Cole’s house was easy to find and hard to miss. For one person, it was a lot of house, a mansion by even the loosest of standards. Rhett felt a little self-conscious pulling up in front of Cole’s fancy house in his non-fancy Honda Civic, but he did his best to keep it together.

He thought he’d wake up and want to call Cole and beg to be let out of the whole thing. Certainly it would seem sillier in the light of day. But the more Rhett thought about it, the more he liked the plan. Well, like was a strong word. It would be a good arrangement for them both. Cole would get to keep the vineyard that was so precious to him, and Rhett would get to launch his event planning business. With a name like Mallory attached to his, he was sure to be a success.

A pang of guilt stabbed at Rhett. He didn’t enjoy the idea of using Cole, but Cole was using him right back, so it kind of balanced out. He quit stalling and walked up the slate steps and rang the doorbell. A minute later, Cole answered, dressed in a pair of jeans and plain t-shirt. It wasn’t fair for him to look as good as he did, Rhett thought, as he took Cole’s wordless invitation and stepped inside.

“I can’t believe you’ve never been here,” Cole said and motioned for Rhett to follow him.

“I think you must confuse me with my brother.”

Cole made a choking sound. “Trust me, that’s not the case.”

They turned the corner and entered a large kitchen that looked as if it belonged in a magazine. Rhett guessed that half his apartment would fit in Cole’s kitchen.

“I hope you like sausages.” Cole took his place in front of the stove, motioning to the sausages as he stirred what looked like hash browns.

“Oh, shit. I probably should have told you. I’m a vegan.”

Cole stilled and slowly turned, his mouth ajar, looking somewhat like a fish.

Rhett grinned. “I’m totally kidding. I love sausages.”

Cole snapped his mouth shut and shook his head. “Figures, my future husband is a smartass.”

Rhett slid a stool out from under the bar-height counter and took a seat. He watched Cole cook for a few minutes before Cole finally broke the silence.

“Shouldn’t we be getting to know each other?”

“We are,” Rhett assured him.

“But we’re not saying anything. We should be talking about things.”

“Like our favorite color?”

“Like that, yeah.” Cole turned the stove off and grabbed a couple plates from the cupboard. He loaded them up and brought one to Rhett. “Salt and pepper? Something to drink? Coffee? Orange Juice?”

“Pepper, please. A coffee would be great.”

Cole poured a coffee, added two sugars, and brought it to Rhett before getting his own breakfast and sitting beside him.

“There’s more to getting to know someone than asking about their hobbies and their favorite song, Cole. There’s the little things like when you’re cooking you put more weight on your right leg than your left.”

“How is that important?” Cole asked. Rhett watched him meticulously slice his sausage into even pieces.

“How is it not important?”

“It’s just the way I stand.”

“It’s a detail about you. People aren’t just the sum of their details, but it’s how people are different from each other. You cut your sausages into equal portions working from one end to the other. You put more weight on your right leg when you stand. You need a fern.”

“A fern?”

“Every kitchen needs a fern.”

“Okay.” Cole exhaled. “If we’re going to get to know each other, we can do it your way, where we just hang out, but I still want to ask questions.”

“That’s fine. But I will veto any boring basic questions.”

“The basics are important,” Cole shot back and Rhett wanted to laugh at him…and also kiss the pout off his lips.

He stamped on that urge until it went away and chewed slowly, giving himself time to regain his composure. He didn’t want to mock Cole’s limited relationship experience or make it seem as if he knew everything. He took a breath and adjusted his glasses, then tried again.

“Those are surface things. When you spend time with someone without worrying about gathering data like a fact-finding mission, the things you do learn are more substantial, more organic.”

“Do you know what I learned about you this morning, Rhett?”

“What?”

“You’re a little bossy. Not overtly, but you definitely like to have your own way. And you’re a bit of a smartass.”

“Guilty as charged.”

“So tell me, oh wise-relationship-guru, what do we do after breakfast?”

“You take me on a tour.” Rhett glanced around, taking in more of Cole’s house. “This place is huge. I bet you have a bowling alley in your bedroom.”

“I do not.” Cole laughed. “I had that taken out to make room for the swimming pool.”

“Seriously, though, what do you do with all this space?”

Cole shrugged. “I don’t really do anything with it. It’s just space that happens to be away from my parents. That was the important thing.”

Rhett frowned. “I’m sorry. I know this isn’t really the ideal situation.” He could have sworn he saw Cole’s hand move toward his, but at the last second, he grabbed his coffee instead.

“Before we get in too deep,” Cole paused and looked at him. His sage green eyes sparkled, and even the bags under them couldn’t take away from his beauty. “You can back out now. I won’t be mad. If you don’t want to do this, or if you’re having second thoughts about it.”

“I’m not having second thoughts. I thought I might feel different about it when I woke up this morning, but...” But I wanted to see you again. I wanted to smell you again. I wanted you to touch me and hold me and, God forbid, I think I wanted you to kiss me. “I believe it’s a mutually beneficial arrangement.”

Rhett frowned at how cold and callous that sounded. He didn’t want Cole to think that he was just using him. “I want to help you keep the vineyard, Cole. I don’t want to see you lose it.”

Cole nodded and they went back to eating their breakfast.

“I’m glad you’re not vegan,” Cole said out of nowhere a few minutes later when they stood to take their plates to the sink.

“Me too. Those sausages were excellent.”

“I get them from a Polish guy. I can never pronounce his name, but his dad was taught by his dad who was taught by his dad and so on. They’re fantastic.”

Rhett listened to Cole talk about Polish meat while he openly gawked at the house. What little Rhett had seen of it impressed him.

“Show me your house, Cole.”

Cole nodded and Rhett followed him, a step behind, taking in the details. The basic furniture with the this-house-has-been-staged-for-sale decor was present in every room. The room Cole called his office had a hint of personality, if you could call a cluttered desk personality.

“You need a fern.”

“I thought you said my kitchen needed a fern.”

“I take it back. Your office needs a fern. And at least one family photo. It’s like a law or something.”

“I don’t want a picture of my family in my office.” Cole wrinkled his nose.

“Then get a plant.”

“My room’s next door.”

“Oh, good.” Rhett grinned. “I can’t wait to see the swimming pool.”

Cole opened his bedroom door and Rhett entered first. The pool was only noticeable because of its absence, but the bedroom was exactly how he pictured Cole’s room would be. The thick curtains let in a scant amount of light, giving the burgundy bedcovers an extra romantic feel. The dark burgundy, paired with an espresso-colored sleigh bed and matching dressers, gave the room a masculine vibe without Rhett feeling as if he were choking to death on testosterone.

“This is really nice,” Rhett said as he made his way over to Cole’s bed and sat down. “Oh, my God. This is heaven.” Rhett flopped back and closed his eyes wondering if he’d ever been that comfortable. “How do you even leave your bed?”

“You find bed to be less appealing if you rarely sleep.”

“Wouldn’t that make bed more appealing?”

The room went deathly silent and Rhett felt his face heat to a point near volcanic temperatures. He hoped that Cole couldn’t see how red he’d turned. He couldn’t believe he’d made a sex joke while lying on Cole’s bed. Cole, who probably wouldn’t ever want him like that. Rhett stood up and cleared his throat. He wasn’t supposed to be thinking about Cole and his bed and how much he wanted to be in it with him. This was all supposed to be pretend; why couldn’t his attraction take the hint?

“We should schedule some time together before the trip,” Cole said. “An apartment tour and one breakfast date does not a fake relationship make.”

“What did you have in mind?” Rhett asked, feeling suddenly nervous when Cole looked at him and grinned.

“It’s a surprise.”

“I want to say that I love surprises, but I really don’t.”

“You’ll love this. Trust me. Have I ever steered you wrong before?”

“Not me, no.” Rhett folded his arms over his chest. “But there was that one time you and Ryan were joyriding in your dad’s golf cart and you drove straight into a water hazard.”

Cole’s grin fell and he scowled at Rhett, the humor still present in his eyes. “I don’t know if I’m going to like having a boyfriend who knows all the stupid shit I’ve done.”

“You’ll love it. I already know all the dumb stuff you’ve done so your family can’t bring out the stories and embarrass you.”

“That’s a good point.”

“Good enough for you to tell me what the surprise is?”

Cole grinned. “Nope. You’ll have to be a good boy and wait.”

Rhett sighed. “It was worth a try.”