Playing the Perfect Boyfriend (Gone Hollywood) by Julie Particka Read Free Book Online

made her breathe easier. Maybe he would be okay at her place. Casual. Really focusing on the friend part of friends-with-benefits. That would make the end easier to contend with because she wouldn’t have to end everything with him—they could still have friendship, even if it was long distance. And potentially secret. And definitely without benefits. Maybe it wouldn’t be easier, after all, but she wouldn’t be able to do this, to relax with him, if they weren’t friends. She’d deal with whatever came. This was the bed she’d made, and she’d damn well fuck in it before she slept in it.
    Once they were out of the car, she pointed at the adjacent spot. “In that case, since you’re likely to be here a lot, that’s your parking space. And if that isn’t better than a drawer, I don’t know what is.”
    He wrapped an arm around her waist and nuzzled her neck. “Kitten, you’re too good to me.”
    There was no one around, no reason for him to pretend like they were really a couple, but she didn’t stop him from holding her. As was often the case at this time of day, the elevator was empty when they stepped on. The instant she pushed the button, Dean pressed her against the wall, bracketing her between his arms.
    Knowing the door would open again in seconds, Jade gave a sigh. “What are you doing?”
    “Contemplating sex in an elevator.”
    “You’re insatiable.” Her fake boyfriend shouldn’t be able to turn her on so easily, but he did. Last night was too fresh in her memory, and as much as she hated to admit it, she was rather looking forward to going another round with him.
    He leaned in close, his lips brushing the shell of her ear as he whispered, “Insatiable, incorrigible…as long as I get to be in-you, I’m a happy man.”
    “Then I’ll make you plenty happy…later.” The elevator opened on the eleventh floor, and she led the way down the hall to her door.
    “You know, if there’d been an open condo, we would have been neighbors.”
    “Okay.” Why was he stating the obvious? Of course, she knew that.
    She fumbled with her key, and Dean reached out to steady her hand, getting much closer than necessary. “If we’d been neighbors, we could have started this long before last night.”
    Trying to ignore the way her skin tingled at his touch, Jade slid the key home and turned it. “Only one problem with that… I have a rule about sex with people from the neighborhood. Too many cranky girlfriends to contend with.”
    “Then it would’ve worked out perfectly seeing as I haven’t had a girlfriend in years.”
    Sure he hadn’t. A guy as sexy as Dean Hartley—one who clearly wasn’t put off by at least temporary commitment—there was no way he’d been single for long. Rolling her eyes, Jade held the door open and waved him in. He was simply having far too much fun with all of this. He was the fake boyfriend; he should have at least been enjoying it less than she was. And all things considered, she hadn’t enjoyed a second since Isak had shown up.
    Though, “committing” to Dean was the closest she’d come to a relationship since she’d broken things off with Isak. She tended to avoid romantic entanglements like they were the plague. Come to think of it, she’d pretty much done that with Isak, too, and at least he’d been of appropriate relationship age.
    Part of Jade knew the eight years separating her and Dean weren’t considered a big deal anymore, but she’d used less than that as a reason to kick men out of her life. She needed Dean, though. Worse than that, she wanted him—no matter how young he was—but the drastic change in their status this morning had him blowing by any logical boundaries.
    If nothing else, she had better nip Dean’s lovey-dovey behavior in the bud sooner than later. The minute she shut the door behind her, she said, “Look, you and I need to get a couple things straight.”
    “Holy shit, your view is amazing.”
    Avoidance, thy name is Dean