Page 22 of Let's Kiss and Tell

“You don’t think other guys would understand and go along with it?” I ask.

“Maybe.” She shrugs. “But when it comes to my job and what I need to do…I trust you, Marsh.”

Her words stick to my frontal lobe, and I fear it’s one of those things that I might not be able to forget. But I fight literally every fiber of my being from saying yes.

“Okay, first tell me what these articles are,” I say.

“Nothing personal, I swear,” she tells me earnestly. “And like I said, I won’t use names. I haven’t mapped out exactly what the stories are. I think that will just come naturally once we start doing things.”

“Right…” I say, imagining whatdoing thingseven means.

“I will run every article by you and let you read it before it’s published,” Lucy says.

“I feel like it would be…”

“A conflict of interest?” she offers, clearly two steps ahead of me. “Inappropriate? Like you took advantage of a co-worker under the influence at an office party?”

“Yes”—I adjust my glasses—“to all the above.”

“Maybe if the lines were blurred,” she explains. “But it’s not like we’re going to sleep together.”

In an instant, I’m hot underneath my collar. Her candidness when it comes to sexual relations is something I’m going to have to get used to.

“No, no. Definitely not,” I say, making sure she knows I don’t expectanythingother than a plus-one for the wedding.

“Well, then it’s settled. Marsh, can youpleasetake me to your ex’s wedding and be my pretend boyfriend for the next five weeks?”

I think of my call with Oliver and how Julia is someone who clearly isn’t showing any signs of disappearing from my life. At least, not anytime soon. As embarrassing as it may sound, a date and distracting the attention frompoor single Marshis the only way I’ll be able to get through this summer.

“There’s also a rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding,” I say, wondering why I’m even telling her.

“Fun,” Lucy says, unfazed.

I’ve tried to find someone with absolutely no luck. I’m not good at the whole dating thing, and putting myself out there is terrifying. Now here’s a beautiful, fun, intelligent woman offering to help me out. No strings attached. I would be an absolute idiot to say no. I could accept and spend the remainder of the summer with Lucy. Or, I could say no and continue my bleak attempt at matching with someone who wouldn’t even be half the woman Lucy is.

“Please,” Lucy says, her tone more serious than ever. “I think this is the only way I can keep my job, Marsh. I can’t lose this job.”

Fuck.I wipe my palm across my face. “All right.”

“All right?!” Lucy’s face lights up, and I hate how happy she looks. How much I like seeing her happy.

“Yeah…” God, I hope I don’t regret this. “I guess we’re doing this.”

5

Lucy

I have spent my whole career being honest with my readers, and now I’m in a fake relationship. But preserving my job means earning the trust to write about the stories that are important to me.

One could also say choosing the new senior news writer ofThe Journalwas a questionable decision, but I really did contemplate trying to make this story work with someone else. With Chris, or Parth, or Dylan, or any of the other guys I have readily available on my phone. The problem is plain and simple: I don’t have to pretend with Marsh. He understands what I’m trying to do when it comes to my column.

Once I get back to my desk the rest of the morning is somewhat of a wash. I barely make any progress on my next story, “The Dos and Don’ts of Deep-Throating.” Instead, I think about the next few weeks and try to wrap my head around how to be a girlfriend. I guess the first thing would be spending time with Marsh?

I open our company instant messaging app. It’s the easiest way to get a quick answer instead of shooting off an email. I typeOakleyand the nameMarshall Oakleypops up. There isn’t a photo butinstead, a generic silhouette like a missing person. His icon is green, signaling that he’s online. I click his name and start a new chat.

Lucy Reid:

Hey! I was thinking we can grab dinner or something after work and talk more? I can make a reservation.