I did sleep, this time. But my dreams were still populated with Leo; holding his hand, hugging him, pressing him close, feeling his body, kissing him. I woke up in a puddle of moisture, and knew that if I didn't quickly masturbate to get this off my mind, it'd bug me for the rest of the day.

I was two seconds into my climax when my phone rang—but it didn't stop me from leaving my fingers inside me as I checked to see who was calling.

Cameron.

"Shit."

I hurried to finish, thinking of him, now, instead of Leo. Revising my scenario to include Cameron, I got off quicker, and just as satisfied.

Immediately after, I grabbed a tissue for my hands and pressed the accept call button. "Hello? Cam?"

"Hey," he said, sounding distant—not only physically, because he was still in the south with Leo, but also emotionally. "Did I wake you?"

It was Saturday morning, and I'd unfortunately been awake for too long at this point, thinking of things I shouldn't have been. "No, you're fine. I was going to call you later, but I wasn't sure what your schedule was." I sighed. "I'm sorry, truly. For hanging up, for not being a good sport about this."

"It's not every day your boyfriend tells you his boss wants to fake-date you. I get it, I do. But," his voice changed, "he's getting pushy. He's asking questions."

"Ah." I threw the covers off and fixed my pajama bottoms that I'd lowered to take care of myself. "He wants to know what my decision is?"

"I don't want to pressure you. I know you needed some space to mull this over. But he won't shut up about it." He breathed into the receiver. "He's eager, and I think he thinks you're going to crumble at his feet and accept it. I don't think he realizes you're a loyal, faithful girlfriend who actually had a hard time accepting his request."

"And you can't tell him that?" I opened my curtains; another bright, sunny Spring day awaited, but I had so many chores and errands to run that I wouldn't get to fully enjoy it. "You can't tell him that not everyone trips over their feet to prostrate themselves at his?"

I flinched; hadn't I masturbated to the idea of being with him? I was a hypocrite, a fool who was falling in love with Cameron yet lusting after his boss, too. It was that lusting that prevented me from outright accepting this fake-dating. One of us, if not all of us, were going to get hurt, I sensed it. I was no expert, like Daphne, but I wasn't an idiot.

"If you only knew how many times I've told him this." Cameron sounded exasperated. His voice kept wavering back and forth between annoyed, amused, and anxious. "He's a good guy, but he's full of himself, too. He has to charm everyone around him, or else he throws a tantrum. Of course, no one but me knows this."

"Cam," I said, trying to recenter myself, and our conversation. "What exactly would this entail? You said a few things, but what are the limits? How far does this go? For how long? Do I sign a contract, an NDA, both?"

I almost asked, "do I have to sleep with him?" but figured that'd be too much and would fluster Cameron. If it was a relationship we were making public, I didn't see the need to get naked with Leo, unless he wanted to do sexy candid pictures with me; but that wasn't his type. His social media was clean, though it showed him often without a shirt on. Never anything risqué or with heavy PDA.

Cameron didn't need to know there was a part of me that kind of wanted to sleep with Leo.

"A contract, yes. Probably an NDA, too. How far does it go? Oof," he blew out his cheeks and I envisioned him grimacing, "that's a different story. Based on your comfort level, and his. It would be notated on the paperwork, if you say yes. For how long? A few months, maybe. Until we no longer see those headlines in the magazines and online."

I rubbed my eyes as I wandered over to the bathroom. Dark circles and puffiness greeted me, so I set the phone down, on speaker, so I could apply some moisturizer to correct my issues. "This is serious."

"Very much so." Cameron entered a busy area, possibly a coffee-shop. I heard orders being taken and the whizz and whoosh of java machines at work. "I'm sorry. I wish I hadn't put you in the middle of this, that I hadn't introduced you to him. Shit like this was what I was afraid of." He spoke to the barista—he'd placed an order and was there to pick it up. "I should have not told you about this at all and refused in your place, seeing how deeply this is bothering you."

I rolled my eyes, having thought that myself not that long ago.

"It's just—" I tugged my fingers through my messy morning hair. "I'm not a fan of fake-dating stuff. It gets fucked up, you know?"

"This fake-dating can't get fucked up. There are legal documents and Leo's manager is strict about abiding by that. Things won't get out of hand. Well," he moved the receiver away to thank the baristas, "I know they won't get out of hand on your end. Leo is unpredictable, but I can handle him if he goes too far."

The notion of Leo going too far started something in my belly. I couldn't tell if it was fear or eagerness, sprinkled with curiosity or with anxiety.

What was going too far supposed to mean? Where were the limits?

"But I should have risked him getting mad over this. It was unfair, it was fucked-up for him to choose you for this, and I should have stuck up for you, for us. I should have—" The atmosphere on his end of the line changed; a breeze, with birds chirping in the background. "I'd hoped to keep you out of his life, and vice-versa, but I failed. The second Leo met you, I knew...I knew this would happen. It's like he's asking me to choose between our friendship, and my relationship. Testing me, you know? Fuck." His steps were crunchy, like he was walking on pebbles or piles of leaves. "I'll call him now and say no. If he's pissed enough to fire me, then so be it. I can start all over, and won't have to deal with his bullshit anymore—"

"—no." I swallowed, my mouth pasty. I needed coffee. "Don't call him. Well, not to say no."

Daphne told me to consider it. My heart told me to be careful, but my brain and my gut knew this was an opportunity I couldn't pass up. Being in Leo's presence would open doors, it would give me chances I'd never had while working at LuXe. All I had to do was hold in any real urges, resist any feelings, and focus on Cameron whenever I felt myself slipping. Right?

"Say yes. Say I'll do it. If it's to protect your career, your friendship, and if it frees me from LuXe..."

I wouldn't tell him how a tiny, revolting, disgusted, but impossibly intrigued part of me hoped to take this beyond the limits. That I'd have a deep connection with Leo and all my wet fantasies about him would come true.

I knew better. You can't have your delicious, Cameron-flavored cake and eat a piece of the luscious Leo pie, too.

My throat constricted. "I'll do it."

"Are you sure?" The hesitation in his tone only worsened the knots forming in my stomach. "You aren't obligated, Emma. I don't want to put you in that position. I may have implied it, but I never meant to."

"You did imply it, and you did put me in that position, Cam. But it's too late. Send the paperwork my way and give me the official rules, and I'll abide by them." I meandered to my kitchen and turned on the coffee machine that I'd prepped the night before. "But tell me this—does this change anything between us? Do we have to, um..." I winced. "Break up? Because I don't want to, and I'm sure this puts you in a shitty spot, but I—"

"—we're staying together," he said, so fast he took my breath away. "I don't give a shit what Leo says. He'd suggest we break up, but I'll put my foot down on that one. We'll have to be super cautious." Something squeaked—a door being opened, from what I deduced. It shut, and there was absolute silence on the other end aside from Cameron's voice. "We can't be seen out in public, so we'll only do in-house stuff and sneak around. Are you up for that? Because if you're not, I totally understand—"

"—wait." The discomfort in my stomach switched to butterflies. "We'd have to be sneaky? Like we're having," I whispered, "an affair?" As bad as it sounded, the concept of creeping around with Cameron turned me on. A lot. I'd always been aroused by secrecy, those getting caught type situations. I'd never endorse cheating, but in terms of forbidden fantasies, I often indulged in that. The idea made me all tingly. "We'd have to stay inside all day? Like...in bed?"

My face was overheating, and though I'd poured myself some coffee, I heard my bed calling me back into its depths. Something told me things were about to get steamy—again—but this time, I'd be thinking of Cameron from the start. Speaking to Cameron as I got to business.

"Yeah." His voice was husky; that rich, voluptuous tone he took on when he was turned on. "All day. Naked. I'm so sorry, I'm sure you weren't hoping a fake-dating situation would get you more sex with me."

I licked my lips and darted to my bed. Yes, this was happening. It had been too long since I'd had him in my arms, since his tongue had touched mine, since his fingers had explored my most precious places. This was a perfect means to loosen the tension of what I'd signed up for, and to remind him I was his, and I'd remain his.

"I mean, we could get started right now, if you want." His breaths were heavy on the receiver. "I'm alone in my hotel room. You're alone in your cozy studio, in your skimpy little pajamas. Already laying in bed and tugging your pants down, hm?"

How he knew exactly what I was doing was beyond me, but I fucking loved it. "The pants are gone, and now I'm slipping my fingers under the hem of my underwear. But I could take that off, too, if you want."

"Take it off. Take it all off, Emma." He let out a moan. "I've got my hands going down my pants. Looks like I'm pretty freaking hard, thanks to you. Fuck," another moan, "with a few words you got me going."

"This is so hot," I said, after removing my panties, as promised. I should have toyed around with him and fondled my breasts and taken my time to reach my favorite spot...but I was way too eager. And way too wet to wait. Considering I'd already done this earlier, I hadn't expected to be ready again so fast. "Sneaking around with you is so sexy, Cam."

"You're so sexy," he said, and I imagined his mouth moving as he spoke the words. Then I imagined that mouth inching down my body, tickling around my nipples, trailing kisses down to where my fingers now were, stirring and stroking my wetness. "And you're so fucking delicious, and I can't wait to get home and taste you."

I would have climaxed right there and then, but I held off, needing more details, more visuals. "What are you doing now?" I could barely get the words out, as my breaths had grown heavier and my heart was racing a million miles a minute. The moisture below was unbearable, so difficult to resist; I wanted to keep diving in and bringing myself to the highest place, now, now, now.

"I'm stroking it," he said, sounding as breathless as me. "It's swelling, it's huge. Fuck. It wants you so bad. Wants your mouth on it, your tongue licking it. Wants to be inside you."

Again, I stopped myself from coming too fast, picturing everything he was describing. We'd had sex enough times by now that I didn't even need to close my eyes to envision it all. He was there, he was right there, with his head between my legs and his tongue twirling me into oblivion.

We didn't last much longer, and gave into the ecstasy in unison.

But once he was off the phone, all my bad thoughts and fears and strange desires returned. He was upset, I'd sensed it when we said hello, and again when we said goodbye. For him, this was a lose-lose situation; lose his best friend, or lose his girlfriend.

It should have pained me that he'd chosen his best friend, but it would work in my favor, in the long run. Wouldn't it?

♪♪♪