The Hero and the Fat Girl (New Hampshire Bears #3) (2 page)

“We haven’t really spoken today.” He grins.

“I’ve been busy with tea parties.” I joke.

He chuckles, but then his face drops. “Have you made a decision?”

I shake my head. “No, but she is amazing.”

“Thanks.” Pride emanates from him. “She’s my everything.”

“I can see it.”

“Um…” he clears his throat. “I furnished the guest room, and I know you took this week off, so if you want to stay here this week, you’re more than welcome.”

I glance down at my feet, avoiding eye contact. “Thanks, but I’ll stay at my place.” I feel my cheeks growing red. I’m not sure why, but thinking of staying here makes me feel a bit embarrassed.

“It’s an open offer.” He touches my shoulder before moving toward the stove.

This is getting harder with each passing moment.

For the next six days, I spend as much time as possible with Arabella. She’s a priceless angel and has the biggest heart. I took her to have mani-pedis when Remington had practice. We even went to a game, and she yelled for her dad every time his skates hit the ice.

The hardest day is her last day. The night before she finally spoke about her mother, Rickie. Her own mother calls her paycheck and never by her beautiful name. The tears build in my eyes as Arabella cries in Remington’s arms, begging to stay and not go back. My heart breaks as I tell her goodbye before he takes her back to Liberty.

Even as they drive away, I’m still torn as to how to answer.

May

“I just want to let you know—” Remington sits in a chair in my office. He came by to drop off some information about his stock portfolio.

“She’s staying the weekend?” We’ve not talked a lot since Arabella left in April, but he knows I’m still thinking everything over.

“Arabella wants to see you.” He gives me a sad smile. “She talks about you every time I speak with her.”

“I can come Sunday. I have so much work I might not be able to come Saturday.”

He nods. “I understand.” He stands and, with another small smile, leaves. It makes me feel worse than before.

“Max!” Arabella comes barreling at me, almost knocking me over. Luckily, Remington braces me and my body heats up at his touch.

“Hi, Arabella.” I stroke her hair. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come over yesterday.”

“It’s okay,” she beams.” “You’re here now.”

“I am.” Seeing her again fills me with emotion.

“Come on; Dad made our favorite.” She tugs on me until I follow her into the kitchen.

Remington already has three plates with grilled ham and cheese sandwiches and a small handful of chips. We all sit down and Arabella tells me all about the happenings since her last visit.

Her bubbling attitude disappears when four quick knocks pound on the front door.

“She’s early.” Her eyes fill with tears. Remington looks as sad as Arabella.

“Go upstairs and get your stuff,” he says softly.

I watch as she slowly slides off the chair and walks dejectedly to the stairs. Remington quickly jumps up and storms to the front door. I automatically follow him without thinking.

“You’re early,” he says as he swings the door open.

“Ask me if I care. I have stuff to do, and since your fucking ass can’t bring my paycheck home, you’ll have to deal with it.” The voice coming from the other side of the door is raspy.

I can see around Remington and see an extremely tall, thin blonde with dark roots. She has green eyes and small thin lips.

“I told you I’d bring her if it’s a problem, and stop calling her paycheck,” Remington growls back at her.

“And who are you?” She stares at me.

“None of your business, Rickie.” Remington steps in between us, blocking her view of me.

“I’m ready, Dad.” Arabella sniffs and tears roll down her cheeks.

“God, more water works,” Rickie complains. “Come on.” She raises her voice harshly at Arabella, causing the young girl to jump.

“Hey, honey.” Remington kneels down to her, and she hugs him. “I’ll come and get you in a few weeks. I love you so much.”

Arabella only nods, releasing her tight grip on his neck, and then comes over to hug me.

“Bye, Max.”

“I’ll see you soon.” My voice cracks, and the lump in my throat grows.

“Let’s go,” Rickie yells again.

I smile at Arabella the best I can and watch her walk over to her mom, if you can even call her a mother. When Arabella is close to her, she jerks on the child’s arm and begins dragging her down the stairs. Remington and I both race to help Arabella gain her balance. Of course, he reaches her first and grabs her other arm.

“What the fuck, Rickie?” he hisses.

“Let her go; she’s
my
paycheck.” She tugs harder on Arabella’s tiny arm.

I watch Arabella’s eyes. Her dark brown eyes are drowning in tears. There’s pain, hurt, and confusion swirling around them. Suddenly, I’m transported back to when I was her age. The difference is
they
never loved me the way Remington loves her.

I didn’t have a hero.

“Enough.” I’ve had enough of this tug-of-war. I sweep her up in my arms, and she buries her face in my neck.

“Who the fuck are you?” Rickie gets nose-to-nose with me.

My meek personality leaves quickly as my savior mode kicks in. There are two things I can’t stand: bad parents and bullies. Rickie is both. “I’m Remington’s fiancée.” The words leave me before I even think about it.

Rickie stumbles back, as if I struck her. “Are…are you kidding?” She turns to Remington. “You’re getting married?”

“It’s none of your business.” Remington crosses his arms, standing taller.

I take Arabella and carry her to Rickie’s SUV, buckling her into the seat and cupping her face, wiping the tears. “I promise you’re going to be okay. Be strong. Your dad and I have a plan.”

“Okay.” Her voice is small.

I kiss her forehead. “Be strong.” I shut the door and go back to Remington’s side. I need to show Rickie this is real, and I take his hand in mine. I stare Rickie down as she tries to give me the evil eye, and then she looks down at her interlocked hands. Her face is bright red, but instead of saying anything, she spins around, jumps into the SUV, and races out of the cul-de-sac.

I lift my face up to Remington. “We need to talk.” I drop our hands and head back into the house.

When he shuts the door, I don’t give him time to speak. “This is how it’ll be. First, no sex. I’ll move in, but not into your room. I will not be quitting my job, nor will I give up my house. You will not tell me I can’t go out with my friends. I promise not to date anyone, but of course, I can’t stop you. However, if you want people to believe us and this situation then I suggest you be discreet.” I’m not sure where my courage comes from, but it’s here, and it’s taking over my words.

“I don’t want anyone else,” he says softly.

“Fine. Whatever. Just remember no hanky-panky.” My heart is beating fast it might pop out of my chest.

Remington closes the distance between us, wrapping me up in his strong arms. Even though I’m still a wreck, I know I made the right decision.

Right?

I am sitting at my desk answering emails when my cell phone rings.
Remington
. He’s not really bothered me since I told him I would be his fake fiancée. I did agree to have dinner with him to discuss the rest of the details.

“Hi, Remington.”

“Hi, Maxima, listen I’m sorry to bother you at work, but I’m on my way to Maine.” He sounds as if he’s in a car, his words rushed.

“Why? Is Arabella okay?” Suddenly, I’m as concerned as he sounds.

“Rickie has been arrested for drunk driving and Arabella was home alone. The police called me, and I’m on my way to get her.”

My heart stops. “Oh my God. Let me know if you need anything.”

“I will, and we’ll talk when I get back.”

I lean back in my chair, trying to rationalize this
being
a good idea. This little girl needs a stable, loving family, and Remington can give it to her.

I’m doing the right thing.

Right?

Chapter One

Maxima

June

“Arabella, come on. Your dad is ready to go,” I holler up the stairs.

It’s been a few weeks since Remington was awarded temporary custody after Rickie was picked up for drunk driving, among other charges. When Arabella arrived at his house, I moved in almost immediately after.

We seem to have developed a routine. Right now, Arabella is in summer classes to catch up on school. Remington was none too pleased to hear she was going to be held back because of all the school she missed. I’m still working and even though the New Hampshire Bears fell out of the playoffs in the first round, Remington is still working out and pushing himself to be better.

I stroll into the kitchen where Remington hands me my to-go coffee cup. “I’m going to call the dance studio and see if we can get Arabella in,” I remind him.

“Okay. I’m going to work out today and make a surprise visit to the kids’ hockey camp at the arena.” He sits at the table and hands me a piece of his toast. He’s already fed Arabella. “And we need to talk about my parents.” I’m nervous they are coming into town, but I can’t tell him his parents can’t come. I’m his fiancée, and I need to be supportive.

Remington sighs. “I know. We’ll talk tonight.”

“What do you think?”

Remington and I turn to see Arabella standing just inside the kitchen. She is wearing a yellow t-shirt with a cat wearing a tiara on it, a bright yellow tulle skirt, and pink leopard print leggings. Not to be out done, she is also wearing her yellow rain boots.

“So?” she asks with her hands on her hip. “I picked it out myself.”

“I think you look great.” I smile. Yes, it’s a loud outfit, but she is clean as are the clothes. I won’t hinder on her creativity. If she’s happy then I am too.

“You look amazing, honey.” Remington smiles at her.

“I’m off to work.” I bend down and kiss her cheek. “I’ll see you two after work.”

“Bye Max,” they say in unison as I head out the door.

I love my job. Sure, it can be stressful at times, but at the end of the day, I still love it. I’ve always been good with math and numbers. Of course, being an investment banker is much more and time consuming, but my paycheck reminds me why I work long hours.

My day seems to fly by, and thankfully, I find time during my lunch to call about Arabella taking dance classes. She’s been talking about wanting to since she arrived.

Since moving in, Remington has been a perfect gentleman. He’s never tried to make a move on me. The only time he really touched me was the hug when I told him I’d be his fake fiancée and when he slipped the engagement ring on my finger. I know his lawyer is still digging up everything on Rickie to make a solid case against her.

“I’m home,” I announce, coming through the door. As always, Arabella comes bounding to me, hugging my waist.

“Hi, Max.” She smiles up at me. “Dad says we can go out for pizza tonight.”

“Great.” I grin. “I’m going to change.” I kiss the top of her head, and I make my way toward the stairs.

As I walk down the hall, I check my phone and see two texts from my best friends, Harlow Goldsmith and Meadow Hylton. They want a girl’s night, and I know we’re overdue for one. But I’ll need to prep myself to be around those two. They’re both dating New Hampshire Bears as well. Actually, they are Remington’s best friends, and of course, it sounds like a perfect romance novel of friends dating friends, but they all know ours isn’t real.

I’m not paying attention as I try to balance my phone and files when I slam into something hard, almost knocking me over. I gasp, and then realize Remington is holding me tightly, making sure I don’t fall over.

“Sorry.” I breathe. Our lips close enough to kiss.

“It’s my fault.” He flicks his gaze to my lips.

Instinctively, I lick them, but quickly take a step back, steadying myself. “Arabella told me we’re going for pizza.”

“Yes, is that okay?”

“Of course. Sure.” I babble. “Let me change, and we can go.” I brush past him quickly, my cheeks heating up thinking of how close we were.

I go into my room and strip out of my black business suit. I slip into a pair of jeans and a tunic blouse. Harlow is constantly griping at me to wear smaller sizes, but I tend to wear a size or two bigger than I am. Caryn claims it’s because I’m hiding my body, and she’s right. I hate my body.

Every single inch of it.

I gained a lot of weight between the ages of sixteen and twenty-two. Well, I’ve been chunky all my life, but that was when my serious weight gain happened. All I did then was eat because guys left fat girls alone. And I liked being left alone.

When I got my current job, I decided to lose weight. Now, I’m struggling at my current size fourteen. I grab my yellow peep-toe boots and head down to Remington and Arabella.

“Are we ready?” I ask, taking Arabella’s hand, leading the way to Remington’s car.

He drives all the way to our favorite pizza parlor. The entire way Arabella goes on about school and her excitement about dance classes.

When we get to a booth, Arabella tells her dad she’s sitting by me and begins to color on the place setting the hostess gave her. We order a large pizza, and Remington tells us about his day. The man works out more than anyone I know, but it’s why his body is amazing and why he’s the best in the league. At least, I imagine it is. He also tells us about his afternoon with the youth hockey league.

“How was your day, Max?” He smiles at me.

“It was very productive.” I’m sure they would be incredibly bored if I went into details about my day.

When the pizza comes, we eat in near silence. It’s mostly Arabella who talks.

As we’re about to leave, Remington heads out first to pull the car up since it’s now raining pretty hard. Arabella and I are standing under the awning waiting when someone calls my name.

“Jackson.” I smile at my boss. “How are you?”

“Good. I just wanted to say hello.” The man belongs on the cover of some high-fashion magazine. He’s tall, with bright blue eyes, and thick blond hair, which is always perfectly groomed.

“Nice to see you.”

He stares at me for a beat before nodding and walking into the pizza parlor. When Remington pulls up, I quickly get Arabella settled in the car before jumping in myself.

“Who was that, Max?” Arabella asks as Remington drives toward the house.

“My boss, Jackson.”

“He likes you,” she giggles, and I notice Remington’s face tighten, and he cuts me a quick glance.

I turn back to her with a smile. “Well, he’s a nice man, but everyone knows I’m with your dad.” Technically, it’s not a lie, but there’s no way Jackson likes me. Poor Arabella is watching too many Disney Princess movies. She thinks everyone is in love.

“You and Dad love each other.” She giggles again, making kissing sounds.

Remington chuckles, and my mouth clamps tight. I try my best not to blatantly lie to Arabella. I don’t want her to hate me when I leave.

When we reach Remington’s house, I tell Arabella to get ready for her bath, and we’ll read before bed. She does so without question, and I grab a glass of wine from the kitchen.

“Did you two date?”

I turn and look at him, confused by his question. “Who?”

“You and your boss?”

I scoff. “No. I don’t date anyone except you, but we don’t even date.” I’m not being mean, just truthful.

“Well, I want to date you.” He steps up closer to me.

“You asked me out once and it was to ask me a favor. That’s not a date.”

Remington winces as if I slapped him. “Maxima.”

“It’s fine.” I rush out of kitchen and up to my room.

He never wanted to date me. I know it’s the truth. He only asked me out to propose this deal. Nothing else.

Soon, Arabella comes into my room, freshly showered with Percy Jackson in her hand.

“I’m ready.” She bounces up and down.

“Okay.” I follow her back down the hall, and she climbs into bed. I sit on the edge and pick up where we left off last night.

After two chapters, her eyes fight hard to stay open. I close the book, pull the covers up to her chin, and leave her room quietly. I head back to my room, change into my pajamas, and sit down at my desk to work on my files.

I’m not sure how long I work when there’s a soft knock on my door.

“Come in.” I spin in my chair and face Remington as he comes into my room.

“We need to talk about my parents visit.” He sits on the edge of my bed.

“Right,” I sigh. He told me weeks ago they were coming.

“I hate lying to my family but…” his eyes seem sad.

“I understand. What do you need me to do?” I don’t want to make this any more difficult than it already is.

“Move into my room while they’re here.” He sighs. “I want to appear as if we live as a…couple.” He whispers the last word. “I know it’s been hard for you to uproot your life. I’m doing everything to make it as easy as possible.”

“Remington, you have done everything right. I feel very comfortable living here. In truth, I feel at home here.” I try my best to keep my true feeling inside, but he needs to hear this.

“Maxima, you’ve done so much for me. There’s no way to repay you.”

I rise from my desk chair and sit next to him on the bed. “I gave you my word to be in your life until you have full custody of Arabella. That beautiful little girl needs you and what you can do for her.”

I stare deeply into Remington’s dark brown eyes, and my pulse speeds up. I’m very attracted to him and have been since I laid eyes on him. It seems like a lifetime ago, when in truth, it was less than a year ago.

“You mean a lot to me Maxima.” His tone is low, and he leans toward me.

Get up.
My inside voice yells and I do. “Um…we’ll have to move my stuff.”

“Right.” Remington rubs the back of his neck. “We can move your stuff before they arrive.” He stands and heads for the door.

When he leaves, I try to focus on the work in front of me, but it’s not happening. Instead, I crawl into bed. I leave the night light on because I can’t sleep in the dark. I should have taken a sleeping pill too, but it’s so late, I figure I’ll be okay. I turn on my radio low and close my eyes.