Fakers (8 page)

O
h, my gosh.”

Kyra stared at her reflection in the
bathroom mirror. Two days worth of sweat, sea water, and dirt
layered her hair. Where she’d slept the night before, one side was
flat, while the other stuck up like she was an electrocuted
rooster.

She couldn’t make a video like this. She
couldn’t even look at herself. Scrunching her nose up, she quickly
turned away and pulled on a ball cap.

Downstairs was already a flurry of activity.
The plumbers had come yesterday like Hale had said. He’d met with
them to look for any issues on getting the pipes up to code after
he’d helped Kyra pick out some options for the house. She hadn’t
heard the outcome of the plumbing evaluation, but the crew was
working hard to get the house up to code so they could pass the
electrical and plumbing inspection.

Hale was easy to find. She heard his voice
in the back and followed the flutter in her stomach. She tugged the
brim of her cap lower as she made her way over to where he was
directing an electrician.

She cleared her throat when the conversation
was over. “Good morning.”

Hale turned, his eyes looking her up and
down. “Morning.”

“Uh, do you know when the water will be
turned back on?” she asked, refusing to be flustered under his
gaze. She smelled like a sweaty cow; she couldn’t be checking out
guys right now.

“Feeling gross?” The corner of his mouth
twitched at his question, like he could read her mind or something
equally terrifying.

“You have no idea. When is it
happening?”

“Lunchtime. Plumbers will be done by then,”
Hale said. Someone called his name from the front of the house.
“Gotta run.”

The electrician Hale had just been talking
to regarded Kyra in her ball cap. “Hey. Wanna go out some—”

“No.”

Kyra took off for the back door and scurried
across her back porch. She rushed around to Stevie’s house and
knocked on the front door. No one answered. She spent the next five
minutes banging on every door and window within reach. Even though
Stevie was clearly home—her car was parked in the narrow alley
between their houses—Kyra remained standing in Stevie’s bushes,
feeling like a dirty weirdo.

She made her way back to her house and up
the stairs. The electrician gave her a mean look as she passed, but
she ignored him. She needed to feel gross in her own room with the
door closed. All she had to do was make it until lunchtime.

Before she set down to work, she lit a few
candles and coated herself with body spray. Finally, she was able
to focus on editing some videos. She posted one today about her
favorite products for the summer, which she’d been working on for
several weeks. She hit up all her social media sites to check in
and respond to comments. Most of the interactions she had were fun
and respectful, but she always had a few who insisted on being
disgusting or degrading. Kyra found that it was easy to feel good
about yourself and ignore people’s harsh criticisms when you had
the safety of a computer between you and the other person. Maybe
that’s why she enjoyed her job so much.

And maybe that’s way she found that she had
to fake it when she was around people in real life.

Lunchtime rolled around, and Kyra sprung
from her bed. She tested the water in her bathroom sink, relieved
to see a gush of spewing, sputtering water exploding from the
pipes. The only problem was her bathroom only had a bath, and she
desperately needed a shower. A long, steaming-hot shower. She
grabbed her toiletries and some new clothes before she hurried to
the downstairs bathroom.

Only then did she remember why this bathroom
wasn’t in useable condition yet.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Kyra dropped her toiletries onto the
ripped-up tile floors of the bathroom and groaned. She felt like
having a temper tantrum as she took in the flapping plastic sheet
that covered the gaping hole where a window had been. She
remembered now that Hale had to take it out and get a tempered
replacement glass, but that didn’t help her now. She
needed
a shower.

She tested the water in the shower. It
spewed forth in hot, pressured glory. Kyra chewed on her lip and
looked at the plastic sheet again. It had been a large window,
meaning the hole it left behind was extra…gaping. She leaned into
the shower and looked through the plastic. It faced the side alley
of the house.

She knew the crew normally parked in the
back and walked around. But they were at lunch, and she just needed
a quick shower. A very quick, hot, steamy shower.

“That’s it.”

Kyra stripped as fast as she could and
hopped in the shower, moaning out loud as the hot water pounded
onto her skin. She lathered up her hair and scrubbed her body with
fierce intensity. Balancing on one leg, she shaved quickly, nicking
her skin a few times.

By the time Kyra was rinsing out her
conditioner, she felt a little more human. She leaned her head into
the spray, arching her back and enjoying the feel of the scalding
water working its magic over her. She smiled in complete and utter
sensual pleasure. Showering was
divine
.

“What are you looking at?”

Kyra jumped at the sound of Hale’s voice.
She peeked through the curtain and into the house. No one had come
in, and the bathroom door was still closed. With horror building in
the pit of her stomach, she slowly turned her head to the
plastic.

Please, no, she prayed.

Hale’s entire crew stood outside staring
with open mouths at her. They seemed as surprised as she did,
although some of them looked as if they were enjoying the show.
Only sweet, older Chevy averted his eyes, his cheeks flaming red.
Hale appeared, looking up at the window to see what all the fuss is
about.

“Is something wrong…oh.” His voice trailed
off as he began to snicker, and soon, he and most of his crew were
bent over double, laughing at her.

Snapping out of her temporary shock, she
screamed and dropped below the view of the window, covering herself
with her arms and hands. She tumbled out of the shower and sprawled
onto the floor in a wet, slippery mess. Grabbing a towel and
jerking it around her, she army-crawled out of the bathroom.

She was in a dead sprint up the stairs when
the door opened and Hale came in. “Are you decent?” he called,
laughing.

She screamed in frustration and slammed her
door.

“Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh.”
Kyra sank to the floor, her body shaking in embarrassment. How was
she ever going to go downstairs again? Parading around in a bikini
was one thing. Being seen naked and
laughed
at
was an
entirely different situation.

Hale thought it was funny, which had Kyra
simmering in shivering anger. If her mortification hadn’t been so
off-the-charts, she would’ve stomped down the stairs and yelled at
him. Instead, she dressed in her pajamas and crawled into bed.

She was done with today.
Done
.

She picked up her phone and texted
Stevie.

Kyra:
I hate you so much right
now

A minute later, her phone beeped. She
scowled at her phone as she read the text message from Stevie.

Stevie:
You and half this street.
What’s up?

Kyra:
I came over to your house this
AM to take a shower. But you didn’t answer! So I had to take one at
lunchtime when the plumbers turned the water back on.

Kyra waited impatiently for Stevie’s answer.
Maybe she hadn’t known Stevie that long, but she felt comfortable
giving Stevie hell for not answering her door. She wasn’t really
mad at her friend, but it felt good to vent.

Stevie:
Glad you don’t stink anymore.
What’s the problem?

Kyra:
Oh, nothing too major. JUST THE
ENTIRE CREW SEEING ME BUTT NAKED!!!! They LAUGHED at me.

Stevie:
Assholes. You probably gave
them all hard-ons. Let me make it up to you. We’ll go out tonight
and party.

Stevie:
I know you’re about to say
you don’t drink, but you’ve had a shit-tastic day. Live a
little.

Kyra:
Okay, fine.

Stevie:
Did HALE see you naked?
Meow!

Kyra rolled her eyes. Of course Stevie would
think that was hot. Maybe it would’ve been if the entire crew
hadn’t been with him. She blew a drying lock of hair out of her
face.

Kyra:
Yes. He did. NOT COOL.

Stevie:
You say that now. But he’s
probably picturing your naked body right as we type.

A knock came on Kyra’s door, making her
gasp. “Kyra? You in there?”

It was Hale, conjured by Stevie’s text. Kyra
covered her head and hid under her covers, but her phone beeped and
gave her away. “Come on. I heard your phone. I know you’re in
there,” he called through the door. “Can I come in?”

“Go away!” she shouted, the sound muffled
from under her covers.

He sighed. The door groaned, and Kyra
wondered if he was propped against it. She pictured his hard,
muscular body pressed against the wood and realized she really
needed an intervention.

“Look, I’m really sorry about earlier.”

“You laughed at me!” she shouted back.

Hale stifled another laugh. She reared up in
bed and threw her pillow at the door. It hit its target with a
satisfying thud. “I’m sorry about that too,” he said, muffling
another laugh.

“You’re laughing now!”

“No, I’m not. You just caught us by surprise
is all,” he said.

“Whatever, Hale. Just go away,” Kyra lay
back down in bed and covered her head.

“Okay,” he said, “but I really am sorry.
Again.”

He didn’t sound sorry, she thought. She
grimaced and buried her head even deeper. After thirty minutes
under the covers, Kyra found that she wasn’t the napping kind. She
got out of bed and worked until the house fell silent and the sun
began to set.

She rose from the floor and stretched her
back, thinking that she really needed to get a working desk. Stevie
had texted and told her to meet her at her house in an hour. Kyra
heaved a sigh to fortify herself before she started getting
ready.

She settled on a sheer shirt with a bright
pink tank top underneath and jean shorts. Her hair had dried in her
natural beachy waves, so she let it be. She took more time with her
makeup, feeling like she needed some armor for tonight, and she
craved to look pretty. No way would anybody be laughing at her
tonight. The smoky colors of her eye shadow set off the bright blue
of her irises. She swiped on some lip gloss and grabbed her
favorite wedges before she left the house.

Stevie was waiting on her front porch,
wearing cute jeans and a peplum top with high heels. “You look
hot!” she called as she skipped to Kyra with a huge grin plastered
on her face. She was drunk.

“I guess I’m driving?” Kyra asked, rolling
her eyes good-naturedly.

“If you don’t mind.” Stevie was already
heading for Kyra’s Jeep.

They talked about the fiasco today as Kyra
drove them into town. Stevie apologized again for not answering the
door, but she didn’t sound too regretful since it was so hilarious
to her. The sting was starting to wear off, so Kyra could finally
laugh about it too. Stevie directed them to a bar on the corner of
the main street in town, which was lit up with lights in the trees
like it was Christmas.

Loud music flowed out to the street as they
got out the car. People milled about out front, smoking and
flirting. Inside was dimly lit, and televisions played different
sports, just like any other bar.

Kyra lifted her chin and followed Stevie
through the crowd. She was surprised to see how packed it was, but
Stevie knew where she was going. She steered them over to the bar,
sliding along the back wall and finding them two barstools.

“How did you see these?” Kyra shouted into
Stevie’s ear.

Stevie pointed to a guy with long hair and
chiseled arms behind the bar. “Troy saves me seats when I come in.”
She waved when Troy blew her kiss. He made his way over.

“The usual?” he asked. Stevie gave him a
thumbs-up. “And what about you?” he asked Kyra.

“Water, please.”

Stevie rolled her eyes and groaned, but Troy
nodded, moving away to take more orders and mix Stevie’s drink.
Kyra looked around the room, taking in all the bodies at the bar
and the ones dancing to the live band. Troy brought their drinks,
handing Stevie a Long Island iced tea. They flirted for a moment
before Troy left.

“Who’s he?” Kyra shouted, leaning close to
Stevie.

She waggled her brows at Kyra and said, “We
hang out some—if you know what I mean. Isn’t he hot?”

Kyra looked back over her shoulder at Troy.
He caught her stare and winked. Sure, she guessed he was hot. “He’s
cute!”

“He’s no Hale, huh?” Stevie poked her in the
ribs.

“Whatever,” she said, laughing. “I don’t
know what you’re talking about.”

“Well, he’s standing right over there.”

Kyra started, following Stevie’s pointed
finger. Her eyes landed on Hale’s just as he saw her and Stevie. He
stood against the end of the bar with Cade and a group of guys from
his construction crew that Kyra recognized. His green eyes cut
through the dim bar and scalded her; she knew he was picturing her
naked by the way his eyes danced with amusement. The brow with the
piercings cocked, his lips twisting into a smirk.

“Oh, yeah,” Stevie called. “He wants
you.”

“He does not!”

Stevie went on for a little longer, pointing
out different people to Kyra. Troy brought over two more Long
Islands. They flirted shamelessly, but Stevie was having fun, and
Kyra found herself relaxing.