Chapter 10 - THE UNEXPECTED TWISTMiles parked the motorcycle on an overlook at the very peak of the northern hills, where the entire valley below was spread out like a vast sea of twinkling lights under the autumn stars.
We sat side by side on a wooden bench, wrapped against the evening chill, sharing a thermos of hot coffee that Miles had packed.
"You know," I said softly, resting my head against his shoulder, "when I paid you to pretend to be my boyfriend three days before that barbecue, I honestly thought it was the most insane, catastrophic mistake of my life."
Miles chuckled, wrapping a heavy arm around my shoulders to pull me closer. "And now?"
"Now," I smiled into the dark, "I think it was the best investment I ever made."
He turned his head, pressing a light, warm kiss into my hair. "Good thing, too. Because my rates are non-negotiable."
"Oh? And what's your hourly rate for real?"
Miles pulled back slightly, looking down into my eyes with a gaze that was entirely steady, completely genuine, and stripped of every corporate armor he usually wore.
"One lifetime," he whispered, a slow smile spreading across his face. "Dinner included."
I laughed, reaching up to wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him down to meet me.
May you like
And as the city lights twinkled far below us in the valley, I realized something wonderful: I wasn't my family's favorite disappointment anymore.
I was nobody's expectation at all. I was just myself. And for the first time in my life, that was more than enough.
