The Fate Date (Glengarry Curse #1)

11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Sabrina

T he Lion’s Den was a sprawling white-brick mansion, sparkling in the beams of a complex outdoor lighting system. A fountain trickled behind them, and the sound combined with her nerves made Sabrina feel like she needed to pee. They climbed the landscaped steps, avoiding the white pumpkins, rust-coloured chrysanthemums, and gleeful scarecrow. Gavin knocked on the ebony door, the rhythm full of resignation.

“You ready, Tink?”

His growly voice resonated inside her, the nickname bolstering her resolve.

“Let’s do this, sweetie.”

He shot her a blistering glare.

“You have to pretend to be in love with me, remember?” She batted her lashes at him.

Gavin opened his mouth to retort, probably something about violating the terms of their agreement with her nickname choice. She knew she shouldn’t provoke him, but for some reason teasing Gavin Glengarry made her feel better. His snarl was something she could predictably elicit. It was a constant, like the cycles of the moon or the path of a planet in the night sky. His steady (albeit, murderous) gaze calmed the coiled tension inside her. Thankfully, their host spared her from his charming wrath .

The door revealed an elegant woman, flaxen hair in an updo, her white cocktail dress matching what Sabrina could see of the pristine interior. How much did these people spend on lighting their house?

“Welcome, I’m Melanie.” She pulled Sabrina into a hug.

“I’m Sabrina,” she said, pulling away, as Melanie clasped her hands.

“I’m so excited to meet you, Sabrina. I can’t wait to hear how you managed to capture Gavin’s heart.”

Excellent, she was a romantic. Hopefully she’d eat up all the fictional tales they told her. Her and Gavin had concocted a few backstory elements on the way here, although Sabrina would have had an easier time prying secrets out of a Scorpio. She planned on thoroughly embellishing them.

Melanie’s attention turned to Gavin as she pulled him into a hug as well. Sabrina tried to stifle her laugh as he patted her stiffly on the back.

“Shame on you, keeping this secret from us for so long.” She rocked him back and forth, trapping him in her clutches. Gavin looked to Sabrina in desperation.

“I’m afraid that’s my fault, I travel a lot for work.” Changing the subject quickly she gushed, “You have a beautiful home, Melanie. Could we get the tour?”

Sabrina mirrored Melanie’s enthusiasm as they entered each high-ceilinged area of the home. Wherever Melanie looked, Sabrina then fawned over light fixtures, admired backsplashes, and cooed over children’s artwork. She linked arms with the woman, her Jedi BFF senses telling her that she would appreciate the physical contact. Gavin, meanwhile, trailed behind, with both the appearance and tact of C3PO.

She gave him a silent glare, begging him to do something, say something helpful.

He checked his watch .

She would relish giving him a scathing critique later, using her totally made-up evaluation criteria; doubly satisfying because that fact would cause his brain to short-circuit:

Engaging and empathetic? F.

Thoughtful comments in reply to a story? F.

Giving at least the appearance you’re listening to a speaker? F.

Looking handsome? She hated that it was still an A. Why was his scowl so sexy?

“And how old are the kids now?” Sabrina asked during the upstairs part of the tour.

“Jackson is nine and Eva is six,” Melanie responded, as she straightened the nameplate on her daughter’s bedroom door before shutting it.

“A millionaire’s family,” she said.

Melanie chuckled. “We get that a lot. It wasn’t an easy time though.”

Sabrina didn’t want to pry, sensing there was some personal struggle there.

Gavin, however, did not take the hint. “What do you mean?”

Melanie gave a gracious smile. “Both children were IVF babies.”

He froze. “Oh.”

“I hear from some of my friends that it can be a challenging journey,” Sabrina said, trying to smooth out Gavin’s obtuse response.

“It is. It was,” Melanie said. “But we got lucky, and I was fortunate to have the best partner in the world on that journey with me.” She looked to the master bedroom, where a tall man stood, buttoning the top of his grey dress shirt. His salt-and-pepper hair was slightly damp and slicked back, contrasting with his tan skin. He crossed over to put his hand on the small of Melanie’s back and kiss her neck.

“You still have some shaving cream on your cheek.” Melanie brushed it off his chin, in an oddly sensual gesture. “I was telling Gavin and Sabrina about our experience with IVF.” Ian’s face softened and he kissed Melanie’s neck again, pulling her closer to him .

“Yeah, it was a wild ride there for a while. Melanie was incredible throughout the whole process.”

She smiled at him. “I said the same thing about you.”

“I didn’t talk about it a lot at work,” Ian said to Gavin, and cleared his throat.

Melanie leaned her head against his shoulder. “Do you two want kids?”

“Yes.”

“No.”

Came their simultaneously divergent replies.

Sabrina tried to smooth things over. “It’s not something we’ve discussed yet. We’ve only been dating a little while.”

Ian narrowed his gaze. “I thought you’d been seeing each other for over a year?”

“Oh, has it been that long?” Sabrina gave a little laugh. “I guess it has, time has been flying by.” She stood closer to Gavin and grabbed his arm. First, he glared at it. And just when she thought he couldn’t be any more awkward, he shook her hand off to extend it forwards to Ian.

“Sabrina, this is my boss, Ian. He’s the CEO and co-founder of IM Securities.”

“N-nice to meet you.” She shook Ian’s hand. Him and Melanie both gave her a quizzical look.

The doorbell saved them from any additional questions.

“Oh, that must be Alfred and Effie.” Melanie clapped her hands together. She and Ian made for the stairs. Sabrina stayed Gavin with a feather-light touch, which didn’t seem to matter. You’d swear by the look on his face she’d spanked him with a ping pong paddle. Ensuring they were out of earshot, she turned on him.

“What the hell, Gavin? I don’t have the plague. ”

“No. Touching,” he said quietly, next to her ear. His breath was minty. It was ironic that if she turned her head slightly to the right, she’d be able to kiss him. Not that she wanted to.

“I need your help with this, Gavin,” she pleaded, dread creeping into her chest with a stronghold. “I’m not a fucking fairy godmother. I can’t make them believe we’re in love if you insist on acting like a six-year-old who thinks I have cooties.”

“You’re here to get them to like me. You’re supposed to be doing the social stuff.” He stormed down the staircase, leaving her reeling in the hallway.

Sabrina felt she’d seriously miscalculated, like everything in life. She’d expected Gavin to be stiff, but his attitude so far this evening was actively hindering her progress. She could see, and not for the first time, why the board were wary about giving him the job.

The frustrating part was that underneath all the grumbling, she was actually starting to like him. She wondered if she had imagined his adorable reasoning for her nickname, or how he’d bolstered her confidence with the compliments about her work. It was like he was trying to gaslight her about his human decency. Sabrina looked for the good in people even when, in Gavin Glengarry’s case, it was the size of a freckle. If he could be nice when it was just the two of them, she had to try and seduce that tiny piece of him out tonight. That’s the only way they would pull this off.

***

E xcited greetings reverberated from the front entryway, but Gavin watched the staircase, stomach churning with regret. He’d been an asshole.

This whole evening had caught him off guard. His panic had started when Sabrina concocted a truly ludicrous backstory for them in the car. He planned to simplify the tales if they were asked to recount them. Then, the careful boundaries he’d erected in his life had come crumbling down the moment they’d crossed the threshold of Ian’s home. Gavin was shocked at Ian’s personal revelations, despite knowing the man for almost a decade. Though he wouldn’t expect Ian to share information about their fertility journey with an employee, Gavin took the perfectly posed family photos hanging in Ian’s office at face value, instead of appreciating the courage hiding within them.

And then Sabrina had touched him.

Any sort of physical contact with her was like touching a Van der Graaff machine. Gavin had tried it once at the museum when he was a child. All his hair stood on end, body vibrating with the pulse of electricity.

Instead of listening to her pleas for help upstairs, he’d closed himself off, and the longer she took to come down, the greater his unease deepened. What if she bailed? Yes, she’d create an epic professional mess for him if she walked out right now. But that wasn’t what worried him at the moment…

“Gav, my man.” Alfred pulled him into one of those half hugs again and introduced him to his fiancée, a petite woman with slick jet-black hair.

“Hi, I’m Effie.” She extended her hand so that the massive diamond was visible. The couple smiled at each other, both their teeth the same shade of brilliant white.

“And where’s Sabrina?” Effie asked. He noticed the couple exchange another look.

“I thought she was right behind you, Gavin?” Melanie asked him. The entrance hall stilled; all eyes were on him.

“She…uh…”

“Sorry,” came Sabrina’s voice from the stairs behind him. “I saw the Pokémon posters in Jackson’s room and I couldn’t help checking them out,” she explained, walking over to Alfred with her hand extended. “Hi, I’m Sabrina.”

Alfred managed to keep a composed face, but Effie was not so skilled. She looked like she’d sucked on a lemon.

“I love your dress,” Sabrina gushed at Effie.

“Mmmm, thanks, it’s Chanel.” Effie looked Sabrina up and down. She didn’t return a compliment.

Still, Sabrina persisted. “That’s a beautiful engagement ring.” The group moved to the kitchen area for a drink and some snacks that had been laid out on the marble island in the middle.

“Thanks, it’s ten carats.” Then Effie turned her back on Sabrina and said to Melanie, “I love your dress, Mel. White is so classic.”

Gavin merely watched the exchange and didn’t interject, which is why he noticed Sabrina’s shoulders start to sag, the straps of her black cocktail dress drooping.

He could be an ass sometimes, even rude, but never intentionally malicious like that. He thought Sabrina looked beautiful in her dress—it made him think of his mother’s picture of Audrey Hepburn.

Sabrina kept trying, her smile a little too bright. “Effie, you’ll have to tell us how Alfred proposed.”

Alfred swanned over to Effie’s side with a glass of white wine for her. “Let’s tell her together, babe.”

“Sure, babe,” she responded.

Gavin gagged.

They told a fantastical tale that was expertly rehearsed and elaborately choreographed involving a helicopter, a photographer, and the rooftop of their apartment building downtown at sunset. There were far too many tears for any of it to be believable.

“I love you, snuggle bear.”

“I love you more, booboo. ”

Sabrina caught Gavin’s eye, raising an eyebrow, as if she was threatening to give him that nickname. He tried to hide his laugh as a cough.

They moved into the dining room where Melanie had set out the dishes on the table family style. Interesting salads, roast chicken, squash with maple syrup, stuffing with cranberries and pecans —it was like an early Thanksgiving dinner.

“This looks fantastic, Melanie,” Sabrina said.

“And there’s apple pie for dessert.”

Gavin caught Sabrina’s eye this time, who smiled and blushed.

Gavin used to have unspoken exchanges like this when he was a kid, catching Gilbert’s eye before dropping a spider down the back of Gabe’s shirt. But he couldn’t remember the last time it had happened, and never with someone that he wasn’t extremely familiar with. He’d often witnessed other couples trading looks from across the room, like when he said something about his employee’s work performance at the company holiday party. Gavin was typically left wondering how a silent swap of information could take place so quickly? Moreover, how did they know what it meant? He’d avoided that sort of intimacy, afraid that his secrets might shine out just as wordlessly. It was too troublesome to identify and manage all the variables involved with this phenomenon—or so he’d thought. But with Sabrina, he seemed to know what she was thinking, and, oddly, his eyes seemed intent on making sure she knew he cared. He let himself enjoy that little rush of effortless connection. Where he'd been stressed before at the collision of his personal and work worlds, with Sabrina along for the ride, it was far easier to navigate.

“So, Sabrina, what do you do?” Alfred asked, seated across from her.

“I work in communications for the government,” she said, as they’d rehearsed in the car. “So have you made any wedding plans yet?”

Effie opened her mouth to respond, but Alfred cut her off.

“What exactly does that entail?”

“Um, what?” Sabrina started to fidget with her napkin .

“What does your day to day look like, paint me a word picture,” Alfred said, like a pretentious dweeb.

“Well, I create social media content for the department.”

“Which department was that again?”

Sabrina looked over to Gavin with wide eyes. He didn’t remember specifying a department?

“Health Canada.”

“Parks Canada.”

Came their simultaneous bluff.

Sabrina recovered first. “Sorry, I moved from Parks to Health Canada a little over a month ago. Remember, sweetie .” The endearment dripped with hostility.

“Right, yes.”

Alfred gave a smile, but his eyes still roved over Sabrina.

“Oh, I forgot the beet salad, it’s in the fridge.” Melanie rose.

Effie cut her turkey into the smallest possible bite. “I’m too early in my career to sell out in some dead-end government job—no offense. I mean, all the rules and regulations. It must suck the will to live right out of you?”

Sabrina’s mouth hung open for a brief second before she closed it and reached for her wine glass. She was wilting into her seat. He knew Sabrina’s “job” was fake, but he still felt the need to come to her defense.

“I’m inspired by Sabrina’s skills despite the confines of governmental protocol. It’s a true testament to her creativity.”

He looked over to her and Sabrina’s petal pink lips curled behind her wine glass. She gave him a sultry glance, up through her thick lashes. He held it, reasoning that he was just playing into the charade. His body buzzed in the charged air between them.

“Here it is.” A platter of beets appeared under his nose, breaking the eye contact.

“Do you have any plans for Thanksgiving?” Ian asked Sabrina .

She gave him a little wink. “October’s a busy month for me, there’s the retreat, Thanksgiving with the Glengarry's, of course, and my birthday. When’s your birthday, Effie?” It still astounded him how she managed to steer the conversation with expert strategy towards the other person, making them feel comfortable around her while they divulged all their secrets. She could be a liability if she wasn’t a total sweetheart.

“April 8.”

“Oooh, an Aries then—do you know your rising sign?”

“My what?”

Alfred scoffed. “You don’t really believe any of that astrology stuff, do you, Sabrina?”

“I find it interesting.” She slouched into her seat. The gesture, and the people provoking it, were starting to irritate Gavin. Perhaps it was the sting of his hypocrisy, but knowing Sabrina as he did now, he didn’t appreciate that Alfred made her feel small simply for having unique interests.

“When is your birthday, Melanie?” Gavin asked, and Sabrina’s face perked up at him.

“May 12, 1990.”

“Sabrina, which minister do you work for?” Alfred asked, changing the subject abruptly.

“S-sorry?”

“At Health Canada,” Alfred turned to Ian, “I know some of the cabinet ministers personally.”

Sabrina’s panicked eyes shot to Gavin’s. He wracked his brain. They’d reshuffled recently, and he sent up silent praise for CBC’s Alan Neal.

“You were talking about Minister Leblanc the other night, remember?” He spoke slowly and tried to soften his eyes like he observed Sabrina do when she wanted to put someone at ease.

She nodded gratefully. “Yes, they’re very nice, Minister Leblanc. ”

Plates mostly empty, Melanie suggested, “Why don’t we go sit in the living room, we can have a drink before dessert?”

Alfred made a grand display of pulling out Effie’s chair. Then he clapped Ian on the back and said, “Effie and I picked out a great tawny port that I think you’ll love, Ian…”

Sabrina rose from her seat and moved to follow the others, but Gavin intercepted her in the doorway. He took a deep breath. Then reached out and grabbed her hand.

“Hey.” He gave her a squeeze. She seemed wary, but didn’t pull away. “You OK?”

She shook her hand free and crossed her arms over her body. “Look, I’m doing the best I can, but for some reason Effie seems to have it out for me and Alfred keeps trying to trip me up.”

“I know, I think that may be my fault.” He told her about the bet between Alfred and Yves and the conversation he’d overheard in the breakroom.

“He said that my boss hates me, the board hates me, and probably all women hate me.” Gavin gave a little laugh that he didn’t feel. It was weird opening up like this, but it explained Alfred and Effie’s behaviour. “With $500 on the line, the two of them are probably trying to scare you off so you don’t come to the retreat.”

“Those assholes .” She paced the dining room, much like Tinkerbell flitted around when she was angry. “They think they can intimidate me into not coming to the retreat? Let me tell you, Gavin, your boss doesn’t hate you: I see the way he respects you. I’ll make sure the board doesn’t hate you. And I can’t speak for all women, but I don’t hate you.” Her conviction was palpable. She was like a Care Bear on a rampage—and he’d follow her into battle willingly. He usually brushed praise off, but coming from her, he wanted it to stick .

“You’d have reason to, after tonight. I’m sorry about earlier.” She was getting enough flack from Alfred and Effie. She needed a partner in this charade, not another opponent.

Her gaze softened. “It’s a stressful situation, I understand. But I really need your help on this.” She stood tall in front of him—that is to say, up to his armpits—looked him in the eye, and said, “You need to touch me. What are your hang-ups about this?”

“Sorry?”

“Do you not like my perfume? Are you a highly sensitive person? Have a mouth phobia? Are you inexperienced?”

“What? No.”

“Then what’s the issue?”

The issue was that he wanted to touch her. Desperately so. And not only to convince people of a charade. He knew from past experience that if he gave an inch, gave into temptation even slightly, it would have disastrous consequences. There was always a debt to be paid for recklessness.

“I don’t want any confusion about our business arrangement.”

“Well, no worries on my end,” she said flippantly, her arm waving the hidden truth in his words away. “While we’re at it, you need to try to talk a little bit. Let people get to know you. You’re not entirely horrible. Just mostly horrible.”

Gavin suppressed his smile. “That’s a glowing review. It’s better if I keep my mouth shut.”

“No, it’s not. Talk about work, ask Melanie about the kids, ask Effie about how to spot a fake designer handbag. Ask people questions; they love talking about themselves. You might even have something in common.”

“Hey, Gav?” he heard Ian shout from down the hall.

“Quick, kiss me.” Sabrina closed the distance between them .

“Absolutely not.” His fingers itched to acquiesce. He glued them to his side.

“Your boss is coming, and we need an excuse for being in here so long. Pucker up, buttercup.”

“Do not, ever, call me that again.”

“Kiss me, or it’s your nickname.”

He looked down at her, right into those cat-like eyes, twinkling with mischief. Then his gaze tracked lower to those pouting lips that he’d fantasized about taking for the past few weeks.

He cupped her cheek in his palm, his eyes never leaving her mouth. Her skin was even softer than he'd predicted. He brushed his thumb over her lips, and she parted them on a little inhalation. That sound, that breathless gasp of anticipation, undid him. It sucked all reason out of him, leaving behind only his desperate need to find out exactly what she tasted like. He crashed his lips down on hers, his other arm coming around her to hold her tight.

And it was in that same blissful moment he realized he was fucked.