Page 11 of Down & Dirty (Holden Cove #1)

CHAPTER 11

CORY

S he’d said yes.

Sky had actually agreed to my crazy idea.

It was news that should have made me happy. It had made Cass and Bruce happy. They’d both been overjoyed when I’d called to tell them. Bruce was probably already scheduling lunch with the marketing team at Harmsch to fill them in on my progress. I hadn’t quite liked the way he’d seized on Skylar being a single mom, as if that was a selling point to be emphasized. Micah wasn’t part of this deal, I’d stressed that to him more than once. But I wasn’t convinced he’d heard me.

Cass had thought it was a bold move to strike so close to home. But given the logistics, it made sense. Plus, when I shared how much Sky despised me, she agreed it was a perfect opportunity.

Now we just had to pull it off.

Having been in so many of these fake relationships, I shouldn’t have been nervous. But my eyes flicked over to Ronnie on the other side of the room too often as my anticipation built. As I watched the clock in the garage, knowing that Sky was due to arrive any minute, my neck got tight.

Whatever . It didn’t matter. Out of the two of us, Sky was the liability. Keeping her calm and helping her through the first few outings was on me. Even though she’d never admit it, she was going to need my help to navigate all this. And since it was my idea in the first place, I didn’t have the option to get scared now.

So I swallowed down my anxiety as she pushed through the double doors from the office, her hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail that matched her form-fitting black dress. I stood up a little taller when she stepped into the room, and gave her a wide smile.

She did not smile back.

No, instead, she ignored me altogether and beelined it for her brother who was with his mechanic looking over his suspension. She couldn’t have given me more a freeze out if she’d tried.

Billy strode up beside me. “Since when are you so excited to see Stormy?”

His nickname for her was more accurate by the second and I huffed out a frustrated breath, answering him tightly, “We had a nice night.”

Even without turning, I could feel his eyes on me. “Are you telling me she is why I had to bring you to your truck this morning?”

I shook my head, refocusing on my bike. “It wasn’t like that. We just talked.”

My nerves rattled harder. I hadn’t gone over any of this with Sky and if it had been anyone but Billy, I’d have kept my mouth shut. But we had to start somewhere, and my best friend was as safe as it was going to get.

“You’re fucking kidding me right now. That woman has wanted you dead for weeks. And now you’re telling me you had a nice night . What’s that even mean? A nice night ?”

“Will you stop saying that?” I glanced over my shoulder, but Sky was still ignoring me, seemingly engrossed in her brother’s computer readout.

“I’ll stop talking when you start, Ellis.”

“Just get my front end sorted, will you? I want to see if I can throttle harder into that second turn. ”

Billy eyed me for a long second before sighing and going back to his laptop. The stats from my ride that morning were up and he scrutinized the numbers.

Without pulling his eyes from the screen he said, “Just tell me you didn’t bang Stone’s big sister.”

“No,” I sighed. “Of course not.”

“Don’t of course not me. I know you, man. You’re smarter than people give you credit for—with bikes, with business, and with money. But not with women. Shit. What does Ronnie think?”

“Nothing’s happened yet, man. Calm down.”

I could hear Billy’s smile without even looking up at him. “So, he doesn’t know.”

“Not unless she’s over there telling him right now.”

We both looked across the garage in time to catch Sky with her eyes on us. She darted her gaze away the minute she saw me, leaning dramatically to get a better view of the laptop Ronnie was pointing to.

“Holy shit,” Billy whispered. “You really did go there. She’s blushing.”

Fuck. This was a mistake. Sky wasn’t like the women I did this with. She needed to get her hands on some money, not some dream to be famous. I should never have suggested this. There was a termination clause in the agreement, she could get out, no questions asked. I’d tell her we could enact that and end all this right here. There was no need to torture the poor woman.

“Incoming,” Billy whistled as he bent down beside my bike.

Sky’s voice came over my shoulder. “I heard you had some issues in your first ride too, huh?”

I worked to contain my shock as I turned around. But when her smile warmed, I returned it, my heart racing a little faster.

“Yeah, nothing we can’t sort out. But those first two turns weren’t anybody’s friends this morning.”

She canted her head to the side, sympathy bleeding into her gaze. “You feel okay, though?”

Her concern seemed so genuine, so real. Even Billy looked up over the bike. For as confused as I knew he was, he managed to keep a straight face.

“Yeah, I’m good. Ronnie okay?”

We’d both had a rough ride on the new course. But we’d stayed upright. Me just a little more gracefully than her brother.

“He’s pissed,” she chuckled with a shrug. “But that’s nothing new. He’s always hated the mechanical side of this job.”

“I’ll try not to take offense,” Billy muttered, pushing to his feet.

Sky gave him a kind smile too, and I swear the man started to get red. I’d never seen Billy blush before.

“He’s not been as lucky as Cory,” she offered, giving me another long look. “Maybe if he had a mechanic as talented as you all these years, he’d have more appreciation.”

Was she working my best friend? I suddenly felt like a fool. Sky didn’t need me to rescue her at all. This woman was playing the room like a fiddle.

And it was working. Whatever suspicions Billy had, I watched as they faded from his eyes and he was left dumbstruck by her charm.

I just stood there looking between them, unsure what to say. But Sky didn’t miss a beat.

“We’re still on for dinner later?”

I snapped awake when she turned toward me and took a step closer. Her hand landed on my arm as she tilted her head up, a coy grin spreading across her face that I might have enjoyed a little too much.

“Damn straight we are. Pick you up at seven.”

She nodded. “Sounds great.”

Things were going so well, it was stupid to risk it by pushing her further, but I couldn’t stop myself. As she began to walk away, I reached out to catch her arm, leaning down close to her ear so only she could hear me.

“This means you’ll have to finally tell me where you live.”

A shiver shook through her. When she caught my eye there was apprehension where her confidence had just been. Sky didn’t want me to know where she lived. And it had nothing to do with our agreement. She’d reacted too strongly the night before about the same thing.

“Or I can meet you there.”

Her lips curled into a hesitant grin. “If that’d be okay?”

I brushed my thumb back and forth over her smooth skin. “Whatever you want, honey.”

No one else heard me, but I spotted a flare of irritation lighting up her eyes before she walked away and I turned back to Billy laughing.

His shook his head with a bemused expression. “I don’t know how the hell you pulled that off, but man, I sure hope you know what you’re doing with that one.”

“We’re just exploring, Billy. Harmless.”

He picked up a wrench and pointed it at me. “Women are many things, but harmless is never one.”

Even as I shook him off and got back to work, I knew he was right. Skylar and I had managed our first foray into this new agreement better than I’d ever imagined possible. That still didn’t mean any part of this was going to be easy.

I snuck another glance as Sky made her way back toward the office. At least this challenge had a nice ass.

When I texted Skylar the restaurant to meet at later, I’d told her to stay in her car until I got there. We had some more logistics to iron out before we took this any further.

Cory: Come get in my truck. I’m parked diagonally behind you.

Sky: Why?

Cory: Can you just come here?

Sky: Why don’t you come get in my car? It’s nicer.

Cory: What do you have against my truck?

Sky: It’s yours.

I cursed under my breath as I ripped my keys from the ignition. This woman was hell bent on making every aspect of this harder, and as I walked over to her car, I was seriously unsure we’d survive long enough for this to do either of us any good.

“Happy now?” I asked, as I shut the door.

“No. You’re the one who wanted to have a meeting in the car before dinner. I just want to get this over with.”

“So do I, princess, but if we don’t do it right, we won’t get anything out of this.”

She was dressed in a pair of ripped black skinny jeans with heeled boots that made her legs look long and sleek. The bright red top she had on punched up the same shade on her lips and she’d rimmed her eyes with a charcoal liner, making it almost impossible for me to look anywhere but at her striking blue eyes.

There was no way anyone could argue that Skylar wasn’t stunning. But in her leather jacket and heels, she turned beauty into power. It was a trick most women couldn’t pull off. But Skylar did. Flawlessly.

It was that exact toughness that was shining in her eyes as she prepared to argue with me. It was no wonder she’d been a motocross racer. Only a woman with her kind of mettle could handle the danger and opposition she’d have faced.

“Don’t call me princess. Or honey. Or boss. Just quit it with the nicknames.”

I shook my head, scowling. “No way, nicknames are a hallmark of a relationship. I have to call you something.”

Her face lifted to the roof. “As if anyone is even going to be around to hear it?”

“See, this is why we needed to talk out here before going in. We’re about to be surrounded by dozens of people who are going to hear it . This isn’t the two of us in a dive bar, babe.” She glared at me, but I went on. “This is us showing up in public together, and people will find out.”

“’Cause you called your publicist and there are photographers waiting in the bushes?”

I smirked. “Not yet.”

“I knew all that shit was fake. I knew you were never ambushed.” The smug look on her face might have annoyed me another day, but not today.

Leaning back in the seat, I stretched out my legs. “You’re just proving my point; you’re smart, pragmatic, once again making you perfect for this job.” I turned to her, my humor fading. “But it’s a job . Once we leave this car, you have to act, Sky. And I just want to make sure you’re ready.”

She blew out a loud breath. “Like you were at the garage. I thought I was going to have to pick your jaw up off the ground when I walked over.”

“Hey, I had no idea what your play was. You ignored me when you first came in. For all I knew, you were backing out.”

Her eyes narrowed, as if she was annoyed I’d even suggested that. “I’m not backing out, Cory. I’m in this. So just tell me what the hell you want.”

I sighed, trying to bring the energy back down. “I want you to have fun. To feel comfortable.”

There was nothing but other cars around us, but she scanned out the windshield for a second before she turned back. “Okay, so, what lite PDA am I in store for?” she asked, holding up her fingers in air quotes.

This was always the most awkward part of these relationships. But it had never felt so precarious before.

“I’d like to hold your hand, that kind of thing.”

“Cory,” she reached for my knee, and her brow bent as if she was talking to a child. “I know how to act on a date. I know how men act when they’re on a date. I won’t freak out if you touch me, and I won’t reveal to everyone in there the extent to which you drive me fucking nuts. Okay? Can we just do this please?”

When had I become the soft one? I was just trying to make sure she knew what to expect, but maybe I needed to lighten up.

“All right. Let’s go, then.”

With a huff, she pushed her door open, grabbing her clutch from the dash. She waited for me in front of her car and gave me a convincing wink before we started for the entrance.

As we got to the door, I placed my hand on the small of her back. Her only reaction was a slight tilt to her lips, and I let out another sigh. I had to relax. Sky was doing fine, it was me that was the problem.

“You’re really wearing the hell out of those pants,” I said, leaning back to take her in and biting my lip.

Sky’s cheeks pinked, but she just laughed. “You mean the rips?”

A chuckle rumbled out of me. She knew that wasn’t what I meant. “Hardly.”

“I’m glad you like them.” She regarded me expectantly and her voice softened with the slightest hint of doubt. “I wasn’t sure what sort of look you wanted from me.”

As the hostess approached, I kept my eyes on Sky. “You don’t ever have to be anybody but you. You’re always gorgeous.” I swallowed hard, the weight of how true that was sitting on my chest.

Sky held my gaze, her lips falling open for a split second before the hostess interrupted. I took advantage of the distraction, looking around the room as if I cared who else was there.

I let Sky slip in front of me, my hand skimming easily over her hip as we were led through the packed dining room. As I expected, several heads turned our way. I hadn’t bothered to set up any press for the night, knowing we still had some kinks to work out, but as far as practice runs go, things were off to a good start.

At the table, I helped Sky with her chair and when she looked up at me through thick lashes, humor danced in her eyes. I could imagine just how far I was deviating from her initial impressions of me, considering her disdain had been clear from the start. It seemed like any sort of kindness I extended now was just going to rub up against her expectations.

Which was fine with me. So long as she kept watching me with those eyes, I’d keep performing like the doting boyfriend.

“Wine?” I asked cautiously. After the bar the other night, I wasn’t sure how Sky would feel about drinking.

Her eyes scanned my face, reading me. “One glass.”

I turned to the waiter, “We’ll take a bottle of the Susana Balbo, please.”

When he darted off, Sky sat back in her chair, lazily looking over the menu. “You like that, don’t you? Ordering for us.” There was a smirk on her face, but she didn’t raise her eyes.

“I was actually just thinking it would be nice to share something I enjoy with you.”

When she finally glanced up at me, her smirk slipped. “I see. I hope I don’t hate it.”

With my gaze locked on hers, I reached across the table and held out my hand. She inspected it for a second before dutifully placing hers on top. Closing my fingers lightly, I let myself savor the feel of her soft skin just like I had on the dance floor.

From the outside, this moment would look sweet and romantic, so I lowered my voice as I replied, “Being hated by you isn’t so bad.”

That earned me a genuine laugh, and I gave her hand a squeeze before I let it go.

“You think I hate you?” She took a sip of her water, watching me over the rim of the glass.

“Come on, gorgeous. I think we both know I’m not your favorite.”

She tilted her head side to side, considering that. “Maybe. But I have my reasons.”

“Now this ought to be good. What was my crime? ”

A frown cut across her face, and I worried I’d pushed the wrong button in public. For a second, I thought we were saved by the waiter, appearing at that exact moment with the bottle in hand. He let me look it over before uncorking it for us, but the whole time, Skylar glared with thinly veiled contempt.

As soon as the glasses were filled and the waiter gone, she started where she’d left off. “Your ego is out of control on a good day, sweetie,” she bared her teeth in a smile so forced and fake I laughed uncomfortably. “But it almost cost my brother his shot at the team.”

I stopped laughing. “What are you talking about?”

She shook her head, the grin on her face turning bitter. “You nearly sent him off course in Indiana.”

My mind flicked back to that day. The last race of the year had been one of my best, and as I rewound the highlights in my head, it hit me. The yellow jersey. That had to have been Ronnie.

“I didn’t know it was him.”

“Doesn’t matter. It was a jerk move.” She turned back to her menu and I felt a twinge of desperation.

“I’m sorry I did that to him,” I said, knowing even as I said the words they didn’t sound like me. She wasn’t buying it.

“It’s fine. He made the team. I shouldn’t have brought it up.” Reaching for her wine glass, she took a sip, avoiding me.

“But you did.”

Skylar put the glass down, licking her lips as she finally met my gaze. “Wrong time.”

Shaking my head, I set my menu aside. She was right that this wasn’t the right time or place for this, but we might as well get it out of the way.

“I can’t change the past, and I won’t apologize for riding hard. We all play to win and you know that as well as anyone. That said, I never meant to send him off course. I don’t try to hurt people. I’ve never done that.” Riding so recklessly I got hurt was one thing, I’d never intentionally tried to harm anyone else.

I couldn’t tell if she believed me. Her stare was unwavering, the judgment in her eyes tearing me down as I waited for her to say something. This might end up being our first and last date all in one.

Her gaze finally softened. “I don’t think you meant to hurt him.”

“I didn’t.”

“But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a dick move.” There was a spark of humor in her eyes, the tiniest quirk to her lips. A glint of something lighter that told me we were still okay. Maybe not great, but we weren’t dead in the water.

I offered her a hopeful smile. “Well, we all have our dickish moments, don’t we?”

She chuckled, flipping the page of her menu. “Some more than others.”

That was about as much as she was willing to let me off the hook, and I’d take it. Rarely did I have to answer for my moves in races, and even more rarely did I feel bad for them. But Ronnie had been trying for the same chance as me, and now that I knew the kid a little, I probably wouldn’t do something so risky to him again.

Slipping back into the act, I gave her a cheeky grin. “I’m counting on you to help me keep mine to a minimum from now on.”

“As if you plan to listen to a thing I say?”

She had no idea how wrong she was. At that moment, I was all ears. “Baby, you have my full attention.”

The way she rolled her eyes reminded me of the first time we met. Her attitude was a lot easier to understand now. However, her accepting my offer was even more surprising. But as we placed our orders and settled in to an amiable set of topics, I noticed the people around us smiling our way and knew we were pulling this off. We were going to make this work.

“So,” she started, leaning into my shoulder as we stepped out into the dark parking lot. “Did Billy buy it today?”

I got the sense she’d been dying to ask me that, as if she’d been anxious to hear how her performance had gone over with people actually in our lives. She was really trying to play her part.

“He’s a skeptical guy by nature, so I’m not sure he believes this is happening. But he doesn’t think we’re faking it, either.”

“How do you know?”

“’Cause he knew about the other girls, but didn’t even imply that you were the same.”

Sky pulled up short. “Billy knew all those years?”

I nodded with a shrug. “Besides my brothers, he’s the best friend I’ve ever had. He’d never rat me out. And we’re too close. I could never have kept something that big from him all this time.”

“But you can keep this from him now?”

Her question gave me pause. It had crossed my mind that telling Billy would probably not have been a big deal, but something had held me back.

“I just figured it would be easier to keep up the act if he didn’t know. His skepticism is a good barometer for what everyone else will think.”

“Got it. So Billy is the benchmark.”

“I wouldn’t say that. I think how your family takes it might be even more telling.”

“Ronnie has yet to notice, so he’s no help on that front. But I’ll let you know when he finally gets a clue.” Sky leaned casually against her car door, looking decidedly more relaxed than when we’d arrived. “And what about your family? You never talk about them.”

“Sure I do. Just not with you.” She scoffed, clearly offended. I loved my family, even if they were a complicated bunch. “They’re not out here, so they just don’t come up as much as yours.”

“Well, what will they think?”

I shrugged again. My brothers didn’t spend too much time thinking about what I was up to, dating or otherwise. Mack had the construction business to run and Beau was in the military. And my dad would probably roll his eyes when he saw the headlines, like he always did. Nothing I’d done in the motocross world had ever seemed to matter to them, and I’d stopped trying to garner their support a long time ago.

“They won’t. My dating life is the last thing my brothers would concern themselves with. And Jake would never ask.”

“Jake?”

I shifted on my feet. “My dad.” Her eyebrows raised, so I answered her unspoken question. “We weren’t always close, so I don’t always call him dad.”

Her expression cooled as she nodded. But then she kept going, narrowing her gaze at me. “Do they know how you hire women to make you look good?”

I sniffed, lifting my eyes to the city behind her. “And tarnish the glamor of this jet-set image? Come on now.”

She yanked open her door. “You’re right, how foolish of me to think you had any genuine connections to anyone,” she paused, tilting her head thoughtfully, “besides your mechanic.”

I gave her a halfhearted smile. I didn’t know why it bothered me that she’d pointed out how little my family knew about my life. They thought I was too old to be riding and I thought they worried too much. It was a gap that had grown so slowly over the years I hadn’t even noticed it. Leave it to Sky to shine the spotlight. Not everybody’s family could be as tight as the Stone clan.

She hopped up behind the steering wheel. “So, you’ll text me the details of our next rendezvous ?”

She mimicked my horrid French accent from that morning and it made me smile for real. “Yep. And if there’s anything you’d like to do, any place you’ve been interested in going, just let me know. I can get us in almost anywhere.”

Her eyes rolled so hard I thought they were going to get stuck. “Braggart.”

“You say that now, but when I’m getting us a table at the exclusive restaurant you’ve been dying to try, you’ll change your tune.” I was using my old tricks to try and impress her, realizing a moment too late that was a mistake.

Sky started the engine, glancing back at me one more time as she reached for her door. “I’m happy at Del Taco, okay? Save your overpriced entrees and culinary orgies for the Hollywood set.”

Her disapproval hung in the air between us as she pulled her door closed and I walked back to my truck. The way she regarded my lifestyle as superficial and meaningless shouldn’t have bothered me. But it did.

I’d worked hard to carve out a life entirely different from the one I’d left behind in Maine. One with travel and culture and adventure. And I’d succeeded. But here I was paying someone to help me create the fa?ade I needed to hold on to it all. It made me wonder just how far I’d actually come.