“Who, Demi? When?”

“Look.” She turns toward me.

I don’t let her speak. “A boyfriend would know these things.”

“Not necessarily,” she argues. “Girls lie about this stuff all the time.”

“Are you for real right now?”

“I’m not telling you,” she snaps. “So you can stop with all your angry eyes and this deep chest voice thing you’ve got going.”

I throw myself back in the seat, looking away from her, glaring out the window.

“You should have ridden with Alex. Might have been able to cut this thing quicker.”

“I’m sorry, am I cramping your style so soon?” she cracks. “Don’t forget you’re the one that said we needed more time. If you wanted to get it on with your ex, who you must have invited because Krista and Josie don’t even like each other, then you should have said something.”

My eyes slice to her. “If you think I’m gonna back out of this so easy, and for pussy I’ve had plenty of, you’ve got a rude awakening coming. I said I was all in. I am.”

“So this is some sort of ‘Nico Tantrum Time’?” Her brows lift jeeringly. “Can I expect this type of shit every time things don’t go your way?”

My eyes narrow but she doesn’t back down right away.

She stares, attempting to read me, but after a moment she looks off, randomly saying, “She was jealous.”

“Let her be.”

Demi hesitates before asking, “Do you want her to be?”

“Why do you care?”

“Well, asshole, if you do, you might as well use me.”

I glare. “Use you how?”

“I bet she’s planning to come back to the hotel for dancing tonight. Obviously, I’m all over that. So, if you want to go...”

“If I want to go?”

“Yeah.” She shrugs.

“If you’re going, I’m going,” I tell her matter-of-factly. “Possessive, keep you in arm’s length, boyfriend, remember?” I lean in. “And so there’s no confusion in that pretty head of yours, I don’t give a shit what Josie wants, does, thinks, or sees. Fuck her. I will never touch her again, but I’m not interested in purposely trying to piss her off either. She gets mad seeing us together? Oh fuckin’ well.” I confirm, “This isn’t about making anyone jealous.”

She considers my words a moment. “It’s not?”

I shake my head.

“What is it then?” Her tone is doubtful. “What are you hoping to gain?”

So fucking much I could say right now, none of which I should. Instead, I go with a solid amount of truth. “I want everyone to believe it.”

“Believe what?”

“That you want me.”

She shifts in her seat, looking at her hands. “I guess that would be the first step in faking being together.” She glances my way, but only with her eyes. “Making people believe we’re into each other.”

“It won’t be hard.”

That has her lips smashing to the side to hide her grin. “Is that right?”

I nod. “Everyone will see how attracted you are to me.”

Her eyes narrow, but just as quick a loud laugh leaves her, and I hold in my smirk.

“Did we just make up?” she teases.

“That what you call a fight?”

She chuckles, looking away. “You know, I’m not afraid to admit I think you’re more than okay looking,” she clowns. “So, I guess all we really have to work on is getting them to believe you are into me.”

“They already do.”

Her mouth drops open slightly, and she smiles. “Nico Sykes, so sure of himself and his unspeakable plan, even though, to everyone around, you and I together will have come completely out of left field.”

I ignore her statement. “I’m gonna need you to use football references from now on.”

“Should we use code when we want the other one to do something, go all Peyton Manning and shout ‘Omaha’ when we need to cut and run?”

“Cut and run?”

She nods with a grin. “It’ll happen, you watch, and are you not impressed I know who Peyton Manning is?”

“Everyone knows who Peyton Manning is.”

“Thanks to his horrendous acting in those insurance commercials, right?”

I laugh and she gapes at me, blinking hard.

“Multiple laughs in a day from the silent killer?” she mocks.

I shake my head, and lean closer to glance out the window, then wrap my arm around her outer thigh and pull her to me.

Wide eyes slice to mine.

“We’re coming up to the curve,” I tell her. “All the carts ahead of us will be able to look back as we round it, and then everyone will be waiting there as we climb off, too.” My gaze holds hers. “My girl wouldn’t be sitting so far away from me.”

“Oh, no?” She cocks a brow, playfully. “And would she... simply sit right here beside you?”

My head tugs back.

She chuckles. “Did I surprise you?” She smiles, and I lick my lips. “I’m not shy, in case you thought different, I’m also not the in your face type, so of course you wouldn’t have noticed.”

It’s not a dig at me, she’s only speaking what she knows.

What she thinks she knows.

“If you’re not shy, why haven’t you asked Hammons out already?”

That has her pausing. It takes a second but then her eyes come back to mine.

“I don’t know, maybe because while we’re friends he’s never shown interest past that. I’m sure he’d be down to hook-up or something, but I’ve never gotten the feeling he would want to date past that and I don’t know, I don’t want to waste the chance if there is one by going the fling route.”

“So you don’t want to be rejected?”

“Would you?” Her tone is sharp.

“I’ve been rejected.”

She scoffs, her eyes flicking upward.

“I have.”

“By who?”

“You.”

Her head snaps my way, a small frown pulling at her forehead. “What?”

“Yup.”

“You lie.” She crosses her arms, but her tone is unsure.

“Nope.”

“When?”

“I invited you to wake me up with my dick in your mouth and guess what?” I lean in and her brows jump. “I woke up in an empty bed.”

It takes her a second, but she busts up laughing, hitting my chest with her little hand and I can’t help but grin.

We’re at the bend now, so before she can pull back, I grip her wrist to hold it there.

Out her window, I spot our friends in the carts ahead, all of them looking around at the others, so I scoot closer and her laughter slowly dies.

“People are watching now.”

Something about the way he whispers has me swallowing.

“Demi!” Krista’s shout hits my ears.

I jolt, tugging free from Nico’s grasp and spin around to wave.

She throws her hands up, letting out a loud scream that follows each cart after hers.