Single And In Love With My Fake Boyfriend (Single Girls Club #1)

Chapter Thirteen

Callie

“Callie!” Emily’s impatient voice calls from the living room. “We’ve been waiting for ten minutes. What’s taking so long?”

I try not to chuckle as I sit on my bed and browse social media. My friends and I started a book club when we moved in together, and we have meetings once or twice a week. Emily is getting very impatient because the book we’re discussing this week is a romance with some paranormal elements. She read it first and fell in love with it so much that she convinced us to read it next for the club. I have to say it’s one of the best books I’ve read in a while, and I can’t wait to gush about it with my best friends. But I’m kind of distracted with social media.

Many people have posted photos of Lincoln and me over the last few days, and my gosh, there are tons of comments. They seem to love when Lincoln wrapped his arm around me and tucked me close to his body at the diner. They love that he’s shielding me from all his adoring fans. The expression on his face holds only concern, as though he doesn’t want anyone to touch a single hair on my head.

Some might call that pretty darn good acting, but I know better. Lincoln is a kind and considerate man, and he knows how passionate some of his fans are. He would protect anyone that was with him. I don’t think I’m special to him or anything.

Although, we did seem to connect very well during our stroll through the park…

I blink and toss that thought away. After skimming over some more comments, and trying not to let some of the negative ones affect me, I grab my copy of the paranormal romance and make my way to the living room, where my friends are seated with their books and snacks.

“Finally!” Lizzie grabs my arm and pulls me down next to her on the couch. “Emily’s going to have a heart attack if we don’t start discussing the book in the next thirty seconds.”

“Sorry,” I tell her with an apologetic smile. “I was caught up with social media.”

“Stalking people who are stalking you?” Alex asks, opening her paperback. She’s got sticky note flags on basically every page. I bet she read the book three times before this meeting. Alex is always thorough when it comes to books. And her cooking.

I playfully push her shoulder. “I wasn’t stalking anyone. I was just curious to see what everyone was saying. I mean, we’re doing this whole fake relationship to make people believe we’re actually together. I wanted to make sure we’re succeeding.”

“And the verdict is…?” Lizzie asks.

“Success!”

“Woohoo!”

“They’ve never seen him with a woman before, so they had no idea what kind of boyfriend he is,” Emily says. “I think the fact that he’s so sweet with you has made some of his fans fall even more in love with him.”

“They better not. He’s mine.” My eyes widen when I realize what just shot out of my mouth. “I mean, he’s fake mine, you know, because we’re fake dating.”

“Uh-huh,” Alex mutters.

I shoot her a look. “Anyway, are we going to talk about a real relationship or are we going to waste our time dissecting my non-existent one?” I hold up my paperback.

“Well technically, the relationship in the book is fake, too,” Alex points out.

Lizzie, Emily, and I gasp and clutch our hearts. She did not just stab us through the chest like that.

Alex laughs as she rolls her eyes. “You know what I mean. So, Em, you start. We know you’re dying to.”

“Okay.” Her face shines as bright as the sun as she sits up in her seat and opens her book. “This is what I loved most about the book.”

She starts to gush about how swoony it was that the hero almost sacrificed his life to save the woman he loves. My mind wanders to a few days ago, when Lincoln and I hung out together after spending time at the bar with his friends.

I wonder why he doesn’t have a girlfriend. I don’t know him well, but I have a feeling he would be a really good boyfriend. He told me at the interview that he’s looking for someone special. Has he never found anyone close to that yet?

“I’m all for sacrificing for the person you love,” Alex says. “But then he betrayed her. What the heck was up with that?”

“He was cursed , Alex,” Lizzie explains. “He didn’t know what he was doing.”

“A part of him did, though,” Alex argues. “The spell only worked if there was some truth to it. The fact that it was able to take total control of his body proves that he himself doubted how he felt about her.”

“He fought it, though, didn’t he?” Emily says. “And they truly had a happily ever after.” She sighs happily as she hugs her book to her chest. “I really hope there’s a sequel.”

“I love all the times they touched,” Lizzie says. “They were so rare, but so sweet. Like, they meant so much more because they weren’t allowed to touch each other. So each one was so special.”

Her words remind me of when Lincoln touched my cheek. His hand was as light as a feather, his fingertips barely grazing my cheek, but it made my heart flutter. I don’t know why, but it felt so intimate. For a second, I forgot that he and I weren’t really dating. I never felt that way with Spencer. We touched so many times and I always waited for the butterflies or the flutters or the racing heart. Up until this moment, I resigned to the fact that maybe I’m not the kind of person who gets flutters at the touch of another person. But I realize right now that I hadn’t experienced it because I was with the wrong person.

Not that Lincoln is the right one for me. I have no idea why my body seems to react to his, but maybe that’s because of my old crush. I mean, I was obsessed with him and dreamed of being this close to him. That doesn’t just disappear because I’m an adult now.

“Callie?”

I snap out of my thoughts and find all three of my friends watching me.

“Sorry, what?” I ask.

“I just wanted to know what your favorite part of the book is,” Emily asks.

“Oh, right.” I open my book and start flipping through the pages. What was my favorite part? I’m finding it hard to remember. So much has happened this week and I wonder how I’m still sane.

“You okay? You seem distracted,” Lizzie says.

“I’m okay. Just a little stressed about the whole situation. People have been commenting online about every little detail about me. I don’t want to be so self-conscious, but is my hair really that flat?”

“What? Of course not,” Alex says. “Your hair has tons of volume. Screw what those people say. They’re just jealous of you.”

“You mean jealous that I’m with the sexy Lincoln Walker.”

“If they knew you the way we know you, you bet your butt they’d be jealous of you.”

I smile as I shake my head. “Thanks for saying that. Maybe I should just stay off social media.”

“Might be wise,” Alex says.

“Oh, I could never,” Lizzie says with a giggle. “I’d be too curious.”

“Yeah, you know curiosity is my middle name. I am a journalist after all.” I fall back on the couch with a sigh. “At least all this will be over in a month and we’ll go our separate ways.”

I don’t know why saying those words out loud makes my stomach churn. I knew this was going to happen when I signed up for it. Maybe because Lincoln and I have been getting friendly and I’ll miss hanging out with him? But that’s how these things work. It’s as though we hired each other for a job. Once the job is over, there’s no point working together anymore.

And it’s for the best. I’ll need to cut myself off from him if I want to find my special guy. I know he’s out there somewhere, and unlike what a certain jerk might think, I won’t have to spend decades searching for him. He’ll pop into my life when the time is right. Hanging out with Lincoln is a nice break from real dating, and once we’re done, I’m sure I’ll be ready to get back out there.

This can help Lincoln, too. Maybe once our fake relationship is over, he won’t be so scared to go public with a real girlfriend. He’ll have to if he wants to meet her one day soon. I’m sure he plans to play football for many years. He can’t hide a relationship forever.

“We lost her again,” Alex says.

I blink and shake my head. “I’m just contemplating life. You wanted my favorite part, right, Em? Let’s see…”

We spend the next hour discussing the book. Being with my friends always makes me feel better, and it makes me forget the stresses in my life. It’s like we’re in an isolated building in the middle of nowhere, where the outside world doesn’t exist and no one can bother us. It’s where all of us feel the happiest and the safest. Of course we all want to find partners and build a future, and it’ll be hard yet exciting when one of us leaves. But that day is not today, and I hope to cherish every moment I have with these amazing women.

So completely tossing any worries away, I clear my head and focus solely on the discussion.