“What do you think?” Sawyer asked Noah.
“You’ve said it yourself a thousand times. Lily is by far the best employee we’ve had. She’s irreplaceable. If she’s willing to put up with me for a weekend, we should give her what she wants.”
Sawyer chuckled quietly, and that made Noah laugh, which filled Lily with happy flutters in her chest. She was overcome with pride, knowing that she’d been a frequent subject of conversation between the brothers and in such a positive light, no less. It reaffirmed her decision two years ago to focus on her career and let romance and her personal life take a back seat. This might actually end up paying off.
“I think one percent is fair,” Noah said.
“Agreed,” Sawyer quickly added. “It might not sound like a lot, but if the Hannafort deal goes through, it will be sizable. And it should be income that comes in for years and years. Not bad for three days’ work.”
Lily was a bit of a whiz with numbers, so she knew exactly how big 1 percent of Locke and Locke could end up being, especially after having worked on the Hannafort projections. A nest egg to last her a lifetime? All for one weekend pretending to be enamored with gorgeous, unattainable Noah? This was a no-brainer if ever there was one. Even if the part about Noah did make her stomach flip-flop. Yes, she struggled at weddings, but she’d just endured one. What difference could another one possibly make? “I’ll do it.”
“That’s great news. Thank you.” Sawyer’s eyebrows drew together. “I hope you know this is not something we would normally ask you to do.”
“I’ve been here two years. I know this is not the way things work around here. Sometimes things have to be done for appearances.”
“Exactly.”
“I should probably get back to my desk. I have lots of other stuff to do. Emails to answer.” Lily rose from her seat, but something about this was still leaving her unsettled. Was this the right thing to do? Would it ruin her working relationship with Noah? They got along so well. She didn’t want it to be awkward later. “I do want to clarify that this is for show, right? We’re pretending. That’s it.”
Noah’s eyes found hers and she felt naked, like he was looking right through her. “That goes without saying.”
She smiled and nodded, like the loyal employee she was. But inside, all she could think was of course. Noah Locke was that guy and he always would be.
* * *
Noah closed the door when Lily walked out of Sawyer’s office. “I don’t think you’ve fully thought this out.” He paced back and forth, between the chairs and the window. “We’re talking about pretending to be engaged to each other. Do you know what engaged people do?”
“Um, I’m pretty sure, but why don’t you fill me in.” Sawyer was still poring over the Hannafort reports, dismissing this conversation as if it was nothing.
“Hugging. Holding hands. Kissing.”
“Sounds about right. I know you remember how to do all of those things.” Sawyer flipped to another page.
“But am I not supposed to be staying away from Lily? You were the one who wouldn’t stop going on and on about how I needed to pretend that she was my sister. Don’t mess things up, Noah. Stop making up excuses to be around her, Noah.” He planted both hands on Sawyer’s desk and stared him down. “This could easily mess things up with her. Then what? We lose our best employee because of some stupid stunt?”
“Now you see the validity of my original argument? When we’re being forced to set it aside?” Sawyer closed the binder and looked him square in the eye. “I think the one thing that video proved is that you have no problem with walking away, so I’m certainly not worried about your feelings. As for Lily, she’s being rewarded handsomely and she seems completely comfortable with the idea. She’s a very strong person. I’m a little concerned, but I’m not overly concerned. How confused can two people get over the course of three days?”
“Honestly? I have no idea. I’ve never been fake engaged before.”
“And that’s the important thing to remember. This is fake. It’s not real. It’s not the same as if you had actually pursued her. That would have hurt her feelings when you decided to end it. Or…”
“Or what?”
“Or maybe she would’ve ended up ending it. Maybe she would’ve turned you down. I’m sure it’s hard for you to imagine, but it could’ve gone down that way.”
“You think I don’t worry about that every time I ask a woman out? Because I do.” Noah had thought about that a lot when it came to Lily, if only when he was trying to convince himself that going there in the first place would be a huge mistake.