell phone into my drawer.
“I’ve got the list you requested of upcoming events where Mr. Hinkle will likely be in attendance. The Top Dog Gala is this Saturday. Would you like me to RSVP for you?”
I drop into my seat and shake my mouse to wake up my computer.
“Yes, and Chloe Anderson will be attending with me.”
There’s silence for long enough that it pulls my attention away from the computer screen and back to Bea.
“Miss Chloe?” Bea’s eyes sparkle with interest.
“Yes. We’re dating.” The words are foreign in my mouth and come out curt. Before she can ask any questions, I add, “I need you to find out who’s handling seating arrangements for this event. Find out where Fred is sitting. If Voltaire doesn’t have their own table, make sure he’s sitting at mine.”
“Of course.” Bea nods, writing down notes.
“Chloe will need a dress.” I narrow my eyes at Bea. “An appropriate dress.”
“Was there something wrong with the dress I picked out on Saturday?” she asks innocently.
“Yes, half of it was missing.”
“Well, I did my research. It was a designer and style that Fred’s girlfriend prefers. I saw it on the gram.”
“You mean Instagram?”
“Yes, my granddaughter showed me how. I thought it would be a talking point for the group.”
“It was thoroughly discussed.” I think of Frankie’s domination of the evening’s conversation and my inability to speak at all with Fred about business. “While that may have turned out in our favor, I’m not a fan of surprises.”
“I don’t mean to pry,” she says.
“Then don’t.”
She carries on without hesitation. “But I always thought there was something between you and Miss Chloe.” She smiles. “I had a feeling about it. Now I know I was right.”
“Sure.” I nod. There’s no way I’m going to tell Bea that I’m using Chloe to help me get into good graces with Fred and secure a deal to purchase Voltaire Telecom. She’d have a heart attack, then that would be on my conscience. Blackmailing Chloe to pretend to be my girlfriend is all I can handle right now.
CHAPTER 8
Chloe
After the shock of Monday morning’s events wears off, I realize while Barrett has the upper hand with that video, I still have a say in all this. Will I lose my job if Barrett shows JoAnna that video? The odds are high. But if I choose to tell her about the party and end this charade, Barrett’s business deal could go up in smoke. For as much as JoAnna would be disappointed in me for not telling her the truth, I imagine Fred Hinkle won’t appreciate Barrett lying to him about having a girlfriend, using me to play to Fred’s soft heart and pretending to be someone he is not.
Because Barrett is not boyfriend material. He’s the last guy I would want to date. Dismissive, demanding, only cares about himself.
Even the fact that he set up a table and champagne for Lauren’s bachelorette at the club was self-serving. I wanted to think that he was being nice, but he wanted my guard down. And the way he wasn’t the least bit surprised when JoAnna called us out on our ‘date’ yesterday means he knew that would happen. He knew it wouldn’t just be one date and then we were even. Now, I’m stuck playing his fake girlfriend role for the next six weeks, the time Barrett estimated it would take to seal his deal with Fred.
We’re having lunch today. We’re going to sit down and eat a meal together. Alone. No Frankie and Fred to distract from the fact that we despise each other. This is not where I saw my life going.
While I wait for Barrett to arrive, I catch up on work emails. Now that I’m filling in for Lacey, I’ve got her workload as well as my usual tasks for JoAnna, along with helping coordinate the Books 4 Kids event.
With the busy weekend I had, I didn’t get much reading in and I’ve needed every spare minute the last two days to get caught up. I know that JoAnna is giving me this opportunity to prove to her that I can handle being promoted to an assistant editor. It’s all that I want, all that I’ve been working toward.
Career goals aside, I haven’t had a moment to think about what I want from Barrett in return for me agreeing to be his fake girlfriend. Not that I agreed. But, if he’s offering something in return, I want to take full advantage of it.