Claiming Callie: Part two (3 page)

Callie smiles. “That
’
s genius. Not only will she end up reading the
story when it comes out, but she
’
ll get a close, personal look at us together. We can really milk it for the cameras. By the time we
’
re done with her, she
’
ll be a raging jelly machine.”

Dean
’
s smile vanishes, concern taking its place. “It
’
s a good start.
We
’
ll need more, though. Even if it makes her jealous, she can easily move on once she
’
s away from us. But I can find out her schedule and we can try to run into her together. Let her see us as a couple on campus. We can
’t let
up. We have to bombard her wi
th sightings of us.”

Whoa. He
’
s serious about this.

Callie raises a brow at him. “Bombard her with sightings of us?”

Dean glances away and shrugs. “
Well, it
’
s just that this is going to take some time and dedication if we want it to work. It won
’
t be an overnight thing, is all. Plus, we want this to help you, too. You want people to know there was no truth to that story about you, and the only way to do that is to convince them we
’
re madly in love,” he says, mumbling his last words.

She takes a si
p of her coffee, giving herself a moment to think.
Madly in love? Holy cow. This is serious.

Callie squirms in her seat.
Remember…acting. It’s just acting.

“Okay, fair enough,” she says. “I
’
ll admit that I
’
d like to put the remaining rumors of that disgust
ing article to rest. If I have one more guy stare at me during class like there
’
s a
for sale
sign taped to my head, I
’
ll scream. This will get them off my back, and Maya onto yours.” Callie shakes her head. “Or onto hers…or…you get the picture.”

Dean stare
s at her a moment, looking as though there
’
s something he
’
s not saying. Some unreadable emotion flickers in his eyes, and Callie can
’
t help it. Her curiosity gets the best of her. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything,” he says.

“Why do you want her back so
badly? You don
’
t have to tell me, of course, but seeing as how we
’
re doing this thing together and will be spending a ton of time with each other in the next couple weeks—months, even—I
’
d like to know. And why
’
d you break up in the first place?”

Dean draw
s in a deep breath and fidgets with his cup. “There was someone else.”

“She cheated on—”

“No.” Dean shakes his head. “It wasn
’
t her, and I didn
’t cheat. I just
…there was someone else I had feelings for and I couldn
’
t get pas
t them. At least not enough, and
Maya and I just couldn
’
t move forward, so I broke it off.”

“Oh.” Callie straightens in her seat.
This is news.

She frowns as this new information sinks in. “
I don’
t remember you dating anyone else after. At least, not seriously.”

“I didn
’
t. It
’
s a long s
tory. Let
’
s just say that my hopes with this other girl stalled, and, well…here we are.”

“So you’re over this thing with the other girl?”

Dean nods.

“And now Maya
’
s dating someone else, but you want her back.”

“Yeah. My crush on this other girl was
ridiculous, and I’ve realized I made a mistake.”

“And you think the only way to get her back is by pretending to go out with me? Are you sure? What if it backfires and does the opposite? What if we do all of this and it pushes her further away?”

Dean nods
and swallows hard before
meet
ing Callie
’
s gaze. “I have no other choice. I’ve gone over this a million times in my head. This is the only way she’ll notice me. So, I guess that
’
s a chance I
’
m willing to take.” His eyes darken to
a stormy blue.
“I can
’
t jus
t sit by and do nothing. I know what I want, and I
’
m going to fight for it.”

Callie takes in his expression. The firm set of his mouth, the determination in his eyes and the emotion in his voice. Reaching across the table, she takes his hand in hers and la
ces their fingers together—an intimate gesture reserved for couples—and something that in all the years she
’
s known him she
’
s never done before. His hand is large and warm over hers, and although the feel of it is foreign, it
’
s more natural than she would
’
ve expected.

See! Physical contact with Dean—piece of cake!

She smiles as he glances down to their interlocked hands with flushed cheeks, and she wonders if maybe this wouldn
’
t be harder for him than her. “You must think I
’
m a real piece of work.”

Dean na
rrows his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“Me. With the mess I
’
ve made of things. My credit cards. Possibly losing my position with GGF. I
’
ve screwed up, when I could
’
ve had it so easy. I mean, because of my parents and…” She pauses, feeling the weight of his
gaze on her as she speaks. “I had my tuition paid for, my room and board. All I had to do was go to school, earn a little extra spending cash if I wanted, and that was it. But I blew it. And over what?” She looks at him now. There is no judgment in his eye
s, only warmth, and that
’
s the one thing she has always loved about Dean. His ability to listen, to take things in and give insight without saying much. “A pair of Jimmy Choos? A Chanel handbag? Some Gucci shoes?”

She shakes her head. It
’
s moments like the
se that she
’
s able to see how screwed up she is. Where she
’
s suddenly able to see how stupid her shopping habit is and how ridiculous a person is for blowing all your money—money you don
’
t really even have—on such materialistic things. But in the moment… T
hat
’
s another story. It
’
s as if all these thoughts and feelings, these insights, float away until they
’
re nothing more than a wasted thought hinging on the edge of a breeze.

“What is wrong with me?” she says, and glances at their intertwined hands.

“Hey,”
Dean reaches out and lifts her chin. His touch is soft and gentle. “
I don’
t think anything bad about you. The only reason I was angry over the escort thing is because it was dangerous and you deserve a real life, a real boyfriend, love, and everything else
you want. There were a ton of reasons. But I
never
thought anything negative. And, yeah, you screwed up. You have a ton of debt and your job is in jeopardy. But half of America has the same debt you do. Maybe it’s not okay, but you
’
ll fix it.” His voice i
s firm. He
’
s so sure of himself, and it boosts Callie
’
s confidence a little.

“I hope so. Thanks to you, maybe I will still have a job at the end of the year. I guess we
’
ll see. What matters is what I do from now till then.” There
’
s no need for Dean to know
she hasn
’
t actually used the money yet.

Dean nods. “I was glad to help.”

“Where did you get that kind of money?”

Dean shrugs, avoiding her gaze. “I was just saving…”