The Playboy's Princess (28 page)

“Honey, I’m home,” she called as cheerfully as she could through the door.

Drew appeared with a confused look on his face.

“Honey?” he asked, laughing. He saw Clare, and a knowing look came over his face. “I’m so glad you’re finally here. I asked the guys to put your boxes in the formal living room. We can sort it all out later.”

“All right.”

“Dream Guy, show me around,” Clare said, pushing past Jade into the house.

Drew took her arm and gave her a tour while Jade started carrying boxes upstairs to her bedroom.

“No!” Clare said when Jade wheeled the suitcase into her bedroom. “That goes in your room, silly.” She grabbed the suitcase and dragged it across the hall into Drew’s room.

“Shit,” Jade said under her breath. She ran after her friend and glared at Drew on the way past.

“What did I do?” he asked softly.

“Clare, you don’t have to do my closet. Really, I can manage. Why don’t we have some dinner? Do you feel like Chinese food?”

Clare stared into Drew’s large walk-in closet that was filled with his own clothes.

“Drew, you haven’t left any room for Jade’s things.”

He gave Jade a look. “Oh, right. Sorry, Jade. I’ve never lived with anyone before. I’ll move some of my stuff into the spare room.” He gave her a hug and pecked a kiss to the tip of her nose. “Forgive me?”

“Aww, you guys are so cute.” Clare gazed at them as if she were staring at a basket of puppies.

“Okay, let’s order food. I’m starving!” Jade said.

Drew lay in bed, listening to the cicadas chirping outside. There weren’t cicadas at his parents’ place. His first night in his own house hadn’t turned out the way he’d planned. An awkward dinner with his fake wife and her best friend wasn’t in the cards when he’d dreamed of having his own place.

His eyes flew open when he heard a door creak and footsteps pad past his door.

He climbed out of bed and went out into the hall. It was empty. A creak on the stairs let him know that he hadn’t imagined it. He followed the noise and blinked when a light flooded the stairwell.

“Jade?” he called out.

He walked into the kitchen and saw her drinking a glass of water. She put the cup down on the sink and turned around. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

She wore a camisole and boxer shorts. It was a warm night, and the cami clung to her body in all the right ways, showing the curve of her breasts and the flat plain of her stomach. Drew forced himself to look at her face, but that was no better. Her hair was tied back, but a few curls had come loose and hung around her face, and her cheeks were flushed from the warm air.

“Drew? Are you sleepwalking?” she asked.

He realized he’d just been standing there staring at her, not saying a word.

“Sorry.” He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I was awake. I couldn’t sleep.”

“Me either.”

“We could sit and chat,” he offered.

“I don’t think so. I have my last day of work tomorrow so I should at least
try
and go to bed.”

“Oh. All right.”

He watched as she left the room, and he could hear her bedroom door close. He went back up to his own room and saw that she wasn’t trying to sleep at all. Her light was on. She was just avoiding him. He wasn’t going to have any of that. He knocked on her door.

“Come in.”

He opened the door and saw her sitting on the floor, an open box in front of her, piling books into the bookcase under the window.

“There’s something I need to say.” He folded his arms across his chest.

“All right.”

He walked into the room and sat on the foot of her bed.

“I know you want to keep what we have professional, and that’s fine, but we were friends at the beginning of this. I’d hate to think we’ve lost that. This is your home for the next few months, and I want you to feel comfortable here. You don’t have to hide in your room.”

“Thank you for saying that, Drew.”

“And if you happen to leave your door open when you change, that’s okay because I’ve already seen you naked.”

He waited, hoping his joke had its desired effect of making her laugh and it didn’t backfire and make things worse.

She threw a book at him and then dove up onto the bed, tackling him. “You jerk!”

She laughed as she play-hit him, and he struggled against her. He rolled so he was pinning her to the bed and held her wrists tightly above her head. Having her beneath him sent flashes of their night together though his memory. He could still see her naked, writhing around him, breathing his name. His breath caught in this throat, and he felt her pulse in her wrists beating quickly.

They looked into each other’s eyes, and he wanted to kiss her, badly. Tingles ran up his spine and over his scalp, an odd sensation against the heat of the night.

“This is more like it,” he whispered.

She smiled the prettiest smile he’d ever seen. Innocent and playful with a blush rising over her cheeks.

“Friendly enough for you?” she asked.

“Almost.” He leaned forward, following his urge to kiss her, but then pulled back.

He saw the flash of panic that filled her eyes. She didn’t want him to kiss her, and he wasn’t going to force it. He rolled off and lay on his side, watching her reaction. Her chest rose and fell as she let out a sigh. He wasn’t sure if she was relieved or disappointed, but what he did know was that
he
was confused.

“Thanks, Drew. I think I can sleep now.”

“Yeah, I should get some sleep too.”

He lay on her bed a second longer, hoping she’d ask him to sleep there, but she didn’t. When the silence started to feel awkward, he leaned over and kissed her forehead.

“Good night, Ariel.”

“Good night, Drew.”

She climbed under the covers and watched him walk to the door.

“I’ll be just across the hall,” he said.

She laughed. “I know.”

He flicked off her light and pulled the door closed behind him.

Jade grabbed a beer from the cooler and sat down on the sand. Drew and his friends were throwing a football down by the water. She watched them for a while, and when she got bored, she lay back on the hot sand and closed her eyes, allowing her legs to tan.

“Damn, you look good laying there.”

Her eyes flew open, and she stared up at Sam’s smiling face.

“Er, thanks.” She closed her eyes again and hoped he’d go away. She felt the sand under her shift, and she groaned internally. He’d sat down next to her.

“How’s married life?” he asked.

“It’s great.”

“Really? I heard it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.”

Jade sat up and stared at Drew’s friend.

“And what’s that supposed to mean? Has Drew said something?” Her mind raced as she tried to think of something he could have said. True, she’d been distant since they’d gotten back from Australia, but she didn’t think they were fighting. She was just trying to be professional. Unless he was starting the breakdown of their relationship already? She made a mental note to ask him when they got home.

Sam smiled and leaned in close. “I know.”

“You know what?”

“I
know
.”

“Okay, you’re a freak.” She laughed, trying to play it off as a joke, but she looked over at Drew, hoping he’d come rescue her from the conversation. But he was oblivious to her discomfort, still throwing the ball.

“Don’t play games, Jade. I’m telling you that I know. I was the one who placed the ad in the first place.”

Realization suddenly clicked, and Jade understood. Sam had placed the ad in the newspaper that she’d originally written to. He
knew
the marriage was fake. Why hadn’t Drew told her that his friends knew?

“Oh.” She didn’t know what else to say.

“I wish I’d met you first, but the reality is that you’re still actually available, aren’t you?”

Her stomach clenched, unsure what her reaction should be. “I’m married to your best friend.”

Sam laughed. “If you say so.”

“You were at the ceremony, Sam.”

“Yeah. Yeah. Just keep it in mind that I’m interested. And when Drew sets his eyes on a new girl, which he will before you know it, I’ll be waiting.”

Sam got up, winked at her, and then ran off to play with his friends. Jade sat in the sand by herself, watching them play until the sun started to set, and they decided to go back to Drew and Jade’s house for a BBQ.

“Did you get a nice tan?” Drew asked in the car as they drove home.

“Yeah.” She wondered if she should tell Drew about what Sam had said. But the truth was, Sam’s words had hit a little too close to home. She was free to see other people, and undoubtedly, another girl would catch Drew’s eye soon enough.

When they arrived home, she feigned a headache from the sun and went up to her bedroom while the boys drank beer and cooked meat in the backyard.

Jade put on some soft music and curled up in her armchair with a book she’d been meaning to read for months. The smell of the food was enticing as it drifted up through her open window, but she resisted her grumbling stomach. She didn’t want to get caught down there with Sam.

Instead, she closed the window and went back to her book. A knock at her door brought her out of her imagination. It was probably Drew checking if she wanted some food.

“Come in,” she called.

Sam’s face appeared around the door as it opened.

“Hey, I just wanted to see how you’re feeling. We’re all going for a swim. Why don’t you join us? The cool water will help your headache.”

Jade rested the paperback on her lap, her finger acting as a bookmark. “Thanks, but I’m fine up here.”

She thought that was the end of it and looked back down at her book, but the door didn’t close. Instead, Sam walked across the room and sat on the foot of her bed, facing her.

“In that case, I’d rather stay up here with you.”

“Why?”

“You’re better company than those idiots.”

“Those
idiots
are your friends.”

“True. But they’re still idiots. Why would any of them want to be downstairs when they could be up here in your lovely company?”

Jade knew it was a line, but she felt a blush rise on her cheeks. She hated herself for falling for his smooth ways.

“You’re welcome to a book, if you want to read,” Jade offered, knowing that wasn’t what Sam meant.

He smiled and leaned forward so their knees were almost touching.

“Why don’t you come sit here by me?” he asked, patting the bed.

Jade knew it was a bad idea, but she couldn’t think of a reason to say no without sounding like a rude bitch. She put the book down and moved onto the end of the bed.

Sam looked into her eyes, and she had to admit he was attractive. He had a strong jaw with just the right amount of stubble, and his brown eyes were just a shade lighter than his hair, giving him that classic tall, dark, and handsome look.