The Supermodel's Best Friend (A Romantic Comedy) (33 page)

“It was all Fawn’s fault,” he said.

* * *

Her copper eyebrows flew up. “Fawn?”

Rubbing his temple, he hung his head. “Sorry.
No. My fault. Can I come in?”

Lucy had just poured herself a glass of wine
and was looking forward to drinking it—and a few more—but she
couldn’t deny the thrill that went through her at the sight of him.
Even as angry as she was.

What did he mean about it being Fawn’s fault?
“This isn’t the best time,” she said. “The bachelorette party is
tonight. I need to rest up.”

“Sure, of course. Me too. I mean, for the
bachelor version. But”—he rubbed his mouth, looking
distressed—“back there. I’ve got to explain. The way I was acting…
ignoring you… ”

She could hardly admit she was jealous about
him looking at another woman. That was just the sort of possessive
stupidity she’d called him out on earlier. She looked down into her
wine. “It’s fine. You don’t have to dote on me every second.”

“But I was trying to… look, can I come in? Or
could we go for a walk or something?”

“I think I’ve had enough walks.”

He sighed. “And I’m sorry about that, too.
Fighting with Alex. I overreacted.”

“You think?”

“Lucy. You need to know I’m not usually like
this.”

“I’d like to believe that, but—”

“I know. Fawn explained. She told me lots of
things. That’s what I want to talk to you about.”

Lucy groaned inwardly. “Just what did she
explain?”

“She gave me some advice. About not coming on
too strong.”

Fawn? Coaching Miles?

“How long?” she asked, stepping away from the
door and moving inside.

“How long what?”

“How long has Fawn been giving you advice?”
She was going to kill that girl.

He flinched but said, “Just today. We’d never
spoken before then.” He started to come inside after her but she
held up her hand.

“You can walk with me to the lodge store.”
She could survive a short stroll without losing her head, but not
if he was inside her cabin. He couldn’t think she would jump into
bed with him whenever he felt like being friendly.

She pulled on her socks, found her boots. “I
need to see if they have some industrial-strength hair gel. I can’t
have millions of pictures taken tomorrow with it frizzy like
this.”

“It looks great.”

“It’s the bane of my existence.”

“It’s beautiful.”

She gave him a look. “Try surviving junior
high with hair like this. See if you like it then.”

“Kids can be cruel.”

“It was the adults who laughed the loudest.”
Especially Mrs. Bergman, a sadist disguised as a science teacher.
She stepped outside next to him and closed the door. “But I’m glad
you like it.”

He reached up and stroked the soft curls at
the back of her head. Suddenly he pulled her close. “I love it,” he
said, brushing her cheek with his lips.

Boy, did she miss him. She froze, letting
herself enjoy his touch just for a moment. “Is this part of Fawn’s
plan, too?”

“No. She told me not to come. She wants me to
play hard to get. She really drilled it into me. How I needed to
back off.”

“Maybe she’s still hoping I’ll hook up with
Alex.”

“I doubt that.”

Lucy moved away from him. “I wonder.”

While they walked in silence, Lucy tried to
set aside her emotions and study the facts.

Back on Monday, Fawn had laughed at the idea
of Lucy being attracted to Miles. Tuesday, she’d seemed happy about
her spending time with Alex, though Alex wasn’t the type of guy
Fawn usually liked. Wednesday, she’d intentionally left them at the
B&B with a paid room. Now she was giving Miles confidential
information and advice.

“That sneaky bitch,” Lucy said suddenly,
coming to a full stop in the path. “She’s been manipulating
me.”

Miles nodded. “Looks like it.”

“What exactly did she tell you?”

He glanced around. The lodge was still out of
sight through the trees. Other cabins flanked either side of the
path, but though there were distant figures walking around, nobody
was close enough to hear. “She told me about your father.”

Sighing, Lucy looked at the gray sky. “Let me
guess, he’s the reason for everything that ails me.”

“Something like that.”

“Fawn took too many psych classes in college.
Totally unscientific garbage.”

“Hmm,” he said.

“You don’t believe me.”

“She’s known you a long time.”

“What did she say?”

He ran his hand over his eyes. “Look, I don’t
want to come between the two of you.”

“What did she say, Miles?”

He peeked out at her. “Promise not to storm
off and yell at her. She’s getting married tomorrow.”

“I don’t yell.”

His eyebrow went up.

“You think I’m a hothead?”

Smiling, he put an arm around her waist and
hugged her closer. “Yes.”

“I can’t believe this.”

“You’re passionate.” He bent down buried his
face in her neck. “Full of life.”

“And you’re full of something else.” But she
tilted her head to let him trail kisses up her neck. “You’re just
trying to distract me.”

“Funny, I was thinking the same thing about
you.”

She put a hand on his shoulder and held him
back. “What else did Fawn tell you?”

He tried to kiss her again, but she put
another few inches between them.

Sighing, he lifted his head. “She told me I
should back off a little. So you don’t think I’m obsessed with you
and scare you away.”

That was Fawn’s doing? Brides weren’t
supposed to be thinking about anyone but themselves. “I got the
impression you were obsessed with Denise. Maybe you should worry
about scaring
her
.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “That was
embarrassing. I never should’ve listened to a woman who thinks
Huntley is a catch.”

He sounded so mournful, so sincere. She moved
a little closer to him, relieved to have an explanation. And to
feel his big, strong body under her hands again. “What else did she
say? I might as well know it all.”

His hand slipped down her shoulders, down the
curve of her spine, over the swell of her backside. “She thinks you
avoid real relationships with men because you don’t like them to
lose control of their emotions.”

“And how do we define ‘real?’”

His mouth searched the tender skin under her
ear, kissing and licking. “For starters, a healthy sexual
interest.”

She stiffened. Fawn had told him about Dan.
“I see.”

“And it also includes”—he wrapped his arms
around her and squeezed—“a little natural possessiveness.”

“Is that what you call trying beat up some
guy who talks to me?”

“I lost my temper because I care about you.”
He inhaled the smell of her hair, brushed her forehead with his
lips. “A lot.”

Alarms went off inside her head. It felt much
too good to hear him say so. “We just met a few days ago.”

“Exactly. Too soon to say goodbye.” His
fingers lifted her chin, stroked her neck, held her for a tender
kiss on her mouth.

Breathless, she managed to say, “It’s only
Friday. We don’t leave until Sunday.”

“Lucy,” he said, lifting his head to look
into her eyes. “Be serious.”

“That’s exactly what I am. Serious. Ask
anyone. I’m very, very serious.”

He shook his head, his smile warming his
eyes. “I want you to see my apartment, even though I’m afraid
you’ll think it’s a dump. I want to meet your dad and see if he’s
as eccentric as Fawn says he is. I want to take you to my favorite
taqueria in the Mission and I want to see how you decorate your
place.”

“You want a wife and kids, big guy? A
mortgage, life insurance—”

His smile broadened. “I’m onto you, Lucy. You
can’t scare me away with that stuff anymore.”

“It’s not a game!” She pulled away from him.
“I’m not fooling around. I’ve let myself enjoy a little fun with
you this week but it’s nothing that can last.”

“It’s been more than fun and you know it. And
whatever
this
is, you need it as much as I do.”

She began walking. “No. What I need is
somebody who wants the same things I do. From the start. So there’s
no confusion.” Or worse. She was already infatuated with him after
four days; what would four weeks do?

“What do you think you need? Let’s hear
it.”

“Don’t patronize me. I’ll tell you exactly.”
She held up her hand and pointed at her fingers as she counted.
“One, marriage. Two, children. Three, a home. This is it for me,
Miles. I mean it.”

“I’m not buying it.”

She threw up her hands. “It’s impossible for
you to believe I might want something you don’t?”

“It’s impossible for me to believe you don’t
want to see me again after we go home.”

Her chest ached. This had gone much too far.
She walked faster.

“Look at me, Lucy. Stop running away.”

She spun around and faced him. “I’m telling
you what I want and you don’t believe me. It’s infuriating.”

“You don’t want a man like your father,
Lucy.”

She gritted her teeth.
I’m going to kill
that supermodel.
“One psych class and she hangs up her
shingle,” she muttered.

“What’s the big deal about planning on seeing
each other next week? Why is that so hard for you?”

“Don’t pretend this is all about me. You’re
so freaked out about following in your own father’s footsteps the
thought of marriage gives you hives.”

“I’m talking about going on a date next week
and you need me to propose first!”

She shook her head. “I know what would happen
if we dated. It would be great for a few months, maybe even a
couple of years. We like each other, we’re great in bed, et cetera.
But then I’d start talking about the future and you’d start
pointing out all the problems we had together. About why we’re not
ready to put down money on a house. Why you’re not ready to become
a dad.” She took a deep breath. “I’d be a sucker for all these
arguments because I’m very practical. I’d agree with many of them.
And next thing you know I’ll be forty and you’ll be just about
ready to maybe have a kid, except now I’m kind of old and I’m
having trouble conceiving, so another year goes by. Next thing you
know, some young thing is pregnant with your child and I’m looking
for a studio apartment that allows cats. Since you’ve run off to
Reno to marry the mother of your child. The end.”

He blinked. After a long moment, he laughed.
“You almost had me.”

“I’m not kidding. I have never, ever been
afraid to see the hard realities. Especially when they’re six foot
five and staring me in the face.” She gave up the pretense of
walking to the lodge and turned back to her cabin. “Alex warned me,
you know. He said I’d jumped into bed with the most
commitment-phobic male I could find.”

Mentioning Alex wiped the smile off his face.
He caught up to her easily, his long stride dwarfing hers. “All
right. So I’ll propose first.”

“Very funny.”

“I’ll ask you to marry me, you say yes, then
we date. How about that? Or do I need to cough up a ring
first?”

“Don’t be a jerk.”

“Nice. I propose and you call me a jerk.”

“You’re mocking me.” She walked faster. “Go
away, Miles. The wedding’s tomorrow. Don’t you have a bachelor
party to deal with?”

“Why should I mock you when you’re refusing
to go out on a date before I promise to be the father of your
children? You’re right. You are totally reasonable.”

“If you’re trying to change my mind you’re
failing miserably,” she said.

He got ahead of her and grabbed her by the
shoulders. “I know you care about me. Me, not the idea of me as
your husband. The real guy who wants you. The real you, for
yourself, not what role you might play in my life. How can you
throw that away?” His voice softened. “How can you throw me
away?”

Her throat tight, she lifted her chin and met
his gaze. “I want a family. A real one. That’s what I’ve wanted
since I was a kid. That’s what I’ve wanted as an adult, and that’s
what I want to have when I die.” She put her hands over his where
they held her shoulders. “That’s what I don’t want to throw
away.”

“But you’ve got no problem chucking me?”

Her breath caught. She had a huge problem
with it. So big it was going to swallow her alive. “If you had any
interest in… settling down some day… even theoretically… ” She
looked deep into his eyes, tilting on the edge.

“You want a guarantee, Lucy. I can’t give
one. I won’t.”

“Not a guarantee, just a possibility. Can you
imagine… ” She trailed off, finally realizing how angry he was. His
jawline was rigid, clenched.

He can’t imagine. He can’t because it’s not
what he wants. From me or any woman.

Ever.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, then,” she said
dully, stepping away from him. “Before we go home.”

There was no bachelorette party. Fawn decreed
the evening free of any obligations and insisted her friends go and
enjoy themselves—after the four of them shared a last meal in the
Snowy Egret.

“But it’s bad luck not to have a party the
night before!” Krista said. “We’ve been planning it for
months.”

“The whole week was all about me,” Fawn said,
toasting each of them with her chardonnay. “I want all of you fresh
and happy in the morning. Not sick of me. Or hung over. We’ll be
posing for lots of pictures.”

Lucy, who’d been struggling to put Miles out
of her mind, looked up at her. “Don’t you get enough of that at
work?”

Somebody kicked her under the table. Probably
Krista, given the constipated look on her face.

“We’ll keep it simple, don’t worry,” Krista
said, putting her hand on Fawn’s arm. “Just a
little
drinking and a
few
games and I promise we’ll get to bed
early.”