The Hookup Hoax by Heather Thurmeier Read Free Book Online

big deal. “Olivia moved in this week.”
    “Already?” Gran asked. “But you’ve only started dating. You’re not even engaged yet. You barely know each other.”
    “That’s my boy,” Gramps cheered, tipping the neck of his beer bottle toward them like a salute.
    Sawyer mimicked his grandfather’s motion. “Thanks. Olivia may have only come back recently, but we have history together. It doesn’t even matter that we haven’t seen each other since…” He paused while taking an unsteady breath. “Since the accident. I feel like I’ve known her my whole life.”
    Olivia squeezed his hand. Hearing him mention the accident that had taken his parents’ lives felt like a stab to her chest. From deep within the recesses of her mind, her parents’ voices spoke, trying to comfort Sawyer shortly after it happened. She’d been listening from down the hall, sent to her room so they could have privacy, but she’d eavesdropped, and even though she hadn’t seen his face, the torture in his voice had been vivid.
    Sawyer squeezed her hand, too.
    “You were probably sick of seeing me always tagging along with you and Aidan back then, huh?” she asked, trying to lighten the mood and ease the hard memories back into the past.
    There was a smile on his lips, though she could see the pain still lingering in his eyes, still hear the twinge of sadness in his tone even as he tried to joke. “It’s possible,” he said with a chuckle. “But I was a kid and therefore can’t be held responsible for my poor judgment.”
    Sawyer removed his hand from her thigh and slipped it around her shoulders instead. “We figured, why wait, you know? I’ve fallen hard for this one.”
    He pulled her close and she peered up at him with what she hoped was a convincing expression of adoration and love on her face. She was met by a smile that made her question if what he said was really an act.
    That was a silly thought. Everything was an act. He had to make his family believe he’d found someone he could settle down with, or he’d never stand a chance to own the cabin. He was a good actor. She should take a lesson from him and stop feeling more than she was acting. Acting was safe. Feelings were trouble.
    Gran’s expression turned from surprise to happiness. “Why don’t we have dessert and coffee in the living room?”
    As they moved from the dining room, Olivia excused herself to use the bathroom. She didn’t actually need to go. She simply wanted a few minutes alone.
    Behind the safety of the bathroom door, Olivia closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. Sawyer’s hand on her body felt good, too good. She hadn’t been prepared for how much touching would be involved in this scam. Tonight had been an eye-opening experience and, somehow, she would have to endure this kind of reaction to him every Sunday.
    If his touch hadn’t been enough, hearing him say he’d fallen for her had pushed her over the edge. She’d longed to hear a man say that. It was exactly what she’d hoped to find when she returned to the States. Of course, his words had only been pretend. Even though she knew that in her head, it didn’t stop the rest of her body from responding to him as if it had been a truthful declaration.
    “You need to get a grip on reality,” she whispered to her reflection. Smoothing a few loose strands of hair behind her ear, she willed her nerves to steady and her hormones to chill. It was all an act, and she was not the one supposed to fall for it.
    Olivia pulled open the bathroom door and stopped short of walking into Tyler. “Sorry, I’ll get out of your way.” She attempted to step around him but he moved, his broad shoulders and stocky build blocking her path. He was about the same height as her but twice the width, which made him come off as rather formidable.
    “Actually, I had a question for you.”
    Something about his body language put her on the defensive.
    “Ask me anything,” she said, forcing a smile to her