After dinner, he poured us both another glass of wine. The conversation slowed. The comfortable rhythm we'd found earlier faded into something heavier. Something that felt like waiting.
"So," he finally said, leaning back in his chair. "Tell me the real reason you're here."
I blinked, pretending not to understand. "What do you mean?"
"Come on." He smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "You didn't just randomly show up after all these years. You're hiding something. It's written all over your face, Teddy."
I swallowed.
Was it that obvious?
"Painfully obvious," he replied.
I paused. Did he just read my mind?
"I didn't read your mind," he said. "It's written all over your face. It always has been. You wear your heart on your sleeve, Teddy. You always have."
"How are you doing that?" I asked.
"Doing what?"
"Answering my thoughts."
He laughed softly. "Like I said. It's written all over your face. You've always been easy to read."
"Maybe I don't want to be easy to read anymore."
"Too bad," he said. "It's not going anywhere."
I rolled my eyes, and he laughed a little. My heart was pounding, but I told myself he was joking.
"So are you going to tell me?" He took a slow sip of wine, watching me over the rim of his glass. His gaze made my heart trip over itself.
I set my drink down, fingers tracing the rim of the glass. Around and around and around. How was I supposed to say this? How was I supposed to admit that I'd come not just to see him — but because I needed him?
"I..." I started. Stopped. Started again. "My parents want me to get married."
Rhett's eyebrows shot up. "Married?"
"Married." I laughed, but there was no humor in it. Just exhaustion. "Apparently, I'm 'getting old' for an omega, and soon no one will want me."
"I don't believe your parents said that," Rhett said.
"Well, not exactly the same thing. But something like that." I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "They're worried. They think I'm going to end up alone. They think I'm too focused on work and not focused enough on finding a mate."
"Go on," he said.
"So I've been looking for a suitor, but the dating market is shit right now."
His jaw tightened, but he didn't interrupt.
"The older alphas are all married or taken. The younger ones are like children — they expect me to babysit them. And the ones my age?" I shook my head. "They come with lists of rules. Don't wear that. Don't talk too loud. You must cook. You must obey. You must be grateful I chose you."
I stared down at my hands. "My parents didn't raise me to be some alpha's servant. But that seems to be all the alphas these days care about."
Rhett leaned forward, frowning. "Where is this going?"
I hesitated.
Then I looked up and met his eyes.
"I told them I already have a boyfriend."
The silence that followed was deafening.
Rhett stared at me. Didn't blink. Didn't move.
"You what?" he finally said.
"I lied," I admitted, my cheeks burning. "I panicked. They were talking about setting me up with some alpha from a rival company, and I just — the words came out before I could stop them."
"That's not my question." His voice was careful. Measured. "You have a boyfriend?"
"Of course I don't." I almost rolled my eyes. "I'm too busy working my ass off. Where would I have the time to date?"
"So you don't have a boyfriend?"
"No, Rett." I said his name like it should have been obvious. "I didn't want them to set me up with anyone, so I lied. I just wanted them to stop."
"Oh, ok." He nodded slowly. "So you lied to your parents."
"Yeah."
"Then?"
"Well, everything was going well until they asked to meet my boyfriend."
I explained it to him. When I first said I had a boyfriend, it had gotten my parents off my back. They'd stopped talking about suitors. They'd stopped sending me lists of eligible alphas. They'd stopped inviting random alphas to family dinners without telling me first.
For a few weeks, I'd had peace.
Then they asked to meet him.
And I didn't have a boyfriend to show them.
"Wait, hold on a second." Rhett held up a hand. "If I am getting this right — you do not have a boyfriend, right?"
"Yeah," I said. "It was a lie."
"And your parents believe you, and now they want to see this imaginary boyfriend of yours?"
"Yes."
He stared at me. Then he started laughing. Then he stopped.
"This isn't what I think it is, is it?"
This was why I liked him. He was smart.
"Yes, it is," I said.
"Oh my God, Teddy." He ran a hand through his hair. "I can't possibly pretend to be your boyfriend."
"What? Why?" I asked.
"We haven't seen each other in years." He gestured between us. "We haven't spoken to each other in years. And while I would do anything for you, I think both you and I know that your parents are too smart for these games."
"They wouldn't suspect a thing," I said. "It's you, Rett. They love you."
"They know we haven't spoken to each other in years." He shook his head. "They're too smart for this. Your Pa sees through everything. You know that."
"We could lie that we reconnected a few years back," I said.
"What about my parents?" he asked.
"We could tell them the same thing. They wouldn't care."
"How do we explain to them that we are together when they haven't seen us together in years?"
"It's simple, Rett." I leaned forward, my elbows on the island. "We both don't live in that town anymore. Only our parents do. We could have been dating secretly and didn't want anyone to know."
"That makes no sense, Teddy." He laughed, but it was frustrated now. "Imagine telling that to our parents. They would laugh in our faces."
"No, they wouldn't. And this makes so much sense. You live here, and I live in Gartdan."
"You live in Gartdan?" He frowned. "Do you know how far that is? That's like a three-hour drive. This just made it even more unbelievable."
"No, it's not."
"No one has seen me going to Gartdan." He crossed his arms. "I don't think I have seen myself going to Gartdan."
"Which makes it even more real," I said. "We are so good at covering up our relationship. We're practically spies."
He stared at me like I'd lost my mind.