My eyebrows lift as Greer bursts into a mini tap dance routine, the jingle bells on her shirt filling the air with song.
“What’s this?” I laugh.
“A preview.” She winks and sashays toward the couch, pausing just out of reach. “It’s an exclusive, one-time-only performance.” She twirls and executes a graceful fall onto the couch.
I drop my hand to her legs and pull them over my lap, and Greer nestles her cheek against my chest. Then she cracks open the book and starts reading.
“Locke,” she says, “Loving you was a gift I gave to myself.”
My breath catches, and my heart thumps against hers. “That poem’s not in the book.”
She tilts her chin up to me, and her eyes dance. “No, I guess not.” Then she licks her lips and starts again.
“I told you I was travel starved
a need like a hunger
my eyes and my mind
craving more and
more and
more.
You whispered against me—
your lips on my skin,
your hand on my heart—
isn’t this discovery?
The continent of your body.
The ocean of your soul.”
She reads until the coffee finishes brewing, then fixes us drinks and starts again. She reads while the Christmas lights twinkle on her skin, while her heart beats in a steady rhythm, while I fall more and more in love with her.
I hold her close and listen to her tell me just how much she loves me, and I savor each moment as we approach the final poems in the collection.
“I want to be the light shining out of your eyes,” she reads from the second to last page.
Greer pauses, then, with a single page trembling in her fingertips, and turns to me. “I love you, you know.”
“I know,” I whisper. When you allow yourself to truly be seen, to let go of all your fear, it’s the truest kind of connection. The life-changing kind. The kind you let carry you no matter where it leads because the journey’s as sweet as the destination. “I love you back.”
Greer gives a happy little hum, a contented smile on her gorgeous lips. Then my girl, who knows that I hate reading the last page of good stories because I never want them to end, slides the bookmark between the last two pages and closes the book.
The End
Thank you so much for reading THE FAKE DATE AGREEMENT! I hope you loved the story, and there’s more to the Awkward Arrangements series!
If you’re wondering what happens to Molly, pick up RENTING WITH THE RIVAL.
And don’t miss out on Eden’s story, PICKUP LESSONS!
Bonus alert: Grab a free copy of THE FEELING OF FALLING poetry collection. Just click here to start reading.
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Also by Tanya Gallagher
Standalones
A Slippery Slope
Step Summer
The X Enterprises Series
His Distraction (X Enterprises Book One)
His Inspiration (X Enterprises Book Two)
His Invitation (X Enterprises Book Three)
His Temptation (X Enterprises Book Four)
The Awkward Arrangements Series
The Fake Date Agreement
Renting with the Rival
Pickup Lessons
About the Author
Tanya Gallagher is the Seattle-based author of contemporary New Adult and Adult romances about smart, strong women and the sexy men who love them. She traded pencil skirts in the boardroom for stories in the bedroom and hasn't looked back since. You can find her traveling the world in search of beautiful scenery and delicious cake, and at penchantforpleasure.com, where she happens to sell one of the most popular brands of personal lubricant for your naughty bits. True story.
Let’s hang out!
Website: www.tanyagallagherbooks.com
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Twitter: TGallagherBooks
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