Page 16 of The Fake Out

I patted her head. “Ask your mommy later. Tell her you heard Mayor Stone talking about it.”

Splotchy patches of red overtook Peter’s face. “That is ridiculous.”

“The fine amount or the book title?”

He snatched the paper off the counter. “This whole situation. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing.”

“My job.” I crossed my arms and kept my voice steady. “That’s what I’m doing.”

“Don’t get too comfortable with your job.” He jabbed a finger in my direction, and I showed an amazing amount of restraint by not grabbing it and twisting. “Things are changing around this town. Just wait.”

“What does that mean?”

“You’ll see.” With that, he spun on his heels and sailed right out the door.

“My mommy really needs to talk to his mommy,” Mariah said.

“Seriously,” I muttered.

Later, after most of the kids cleared out, Chris ambled up to the front desk.

“The Dummy’s Guide to Manscaping?” he asked by way of greeting. “I’m impressed.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Sure.” With a grin, he plopped a small bag from the local bookstore on the counter. “This is for you.”

I poked it with a pen. “Is something gonna bite me when I open it?”

“Are you always this mistrusting?”

“Yes.” I pulled the bag toward me and peeked inside. “I thought you were joking.”

“I never joke,” he said with a voice that indicated the exact opposite.

Warily, I pulled out the paperback from the bag. On the cover was a scantily clad woman in the arms of an even more scantily clad man. A pirate specifically. The title emblazed across the front read The Pirate’s Booty.

Hastily, I flipped the book over to hide the cover. “Um… I don’t know what to say.”

“The reviews are good. I’ve already read the first two chapters, so you better catch up.”

With a deep breath, I pushed the book toward him. “No.”

His brow creased in confusion. Maybe he wasn’t used to not getting his way.

“I appreciate the offer, but I’m going to have to pass.”

With that, I turned away and began typing aimless questions into the search bar on my computer—Do bearcats really smell like popcorn? (yes), Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? (no), How tall is Chris Sterns? (6’5”, holy freaking cow) while I waited for him to take the hint.

He did not take the hint. “Come on, think about it. It could be fun.”

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why in the world would you want to start a book club…” I leaned closer to whisper. “A romance book club, no less, with a person you hardly know?”

A frown tugged at his mouth. “Well, I like to read, and I like you.”