Wedding Bet (Fixer Brothers Construction Co #8)

3. Jamie

3

JAMIE

“You’re telling me you’ve never hooked up with someone on a ski lift?” I asked, cradling my gin and tonic in one hand.

“Are you nuts?” Landry said, leaning over the table in the cozy booth we were sitting in. “Didn’t you see how tiny the chairs are when we were out there this morning?”

A lock of his hair fell over his forehead, glinting in the dim light from the small pendant hanging above us. I reached out to brush it back into place without thinking, then blushed as I realized I’d touched him.

I’d always been a little too affectionate when I drank, and apparently that was even more apparent in this little pub.

Landry watched me closely as I took another sip of my drink.

“You could still hook up on a ski lift,” I finally said. “I thought maybe at least you’d fooled around up there in some capacity, if you’re this wild, free spirit who hooks up with people all the time.”

Landry leaned back in his seat, still watching me. Having his eyes on me was making me feel warmer than the alcohol already had.

“No,” he mused. “When I’m skiing, I’m skiing. If I wanted to hook up with someone, I’d do that after the slopes.”

We were tucked in one of the corners of the small bar at the front of the hotel. I already liked it about a thousand times better now than I had last night, when I’d just been sitting at the bar alone. We’d snagged a booth with dark leather seats. From where we were sitting, we could even see the crackling fire in the fireplace across the bar.

It was the coziest thing I could imagine. And now that I was working on my third gin and tonic of the night, I was feeling looser and warmer and very comfortable here with Landry.

When I’d first met him, I never could have guessed that I’d soon feel comfortable enough around him to share old stories, but here we were.

“I definitely hooked up with a guy on the beach once,” I said.

“You? Really?”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Why are you so surprised?”

Landry shrugged one shoulder. “Didn’t take you for a public hookup kind of guy, that’s all.”

“It was hardly public. It was a slow night at a very small beach, surrounded by cliffs. It was nowhere near as exciting as it sounds. Turns out sex on the beach requires managing a lot of sand.”

He snickered. “That sounds horrible.”

“I wouldn’t do it again.”

Just then Landry glanced out toward the arched entrance of the bar, and his entire expression changed, all at once. He went from looking like a cool, calm Casanova one moment to looking like he’d just seen a ghost.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, looking over where his gaze was.

A guy who looked just as wealthy as Landry had just walked in, and he had another guy on his arm.

Landry’s lips pressed into a thin, tight line. “That would be Parker. My ex.”

“Your ex?” I asked. “I thought you said you only do casual hookups.”

He pulled in a breath. “For a long time, it was the opposite. I was a bit of a serial-relationships kind of guy.” Landry’s eyes flickered over to look at me, and he cleared his throat. “I proposed to Parker a year ago and he rejected me, flat out. Nobody had even known we were dating, because he’d wanted to keep it all secret, and… yeah. It sucked.”

Holy shit.

So Landry hadn’t just been a lifelong playboy. He’d actually wanted to marry someone, for God’s sake.

When I looked over at Parker now, it was very obvious that things had changed. Parker was leaning over to kiss the young blond dude that was hanging on his arm.

“Is this the lounge? This can’t possibly be the lounge,” Parker said afterward as he glided through the bar, looking around like he was inspecting an insect. As he walked his eyes finally landed on Landry, and a smirk appeared on his face as he walked over.

“Parker,” Landry said, his face still like stone.

“Lando,” Parker said. “You’re in this little bar? Please tell me this resort has a better bar?”

“The larger lounge is past the front desk. I’m sure you’ll have no trouble finding it.”

Parker’s partner was still shivering and had snowflakes all over the shoulders of his coat. “Parks, this answers it for me,” the guy said. “It’s a definite no on the winter wedding idea. We’re doing full summer, no matter what.”

I saw what Landry must have been seeing at the same time: Parker and his partner each had thin silvery bands around their ring fingers.

My heart ached in my chest as I looked over at Landry. This guy who had rejected his proposal, less than a year ago, was now engaged to another man. Landry had radiated confidence since the moment I met him, but now he looked like he was being crushed.

I had to do something.

Something fast .

Because seeing Landry look so unhappy was starting to crush me, now, too.

A surge of adrenaline coursed through my veins, and as I reached over the table and grabbed Landry’s hand in my own, I realized I was about to do something crazy.

“Baby, are you going to introduce me to your friends?” I asked Landry.

His eyes flitted to mine, a moment of confusion on his face. I winked at him, hoping he would catch onto my idea.

“This… this is Parker,” Landry said.

“Hi, Parker,” I said, reaching out to shake his hand, beaming the best smile I could muster. “I’m Landry’s boyfriend, Jamie.”

Parker looked just as surprised as Landry did. “Nice to meet you,” he said coldly.

“Honey, you didn’t tell me you’d have so many friends here this week,” I said, scrambling to think of things boyfriends would say to one another.

“I was… too busy thinking about all of the fun we were going to have, of course,” Landry told me, clearly catching onto my idea.

Maybe it was just the gin in my blood, but I was pretty sure I’d just had a genius idea.

Pretending to be Landry’s boyfriend was a risk, but I was already having fun with it.

“Well, I hope you two enjoy the lounge bar,” I told Parker, who was giving us each a clinical death stare. “Landry and I were just about to head up to our hotel room and enjoy ourselves.”

Parker just nodded before giving a little wave. The two of them jetted out of the bar.

I realized I was still holding Landry’s hand across the small table. I gave it a little squeeze then pulled away, watching his reaction.

“Too much?” I asked.

“ All of that was too much, but… it was also kind of perfect,” Landry said, letting out a long breath. “Christ. I didn’t expect to feel that bad, seeing him again.”

“Are you okay?”

He waved a dismissive hand through the air. “Thank you for what you did.”

I could tell he was even more rattled than he was letting on. I’d only known Landry for a couple of days, but I knew he’d rather jump off of a snow-capped cliff than talk about his failed engagement any more than he already had.

“I’d pretend to be your boyfriend anytime, Landry,” I offered him, my voice gentle.

He glanced up at me, an unexpected smolder in his eyes. “Who said you’re bad at flirting?” he said.

A flicker of adrenaline sparked in my chest. “Maybe I’m only good at it when I’m pretending for you.”

“Well, I’m definitely not pretending when I say you’re awesome, Jamie,” he said, finishing his drink. “I desperately need fresh air now, though. A walk in the snow sounds kind of perfect right now.”

I watched him try to collect himself, to put back the pieces of the confident exterior he usually had. It was the first time I’d truly seen Landry get vulnerable. The look in his eyes had been heartbreaking.

“These drinks are making me overheat, too,” I agreed. “Let’s do it.”

Landry let me split the bill for our drinks, fair and square, and I was proud to contribute even though I knew the money was insignificant for him. We put on our coats and headed out onto the stone path that weaved its way around the hotel, surrounded by little glowy lamp posts and pine trees galore. The snow had dissipated to tiny flurries, and as we walked out, Landry leaned back, sucking in a deep breath of cool air.

“I knew it would suck to see him, but I didn’t expect him to be engaged. Especially not to a guy who looks like he just finished college, for God’s sake.”

“You want to know something?” I asked.

“Anything. Please.”

“If it makes you feel better, it seems like you dodged a bullet with Parker. You could do way better than him.”

Landry looked down, grabbing my gloved hand in his and leading me down the path. “Parker never used to be like that. He got snobbier and snobbier as we dated. I always thought he would cool off, but it turns out he only got worse, apparently.”

“Like I said. Bullet dodged.”

He squeezed my hand. “You’re already a way better boyfriend than him, and you’re not even my real boyfriend.”

I laughed, the cloud of my breath visible in the night air. “Well, I’ll be here at your service anytime you need me this week.”

“I like the sound of that.”

We walked down the path, our boots quiet on the light snow. We held hands as we walked, and at first I thought we were doing it in case we ran into Parker, or if he caught a glimpse of us through one of the hotel windows. But we kept our hands clasped, even on the parts of the path that meandered away from any windows.

No one would see us here, yet our fingers stayed entwined.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d done anything like this. For years and years, I’d been focused on working my ass off at the diner, night and day. The dates I did go on felt more like interviews than anything romantic. And the regrettable hookups I’d had were brief, quick things that certainly never involved long walks holding hands.

Chill out, I told myself silently. No matter how romantic this seems, it’s all temporary. This is a short-lived dream world that only exists for this week.

I knew all of this would be shattered the moment we went home after the wedding. But for now, I let myself indulge, just a little.

“This was exactly what I needed,” Landry said a few minutes later, pausing in a little cluster of trees. “Parker doesn’t matter.”

“He really doesn’t,” I assured him.

Landry’s warm brown eyes landed on me. Every time he looked at me my body lit up inside. He was the most handsome guy I’d ever seen, but when he really looked at me, it made me feel like we were in something together . He had a way of making me feel like I was important, somehow.

“I’m really glad I sent you that drink last night, Jamie.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because if I didn’t, you never would have come skiing,” he said, turning to face me. “And then we might not have shared lunch together, or drinks tonight. And you totally saved my ass back there, too.”

I nodded once. “I do what I can. Jamie here, at your service, fake boyfriend and hilariously bad skier.”

Landry’s gaze moved from my eyes to my lips and back again. “Trust me,” he said. “You’re making this whole wedding a lot more fun. And I hate weddings.”

“How could you hate weddings?” I asked.

“Because they’re the worst.”

I shook my head. “They’re so fun. People share their love. You get to eat and drink and dance.”

Landry shook his head. “I’ve been to so many weddings over the years. And they’re fun, but…”

“But?” I prodded gently.

“After a while,” he said, “you start to question why all of these people are capable of love, but you aren’t. You know?”

I furrowed my brow.

Christ , that was sad.

Landry was slick, rich, intelligent, and charming, but it seemed like there was a whole ocean of loneliness beneath that.

“I’m sure you’re capable of love, Landry.”

He bit his lower lip, looking down at the snow for a moment, lost in thought. “Who knows? And it doesn’t matter now. I’m not in the market for love anymore, anyway.”

I reached out to grab his other hand. “Well, I sure as hell never thought anyone would want to hang out with me in a place like this. Especially, well… a guy like you. It’s all pretty surreal.”

He looked back at me, his eyes so full of warmth.

“Of course I like hanging out with you,” he said softly. “Can’t imagine why I wouldn’t.”

He tugged me in close to him. My heart started beating like a jackhammer in my chest, and I realized I was holding my breath as Landry leaned down, his face hovering so close to mine.

Holy God.

He leaned in, his lips close enough to just brush against mine for a moment, the hint of a kiss.

And then my heart, my brain, and my whole body couldn’t take it anymore. It was like Landry was hesitating, just a little, trying to silently ask me if I wanted more.

And damn it, I did want it.

I closed the distance between us, pressing my lips against his. He let out a little sigh as I kissed him, his lips so plush and warm in the chilled night air.

It’s just a kiss , I told myself in my head.

But my body was making me feel like it was exactly what I needed, and that I needed a lot more of it. Landry opened to me slowly, letting his tongue slide against mine as he wrapped his arms around my body tightly. He smelled faintly of his gentle cologne that I was already wishing I could get closer to.

He hummed deeply. “ Definitely like hanging out with you,” he breathed as he slowly broke off the kiss and let his forehead rest against mine.

“I like it, too,” I said, but his expression had changed. “What’s that look on your face, though?”

“I… don’t want you to get hurt, Jamie. I know you don’t like no-strings-attached hookups. If you don’t want to do any of this with me, then don’t.”

“No,” I said. “I know the deal.”

“The deal?”

I swallowed. “I know I shouldn’t expect more, and I don’t. But I want to have a little meaningless fun, too. I’m starting to think I’m okay with that.”

Even as I spoke the words out loud, my brain was sending off every alarm bell it had.

Play with fire, and you’ll get burned.

You know you always end up wanting more than something casual.

You’re only going to get hurt.

But maybe being a fake boyfriend could be as fun as being a real one.

As Landry turned his head to the side to kiss me more, along my temple, my cheek, then down to my neck, every warm little kiss was like a beacon, unraveling something inside me that I hadn’t felt in so long.

It was like I was finally exhaling for the first time in years. Maybe I’d been missing out, not letting myself have any time for flings or fun like this.

And even though Landry and I were from different worlds, somehow right here, right now, we were in our own little snowglobe.