The plus one problem

How to Accidentally Get a Boyfriend in Five Minutes or Less

"Hey, babe," he says smoothly.

My mother gasps.

I nearly fling my latte at his stupid, smug face.

The entire café is watching.

And that is how I, Hallie Dawson, end up with Weston Freaking Hale as my accidental fake boyfriend.

2

As soon as I hang up, I turn to Wes, murder in my eyes.

"What the hell was that?" I whisper-yell, pushing him away.

He looks unbothered. "You needed a boyfriend. I volunteered."

"I didn't need you!"

"Well, it's too late now."

I want to argue, but unfortunately, he's right.

My mother is deliriously happy. She spent five minutes gushing about how excited she is to "finally meet my mystery man" at the wedding, and now there is no way I can back out.

This is an actual nightmare.

I pinch the bridge of my nose. "Wes, we're not even friends."

He raises a brow. "No?"

"No! You've spent years making my life miserable."

"That's dramatic."

I narrow my eyes. "Do you or do you not still bring up the eighth-grade talent show?"

He smirks. "Okay, but to be fair, you were really bad."

I groan. "See? This is why you can't be my fake boyfriend."

"Well, I hate to break it to you, babe, but it's already happening."

I cross my arms. "Why would you even do this?"

He shrugs, looking entirely too pleased with himself. "I have my own problem."

I wait. He doesn't elaborate.

I sigh. "Wes."

"Hallie."

"Explain."

His smirk fades slightly. "I have a work event coming up, And people are convinced I'm some kind of emotionally stunted, commitment-phobic workaholic."

I blink. "I mean... aren't you?"

He ignores that. "Point is, showing up with a girlfriend would help."

I stare at him. "So let me get this straight. You pretended to be my boyfriend just now because you want me to be your fake girlfriend?"

"Essentially."

I should say no. I should absolutely say no.

But...

One couple months.

That's all it has to be.

And honestly, it solves both our problems.

My mother stops treating me like a lost cause. Everyone stops thinking he's incapable of a proper human connection. A win-win.

Except for the tiny problem of the fact that Weston Hale is unbearable.

I exhale sharply. "Fine."

He grins. "Fine?"

I glare. "But there are rules."

His grin only grows. "Oh, this should be good."

I count them off on my fingers.

"One: No real feelings. This is a business arrangement."

"Obviously."

"Two: No drama. We keep it simple, clean, and we don't get caught in a web of lies."

He nods. "Agreed."

"And three: Absolutely. No. Kissing."

He tilts his head, considering.

"Fine," he says after a long moment. "But what happens if someone expects us to?"

I hesitate. "What do you mean?"

"Like, say we're at the wedding. Everyone's watching. They start chanting 'kiss, kiss, kiss.'" He shrugs. "What do we do?"

I roll my eyes. "That wouldn't happen."

He grins. "You don't know your family very well, do you?"

Damn it. He has a point.

I groan. "Fine. In the event of a public emergency, we may employ a brief and strictly necessary kiss. Nothing more."

He smirks. "Sounds reasonable."

I hold out my hand. "Deal?"

He takes it. "Deal."

I shake it once, firm.

And that's when I realize something deeply unsettling.

His hand is warm.

His grip is solid.

And when his thumb brushes over my wrist as he lets go, my stomach does something strange.

I swallow. This is fine.

It's just fake dating.

With my childhood rival.

What could possibly go wrong?