Ryan

I had been ready to put an end to the date as soon as I arrived at the restaurant. I did not often engage in murderous thoughts, but I'd been ready to wring my mother's neck when she descended the news on me. A blind date. What the heck had she been thinking?

The last person I expected to see upon entering the private dining room was Barbara Owens. She looked more beautiful than I remembered a few nights ago. Her eyes were the brightest blue I'd ever seen. Especially since her gaze was direct and unflinching. She never looked away first.

The evening went better than expected, so I was in a good mood when Jordan met me in front of his home. I'd left Jeremy in their place instead of my mother's because I didn't want to see her so soon after what she pulled on me. And Jeremy liked Lia, Jordan's daughter.

I rolled the window of the car down as Jordan reached me.

"I guess the date went well?" Jordan said, leaning on the open window.

"You would never guess who the girl was."

"Who?"

"Owens." I grinned. "The Ice Queen."

Jeremy's eyes bulged. "No shit? Wait, why are you in a good mood?"

"That's rude, man." I chuckled. Right then, Jeremy came pounding down the front porch steps, followed by a skipping Lia. I got out and rounded the car.

When I looked through my childhood photographs, I saw Jeremy staring back at me. We were carbon copies of each other. Jeremy liked to keep his hair long, though. The black strands fell down to his shoulders. And his brown eyes were a shade lighter than mine.

I gave the kids a hug. Jeremy didn't have his bag, so I knew the question was coming.

"Dad, may I spend the night?" Jeremy asked.

I sighed. "You spent the night the other day. We can't keep imposing on them."

"But he's not imposing if I invite him," Lia said, putting her tiny hands on her hips.

I bit back a smile. "I see."

Jordan laughed. "Let him spend the night. They're pretty tame, and Jenny loves having him over for practice."

"Practice?" I asked.

"For having two kids around."

I laughed. Jordan's wife, Jenny, was four months along in her pregnancy. "Alright, you can spend the night."

Jeremy and Lia high-fived each other and high tailed it up the stairs and through the door. I shook my head, calling after my son, "goodnight to you too."

The door closing was my response. I didn't want to go back to an empty house. I looked at Jordan. "Wanna grab a drink?"

"Let me get my wallet."

***

"I didn't think she was the type to go for blind dates," Jordan said as we sat down at the counter.

The place was a small, old coffee shop we used to frequent when we were still in college. It was quite busy at this time of the night. The clientele comprised mainly of college students, since a campus was close by.

I flagged the barista and ordered two cups of coffee.

"She's not," I said. "She did it as a favor to a friend. So it all worked out in the end. She made it clear she expected nothing from the date, and so did I."

"You got lucky this time," Jordan said.

Two girls occupied the chairs nearby. I caught one's eyes. She smiled and winked. I nodded my head and looked back to Jordan, uncomfortable. Goodness, the girl was barely twenty. I heard her whisper my name to her friend.

I wasn't exactly a celebrity. Before my marriage, only people interested in business would recognize me. But marrying a supermodel had put my face in the front page of countless magazines.

It was one of the reasons I had gone to England after my divorce. The media attention was crazy in the States, so I decided to take my kid and go live in a small town in the south of England. It had been a good experience, a decision I had yet to regret.

"Anyway, I need to think of something to get my mother off my back," I said, thanking the barista when he put a steaming cup of coffee in front of me. "Otherwise, I'll be stuck in an endless loop of blind dates she'll trick me into attending again."

"Why not just tell her you're not looking for a relationship right now."

I gave Jordan a look. "Have you met my mother?"

Jordan nodded and raised his cup of coffee. "Point made."

"I should just go back to England," I grumbled.

"Why don't you try and date the Ice Queen," Jordan said with a grin. "You said you got along well enough."

I snorted and shook my head. "Nah, I like my women warm, thank you very much."

Jordan laughed. "Your sense of humor is getting worse as you age."

But I was only half joking. I liked Owens, maybe as a friend. She was a smart and beautiful woman. But I couldn't see myself with her. I wanted someone I could laugh with.

I also had Jeremy, and any woman I got serious with would be a big part of Jeremy's life. Maybe not as a mother, but she would be an important figure his life. And I didn't think Owens would be a good influence on him. The way she bottled her emotions- because she did have emotions- just didn't seem healthy.

*** **** ***

One week later, I was at the end of my rope. My prediction that my mother would not leave me alone was spot on. She was not rebuffed by my threats that I would move back to England. After she'd succeeded to trap me into another blind date that went disastrously, I started ignoring her phone calls.

But I couldn't ignore my mother forever. She was my mother. Even though she had barely been that when I needed her the most.

As I thought of solutions, Jordan's words kept echoing in my head. The plan was absolutely insane, but it was all I could think of.

I parked my car and walked to the OG Foods headquarters. There were quite a lot of people out and about. I checked my watch. I had been out of work so long that I forgot people actually took lunch breaks at this time.

Great. If she wasn't in, I'd just get out of here and forget this crazy plan.

Would I even be able to get in? I hadn't thought this part through. She was the CEO, a busy woman; not anyone would be able to get to her office. Before getting to the door, however, a head of brown hair got out of a car right in front of me. I stopped.

Owens turned her head. For a second, her eyes passed over me. Then she did a double take. She recognized me even in the plain black sweater and low baseball cap I wore.

Glancing at the tall woman beside her, Owens nodded. "Go ahead, Amanda."

"Mr. Davies," Owens said, turning to me. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"I would like a word with you," I looked around, taking in some of the employees who were too interested in their boss' personal life. "In private."

Owens glanced at her watch and nodded. "I have thirty minutes to spare. Let's go."

I raised my brows as she strode ahead. Reining in a smile, I followed after her.

The elevator ride up was quiet. She wasn't one of those people who felt the need to fill every second with words. I was grateful for that. It left me time to organize my thoughts.

Her office was all white and glass. Very much in sync with her image. Did she like having that image?

What surprised me, though, was how open it was. The glass wall connecting it to the rest of the staff working on the floor was transparent when we reached the office. The woman who'd been with her outside sat at a larger desk right outside the office. She must be her assistant.

Owens closed the door behind us. I took my time taking in her office. It was very stark. There was no personal item in sight. The desk was glass, the couch and the chairs were white leather, the floor was a white marble. Cold. Clinic.

The questions rang in my head. If it had been another person, I probably wouldn't have asked. But she'd been direct and unapologetic the last time we spoke. If she didn't like my question, she'd just tell me so.

"Do you like your nickname?" I asked, turning to face her as she stood behind her desk. Removing the plain gray blazer, she put it around her chair and looked around the office.

"Because my office is white?" she asked. "Whether I like my nickname or not is irrelevant."

I raised my brows. She didn't answer the question. I would have pressed, but I needed to be in her good graces.

She sat down and gestured to the chair in front of her desk. "Would you like something to drink?"

"No." I plopped down on the chair and took off my hat. Running my hand through my hair, I smiled at her. A little charm could go a long way, and I could be charming. "How have you been since the last time I saw you?"

She blinked, slowly. I had started to recognize it as an exasperated expression on her, even though her features did not move a millimeter.

"Very well, thank you," she replied. "Is this visit business related?"

"No," I said, crossing my legs at the ankles. I tapped the flat of my cap on my knee and sighed. "How do you feel about another date?"

She did not move. I cringed. "Wait, that came out wrong. See, I have a little problem."

When she didn't interrupt, I continued. "I've already told you that my mother was the one who tricked me into our date."

She gave one nod.

I put my hat in my lap and crossed my arms. "If you know my mother, you'll know how persistent and hard headed she is. She still hasn't realized that her attention to my love life is unwelcome. Or maybe she doesn't care."

"Have you spoken to her?" Owens asked.

I scoffed. I might sound like a belligerent child, but I really didn't care at this point. My mother was driving me insane.

"I have. She doesn't listen. And if I lie, she'll find out sooner or later. Anyway, I thought about it a little. I realized that if she thought I'm dating someone, she would step back. The only person I could think of was you. You have no expectations. You know exactly what I'm facing. And you're single." I frowned. "You are single, right?"

"Yes, I am," she said evenly.

"So, what do you think?" I asked. "Are you willing to do it? Just go on a few dates until my mother's interest fades away. Just dinner. I enjoyed your company the other night and I-"

I shut my mouth when I realized I was starting to sound desperate. I threw my head back and stared at the ceiling. "I sound like a spoiled jerk."

Owens coughed. I glanced at her. She had her usual poker face on, but she was definitely laughing at me. I groaned. "I apologize. It's a ridiculous proposal. I'm sure you're a busy woman-"

"Let's do it."

My head snapped her way. I raised my brows. My earlier embarrassment buried under the surprise her words caused.

"Uh- you're sure?" I asked. "You understand what I said, right?"

She nodded and clasped her hands on the desk. Her nails were short and unpainted.

"Yes. As it happens, I have the exact same issue," she said. "Only Max isn't as pushy as your mother seems to be."

"Max is the person who set up our date?"

"Yes," she said. "He's developed an unhealthy interest in my dating life at the moment. I guess going on a few dates would appease him."

A slow grin spread on my face. It worked. It actually worked. I really hadn't expected her to accept my offer. It was a last resort.

"Perfect." I straightened in my seat. "You have no idea how much I owe you."

She shook her head. "It's a beneficial agreement for both of us. I do have some specifications, though."

"Shoot."

"I won't be meeting you in the evenings. I need to be... I have other obligations after work."

"How about lunch? We could meet for lunch a couple of times a week. That would be enough." I cleared his throat. "Also, just to be clear. I'm not expecting anything else."

She stared back in silence.

"You know," I said, "anything physical. Just a few dates, that's it."

"Yes. I'm aware," she said, glancing at her watch. "If that's all, would you mind giving me your contact information so we can set things up in more detail later."

She made it seem like a business deal. It was fine with me, although it was a slight blow to my ego when she readily accepted there wouldn't be any physical aspect to their pseudo relationship. Oh, well. At least my plan worked.

I was fake dating the Ice queen.