Page 5 of Fake Dates and Home Plates (Way Off Base #1)

Chapter Five

Henley

The faint sound of the Gilmore Girls theme song stirs me to consciousness. It’s my mother’s ringtone.

My hand reaches out to find my phone, but instead, I’m grabbing an arm. A very strong arm.

Blinking slowly, I’m face-to-face with hazel eyes and a crooked grin.

“Well, good morning to you too,” Theo says.

Oh shit.

I rush out of bed and back to the guest room, finding my phone and answering it quickly. “Hey, Mom.”

“Hey, Mom? That’s what you say?” she snaps, clearly frustrated. “How dare you not call me last night. I had to read it on the Shoreline Scandalous blog. That asshole!”

“Oh.” It’s the only response I’ve got. I should have thought about my mom reading the school’s gossip blog. She’s obsessed and calls almost daily to update me on the current campus drama.

“What happened, baby girl?” Her voice immediately switches to protective mom mode, and it makes me smile.

“It’s a long story, and I promise I’ll call you later to tell you all about it. But the short version is, Dakota is a cheating asshole and it’s over.”

“Kate, is she okay? Does she want me to cut his balls off?” I hear my dad ask in the background.

“She said yes to the balls and yes, she’s okay. I told you I would update you when I was off the phone, Kris,” she says back to him.

I can’t help my laugh. They both eat up the rumors and gossip, but I know they genuinely care about how I’m doing.

“You have two hours to call and tell me everything, or I’m driving down there, and I’m bringing your dad. And his hedge clippers.”

“Okay, Mom. I’ll talk to you soon. Love you,” I tell her.

“Love you most!”

I hang up and find Theo standing in the doorway of the guest room. Sadly, he’s put on a shirt.

“Coffee?” he asks.

Nodding my head, I follow him to the kitchen. While most of his house is bare, Theo has an impressive coffee setup. There are flavored syrups beside a shiny espresso machine that he walks over to and starts to prepare a drink.

He looks over his shoulder to ask, “Any allergies or requests?”

“I have no allergies; anything with caffeine and sugar is fine with me, but I usually get something with caramel at the coffee shop.”

Theo nods and gets back to work, grabbing two mugs out of the cabinet while I take a seat on the closest stool.

He moves gracefully, pushing buttons and grabbing milk and whipped cream out of the refrigerator.

A few minutes later, he brings both drinks to the breakfast bar and slides one to me carefully.

He stays standing on the other side, watching me for a reaction.

“Holy crap. Do you deliver? I think this is my new favorite drink,” I tell him honestly.

He smiles. “I’m glad you like it. I had to make it a hundred times before I got it right, so this is pretty much the only thing I know how to make. I’m just lucky you didn’t call my bluff and make a request.”

I change the subject. “I should probably get home. Do you mind if I borrow your clothes? I’ll return them to you if you want to trade numbers.”

Theo nods. “I’ll give you a ride home soon if that’s okay. I wanted to talk to you about something first, if you’re up for it?”

“Okay…” I trail off.

He sips his coffee casually before setting it down on the counter. “Do you still want revenge?”

That is what I wanted last night. I wanted to hurt Dakota or, at the very least, embarrass him, humiliate him the way he humiliated me.

“How does one even go about revenge on a cheating ex-boyfriend? Fuck someone else? Fuck a lot of people? Public sex tape?” I’m joking, trying to make the conversation light instead of ruining the morning with serious feelings.

“I volunteer.”

The words have me almost spitting my drink out, but instead, I end up coughing for air until I finally manage a response. “What?”

“I said I volunteer. I’ll help you get your revenge.”

“You want to fuck me?” I ask, because that’s all I can think of. Not that I’m against it. Theo’s hot, and I can totally imagine him throwing me back in his bed to ravish me.

He shakes his head while smiling. “Not for real. We could fake it.”

“Fake sex?” I’m beyond confused about what he means. Sure, I’ve faked an orgasm, but how does one fake the entire act?

“No, fake date. It’s one of my favorite tropes, and I think I’m the perfect person to really piss Dakota off.” He sounds excited.

“What’s a trope?” I ask while taking another sip of this magical coffee.

Theo explains with a smile. “It’s an element to a story that could be related to the plot or character, like fake dating, a love triangle, or enemies to lovers.”

He does have a point. I can’t imagine anything pissing Dakota off more. “How would it work?”

It’s somewhat alarming how quickly Theo begins strategizing his plan. “We pretend to date for a while. We can stage some outings, maybe some parties, a dinner here and there. Post on social media. Really put on a show.”

That sounds easy enough. “Cross-country season starts in a couple of weeks, so I don’t have a ton of free time. I don’t drink much when I’m training, and if I’m not in class, I’m usually soaking my body in ice. How can we pull it off?”

He shrugs. “I have a bathtub and an ice machine here you can use sometimes. Plus, I’m in the off-season, so my training isn’t as demanding right now. I’ll just work around your schedule, and then you can work around mine when your season ends.”

Our sports don’t have much overlap; this might be possible. Plus, not all our social media posts have to be in the moment, so we could always post when we aren’t able to meet, making it look like we’re together when we aren’t.

I have one more concern I need to clarify. “Just how much are we faking? Obviously, I want Dakota to think you’re fucking me stupid every chance you can. When we’re in public, what are the limits? Do we need a safe word for boundaries?”

Theo smirks, but a tiny blush heats his cheeks when I mention him fucking me. “I’m up for whatever you are, slugger. We can keep the physical aspects as light or as heavy as you’re comfortable with.”

This seems like a lot to get back at someone who most certainly isn’t worth the extra effort. I should go home and sleep a little more before I commit to an exaggerated scheme to pretend I’m dating someone new.

“I don’t know. Doesn’t this seem…petty?”

Theo comes around the kitchen to stand by me.

“I need to tell you something. Even if you decide you don’t want revenge on that asshole, I’ll have your back.

We can still hang out, and I’ll make you a coffee any time you want.

” He pulls his phone from the pocket of his shorts.

“I’m not telling you this so you’ll pretend to be in a relationship with me.

I’m telling you because you deserve to know. ”

He’s scaring me. I have a feeling I’m really not going to like what he has to say.

“Last night, I wasn’t surprised when you told me Dakota was cheating on you. Not just because I can’t stand him—he’s a little bitch who acts like a sore loser every time we play against each other—but because of this.”

The picture he shows me is hard to read, but it appears to be some sort of leaderboard. I recognize Dakota’s and Kal’s names, along with some of their other fraternity brothers.

“What is this?” I ask.

Theo doesn’t try to take the phone away, though he does zoom in a little more. “I know it’s hard to see the details, but it’s a picture I got from an old teammate I played with in an intramural league last year.”

Pointing out the numbers, it’s clear Dakota is leading the pack.

“It’s a fucked up game the Delta Alpha guys made up. They get different challenges and earn points for each one they complete.”

My stomach feels like it climbed up my throat and dropped back down like a ride at an amusement park.

“Henley, most of these are different sexual conquests with random girls they meet at parties. That’s probably why he was getting head from someone at the party last night. It was a bet. The winner at the end of the year gets bragging rights and a few thousand dollars.”

I think I’m going to be sick. “Was I a bet?”

The words are a whisper, because they taste bitter when said out loud.

“No. Henley, this started after the two of you got together. I only got the picture last week. I think it’s part of their initiation this semester.”

It doesn’t make me feel much better, but at least Dakota wasn’t dating me for a stupid bet.

The anger from last night returns, settling into my bones so deep, I’ll be running to my rage playlist for at least a month. How dare he not only cheat on me but also use all those girls to get some points on a board?

For pocket money .

Men like him don’t deserve good things.

And I want to be the one to take them from him.

“We’re so doing this, but we’re also going to take that fucker down.”