The Boyfriend Deal Read Online Free

Becca trailed off, her eyes wide as if she couldn’t believe what she’d just heard.
    Something inside of me snapped. I was tired of being seen as inferior, of lacking the female wiles to attract a guy like Tyler. Sure, I was a band geek, but I was every bit as pretty as Becca and her gang of giggling idiots, wasn’t I? If anything Tyler had said or done today was to be believed, then I was attractive to the male population.
    “You know I wouldn’t miss it.” I smiled at him, leaning across the table a bit. “You are going to win the game for me, aren’t you?”
    The laughter in his eyes was enough reward, but the steam coming out of Becca’s ears was way better. She didn’t even bother saying bye. She just stomped her foot like some irritated horse, made this weird huffing sound, then stormed off in the opposite direction, apparently forgetting the ice cream they’d come in for to begin with.
    “That was pretty good, Red. I almost believed you.”
    “What makes you think I didn’t mean it? Because if I have to sit on those hard ass bleachers, you’d better win the game. I’m not sitting there, letting my butt go numb, just to watch the team lose and hear the fans boo and hiss you off the field.”
    “You come to the game, and I promise to do everything I can to win it for you.”
    I eyed him over my ice cream as I took another lick. “Why do you want this so badly? I mean, you could ask any girl in the high school to go out with you. Why would you pick me? It isn’t like we were childhood playmates, or middle school sweethearts that went wrong. You’ve barely spoken to me since our first day of school when we were four.”
    “Just because we never talked, doesn’t mean I wasn’t aware you were there,” he said softly. “Just give this a chance, Red. It’s a win-win situation. You get Hunter off your trail, and I get Mom off my back.”
    “Like you could be celibate for two weeks.”
    “I need you longer than that. Mom isn’t going to believe I’m walking the straight and narrow after only two weeks.”
    My nose scrunched. “You really think we could pull something off longer than that?”
    His fingers tightened on mine, reminding me that he was closer than was healthy for me. I tugged on my hand, but he refused to let it go.
    “Is this really so bad?” he asked. The smirk was back in place, as if he knew my answer already.
    Bad? No, not exactly. I mean, it was bad for my heart, a heart I knew was going to get smashed to bits when he no longer needed me, but I had to admit the hand holding and pet names were nice. I’d missed being part of a couple, even if Hunter wasn’t ideal.
    I stared at him as I ate my ice cream, watching as that sinful smile flirted around the corners of his lips, and I knew I was in a world of trouble. Because no matter how many times I told myself it was all an act, the more he sent those heated looks my way, the more I wanted them to be true. The moment I’d played along, acting like the girlfriend who was going to cheer her boyfriend on, I had made my decision and sealed my fate.
    “So, when do I get to meet the parents?” he asked, humor glinting in his eyes. “Parents love me.”
    I couldn’t hold back my snort. “Yeah, right. I’m sure they lock their daughters away after hearing who’s at the door. What parents in their right mind would be okay with you dating their daughter?”
    “Ouch! That hurt, Red.”
    “You can’t deny your reputation, not when your Mom is even complaining about it. Face it, Tyler. You’re a womanizer.”
    “Is that even a thing anymore?” he asked, but there was laughter in his voice. Fine, if he wanted to play, I could play.
    “Skirt chaser? Libertine? Casanova? Oh! How about ladies’ man? Any of those work for you?”
    He schooled his features and acted as if he were seriously considering the question. With a shrug and a shot straight to my heart, he asked, “How about we just call me yours?”
    And the score was Tyler