Page 18 of Accidentally Hitched (Unintentionally Yours #1)
Amanda
I cannot stop thinking about Callum.
Despite the fact that I have only been writing for Hardin records for a week and my life is running a thousand miles an hour faster than it ever has, my brain has been running at the same pace.
And it’s all thoughts of him.
The way his hand felt on my lower back, stuck like warm glue, unwilling to budge until I was sitting at the table.
The way he watched my response to everything, giving me glances of affirmation when I said something good and pressed his knee into mine under the table when someone said something abrasive.
God that knee touch.
Who would have thought knees were an erogenous spot? It’s the most unsexual thing any man has ever done and yet, it lit my whole body on fire to a melting point. And he didn’t move away. Not until we got up.
As I go through the motions of working in a major recording studio, I try to shove my boss to the back of my mind.
It’s easier said than done though. He’s my boss and I keep running into him.
Whether it’s checking in on the progress of songwriting for Lil Chaos or introducing me to new artists that will be touring with him, I feel like every time I turn around, he’s right there.
Suit dark and fitted, stretched across his toned pecs, forearms strong and veiny and way too sexual for a body part that is allowed to be exposed.
Here the man is introducing me to Grammy winners, and I am drooling over the way he rolls up his sleeves!
When Friday finally comes, I find myself staring at the clock.
It’s not that I don’t love my job but my God, a girl can only spend so much time around a man who makes the blood pump from her heart to her downstairs before she needs a break.
Luckily, I have a dinner date with my best friend Iris tonight and seeing as how I haven’t talked to her since before I went to Vegas for the bachelorette party, I am confident we will have plenty to talk about.
We meet at a ramen spot in Southpark. Iris has been my best friend since college.
Honestly, I don’t talk to most of the people I went to school with before that.
I always felt like I didn’t quite fit in with girls my own age.
Iris is four years older than me. I guess I’ve always meshed with people older than me…
Which would explain why my world flipped upside down by a lone silver fox…
Iris is a music major as well, but in a different field. She lettered in band and orchestra and went on to study music theory with an emphasis in orchestra and opera. She dresses neatly, pulls her hair back or lets it softly beach wave and is always, always on time.
We are yin and yang.
But…it works for us.
“So, I need to know everything,” she says with a smile as she takes a sip of her white wine.
“You’ve been so busy, we haven’t talked at all!
I need to know about Vegas. And your sister’s upcoming wedding, which I am sure is a headache.
And the new job. Tell me all of it!” She smiles and leans in on the table.
I smile back, reaching for my own drink, a gin and tonic. “Well Vegas was Vegas.”
“No, no. I need more than that. Your sister dragged you around Sin City and knowing her, she was trying to– what does she always say? Make you let loose?”
“Yeah,” I pop my lips. “That’s her life goal it would seem. So, we went out and I played babysitter.”
“Obviously,” Iris sighs as they set our food down. She adds soy sauce to her bowl. “Tell me you got to have a little fun at least.”
I have never been a good liar. Especially when it comes to Iris. She’s always been able to read my face no matter how hard I try to hide what I’m thinking or feeling.
She stops. A smile spreads across her perfectly pink lips. “Oh…something happened. Tell me what happened?”
“We went to this speakeasy. And keep in mind, by that time, we’d had a lot of drinks. And there was this…auction.”
“An…auction? What were they selling?”
“Men,” I say casually and take a bite of my noodles. I can feel Iris’ eyes on me, and it takes everything in me not to smile.
“Men.”
I pat my lips with a cloth napkin before going on. “It was literally a reverse auction. Men came out in suits or…less…peacocked around the stage and then women bid to go on dates with them.”
“Strange but intriguing. Go on.”
“So, this guy…this older gentleman…comes out on the stage and he was just…a whole thing.” I can feel the heat rising to my cheeks.
“How much older?” she asks with a grin.
“Mid-forties maybe?”
“You have always had a thing for the mature ones. So, what happened?”
I bite my lip. “There were hundreds of women crammed into this room. But I swear. His eyes locked on mine and after that, it literally felt like he was doing the entire show just for me. He even threw his tie at me.”
Iris’s mouth pops open. “And? Did you bid on him? Tell me you bid on him!”
“I did…” I say and Iris squeals quietly before looking around and then leaning back in.
“But it wasn’t intentional. Basically, he threw his tie, it landed at my feet and was dogpiled by like six feral women.
A mess of sequins and hair and fake boobs.
And I, being a sane person who doesn’t completely condone the idea of human auctions, backed up.
And into a table. And I might have spilled a drink and tried to catch it and waved my paddle on accident,” I grimace.
“And won the bid for a wine and dine with the Silver Fox. That is…possibly the best Vegas story I’ve ever heard. So how was it?”
“Good. We went out, we ate, we drank, we went to one of those silly wedding chapels…and we got married.”
“That’s cute,” Iris smiles and takes a sip of her drink. Then, after looking at my face, she stops. “It’s not cute is it? What am I missing?”
“You can’t tell anyone. And I mean no one, Iris.”
She nods and I know I can trust her.
“It wasn’t a fake chapel. We’re actually married. We also slept together and now we are trying to figure out what to do about it. Fast forward to work. I started on Monday and, as you’ve seen in the photos I sent you, it’s been amazing. And this…this is my boss.”
I show her a photo I may or may not have found online. A very professional, very sexy photo of Callum.
“Wow he’s…wow. No wonder you like your job so much!” She laughs and shakes her head. “You and your older men–” she stops. Maybe she’s making the connection. Maybe it’s the look on my face. Probably both. Iris blinks. “Wait…your boss isn’t…?”
I nod. “Yep. The guy from Vegas.”
“Did you know?”
“Nope.”
“Did he know?”
“Nope.”
“And…now you work for him. And you’ve slept together. And…you’re married. Jesus, Amanda. This is…does Kate know?”
“Nobody knows. And they can’t.”
I spend the rest of dinner explaining everything to her. The deal we made. The mechanics of his situation. What our plan is. Why I’m going through with it.
“But like I said, this is confidential, Iris,” I reiterate. “I just had to tell someone.”
“Because it’s insane. Well. At least if you have to be stuck in the situation, he’s hot.”
“Yeah,” I agree, taking another bite. I think about all of it as I chew. I can’t decide if saying it out loud helps me make sense of it or if I sound ever crazier. Either way, I guess it doesn’t matter.
“Just be careful, Amanda,” Iris cuts into my thoughts.
“It’s one thing to accidentally get married to a stranger in Vegas.
And it’s another thing to find out he’s your boss.
But the fact that he’s contracted you to remain his wife until he gets what he wants from his CEO dad? That feels…manipulative.”
“I want the job, Iris.”
“Which makes it extortion.”
I shake my head. “I don’t think he’s like that. He’s been reasonable about all of that. And the company, the family likes me.”
“Of course they do,” she reaches for my hand. “You’re beautiful and brilliant. Why can’t you just divorce now and fake it?”
“These are powerful people, they’d know.”
Iris frowns. “I don’t like it. But…you know what’s best for you. Just…be careful.”
“I have it all figured out. I’m going to play the game as written and then when it’s over, we split, and I keep my dream job.”
“I mean, be careful with your heart, Amanda. I know you. You don’t date casually. But it's because when you do fall in love, it’s hard. He’s got your career in the palm of his hand. Don’t give him your heart too.”