Page 30 of Unhitched

Chapter seventeen

Mya

“I used to ride my bike along the Willamette River growing up in Eugene. It’s beautiful and leads to here, but it’s nothing like this,” I tell Kace as we lean against the railing overlooking the Columbia River.

“How did you end up here?” Kace asks. His forearms rest on the silver bar, and his gaze stays locked on the flowing water below.

I spare him a glance, but only for a second, so I don’t dwell on how cozy he looks today.

He’s wearing an olive hoodie under a jean jacket with black jeans that makes me wish I could snuggle into his side.

And my Lanta , his hair . It’s perfectly imperfect, like all he did was run his fingers through the strands, and I’m jealous of his hands.

I internally groan. It’s safe to say I have a crush on my roommate.

I’m trying hard not to, mainly because he ran away after kissing me.

The grumpiness I can get over. The hesitation around relationships I can work with.

But the man can’t even kiss me without being turned off, and that’s where I draw the line.

“My sister is two years older than me. When I graduated high school, she had already started her photography business, and it had grown enough that she could afford to pay me as her assistant.

I did that for a couple of years. Back then she was doing more family sessions–before she broke into the music industry–so I would help her create aesthetically pleasing sets.

“We came up here for a photography conference, and I fell in love. My parents had a friend who was looking to rent out their basement, so I lived there for about five years while I worked on growing my own business.” Kace doesn’t respond, so I shoot him another glance to make sure he’s still with me–even though I can feel his presence about six inches away.

“Sorry, that was more than you bargained for.”

He looks over, and his dark eyes contrast so starkly with the sunlight peeking through the clouds and reflecting off the water. “You’re brave for taking off on your own like that.”

“It’s not that big of a deal. It’s not like I couldn’t have gone home if my life fell apart.”

“Don’t downplay it,” he says.

“Well, you did the same, didn’t you?” I cross my fingers, hoping that he’ll share something.

His shoulders shrug, and I can’t help but watch the way his jacket resettles, open over his sweatshirt. “I guess. But I wasn’t alone.” He pauses. “Ruby was with me, and she had a job before we got here.”

“Oh, wow. I didn’t know that.”

He arches a brow like he doesn’t believe me.

“I swear. I didn’t stalk her that much.” I chew my lip.

He smirks, and it eases my nerves. “We met in grad school–Virginia Tech. Got jobs out of college and worked for two years until she was offered a position at Columbia.”

“Whoa. That’s a big move. Was it hard for you to leave?”

He refocuses on the river, evading my question.

“Mya?” a woman’s soft voice comes from behind us, and we both turn to look at the beautiful brunette, more put together than Blair Waldorf on the steps of the Met.

“Hi, yes. That’s me.” I smile at my client, Olivia. I reach to shake her hand, feeling underdressed in an oversized Rory Gilmore sweater as a dress with brown boots and my hair half pulled back with a ribbon tied in a bow. “And this is my partner, Kace.”

“Oooh,” Olivia coos. “Partner partner or business partner?”

“Business,” Kace answers all too quickly, reaching out his hand for Olivia’s. It’s like he can’t even entertain the idea of anything more than platonic roommates, and I don’t know whether I should take offense or remind myself that he’s likely on edge from talking about his ex. “Nice to meet you.”

“Should we sit?” I plaster on a smile and gesture toward the stone steps behind us. They’re wide enough that they are commonly used for lunch breaks since there aren’t any picnic tables at the waterfront park.

Kace and I take the second row from the bottom, his feet firmly planted on the step below, while I curl one leg under me.

The cold of the stone sends a chill through my bare legs as Olivia sits on the step below, twisting to face us.

“Thank you again for meeting with me. This is pretty time-sensitive.”

I check our surroundings. Cute trees frame us on one side, giving privacy. With it being so chilly, the only other person out here is on the far side of the stone steps. “Why don’t you explain the situation to Kace,” I tell Olivia, hoping he doesn’t roll his eyes or say anything insensitive.

“Yeah. My parents set me up with this guy. He’s exactly the kind of guy they expect me to marry, but I can tell you after one date, there’s not a chance in hell I can survive spending more time with him.

” She takes a breath, vulnerability in her eyes.

I hope she’s not worried about Kace judging her because she didn’t seem nervous going over the details with me.

“My boyfriend doesn’t have much patience for the situation. ”

“Do your parents know you have a boyfriend?” Kace clarifies.

She nods. “I’ve told them so many times.

But I turn thirty later this year, and they refuse to believe anyone who hasn’t proposed by this age is a serious contender.

So they set me up with the son of one of their friends from the golf club.

Besides the fact that I’m not interested, the guy is as boring as the sport itself.

He even hates Happy Gilmore because, according to him, ‘It disrespects the sanctity of golf.’”

“Red flag,” Kace agrees. “Can’t you tell your parents to fuck off?”

She worries her lip and shakes her head.

“They’re getting older. They had me right before they turned forty, so I know they’re just worried about me.

They want to make sure I’m taken care of.

I can only fault them so much for that. My boyfriend and I have talked about getting married, but we’ve only been together for a year.

I don’t want him to feel pressured, so I was hoping you could help me convince this guy that we aren’t a good fit so he calls the whole thing off. ”

“Did you try telling him you have a boyfriend?” Kace asks, and I can tell that he thinks everything should be cut and dry, that problems are simple to avoid. He sees the world in black and white, whereas I see it in tie-dye.

I frown, wondering if that’s exactly why he didn’t see his own break up coming, and I hate that for him.

Hate that he got hurt. Hate that he’s still not seeing the point of all this.

“It’s not that straightforward,” I cut in for Olivia, sensing how overwhelmed she is by the situation.

“Her boyfriend is upset, and this other dude straight-up didn't believe her.”

“Imagine Barney, from How I Met Your Mother . Completely delusional and couldn’t possibly fathom why any girl wouldn’t want to be with him unless they just couldn’t handle so much of him.’”

“Sounds like a jerk,” I say at the same time that Kace says, “Barney is the star of that show.”

I turn to glare at him.

“What?” Kace shrugs with so much nonchalance that I want to slap him.

“Stop it,” I mutter, knowing Olivia can hear me anyway. I turn back toward her. “Sorry about him. He’s Marshall in this situation. Right after Lily abandons their engagement to follow her dreams.”

“Oh. I’m sorry,” Olivia sympathizes with him. “That’s awful.”

I can feel Kace’s eyes shooting daggers in my direction, but I don’t care.

I’m here to help my client, and he’s making it freaking hard.

“That’s part of why Kace wants to help out,” I fib, trying to get us back on track.

“He doesn’t want anyone to suffer in a relationship they shouldn’t be in.

” I glance his way expecting to be met with another glare or objection, but it looks more like realization hitting.

Maybe it wasn’t a lie. “We’ll get this figured out, I promise.

” Olivia manages a half-smile. “I have one idea, but it’s a little crazy. ”

Kace chuckles. “Your ideas are always crazy.” This time when he speaks it doesn’t feel like judgment. It almost seems endearing, and it throws me off for a few seconds. This man is starting to give me whiplash.

Shaking my head to clear my mind, I continue. “I think we should Andie Anderson him.”

Olivia’s eyes light up. “Oh my gosh. YES. Can we?!”

“Why not?” I shrug with a grin.

“What the hell is ‘Andie Anderson-ing’ someone, and why is a person a verb?”

Olivia and I laugh, and I clue him in. “It’s from the movie How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days . Basically you become so annoying that the person can’t stand it and breaks up with you.”

Kace stares. But this time, I feel like I can read his mind. It’s saying, Wow, how mature, with full-fledged sarcasm. Instead of confirming my thoughts, he says, “What kind of things?”

I focus on Olivia. “You’re hanging out with him tonight, right?”

“Yeah, at a charity auction,” she confirms.

“Here’s what I’m thinking… Don’t do one big thing. Because everyone thinks they can fix one problem.”

“Fuck, is that true,” Kace mutters under his breath, and for some reason, it makes me smile.

“Start by showing up late. Not fashionably late either. Like after dinner is served so he has to wait to eat.” I picture the guy–if he’s a gentleman at all–sitting around a fancy round table with no food on the china plate in front of him while everyone else eats.

“And when you get there, complain about what he’s wearing,” Kace chimes in, and I’m shocked by his helpful idea–and that he is contributing at all.

“He’s going to look like Nate Archibald at his worst–so that won’t be hard.” Olivia laughs.

I marvel at the fact that she and I are on the same Gossip Girl wavelength. “Then when the server comes to bring your food, tell them you’re not hungry.”

“There is nothing more annoying than a girl who won’t eat on a dinner date,” Kace mutters, more to himself.