A Muse Her

Chapter 9

Maia munched on a piece of toast as she tapped her pen against her notebook. "I plot fake relationships all the time." She laughed. "But it feels weird doing it for myself."

"Yeah but ours doesn't have to be as intricate as the ones in your novels," Mateo said, leaning over the counter to grab the plate of leftover bacon. "We met because we're neighbors and we got together a month ago."

"Yeah alright that's the most logical back story and easy to remember," she murmured, jotting that down. "But what if someone asks how it happened?"

"Mm, someone's bound to ask that, especially nosy Jodie at the coffee shop."

"Exactly, we need a story."

"We have one. You hired me to be your muse and we spent so much time together that we started catching feelings, as you like to put it." Mateo chuckled. "And one night after a few bottles of wine while we were reading your manuscript –"

"You slipped up and confessed you liked me and the rest is history."

Mateo raised an eyebrow. "How come I'm the one who confesses?"

"Because it's too cliché if the romance writer confesses first and you're the Hoth, people will eat that shit up if you're the one with the secret crush on me."

Mateo choked out a laugh. "Yeah, okay. I guess that makes sense. So how are we going to break up?"

Maia tapped her pen against her cheek. "Long distance is going to end us. We won't find the time to be with each other and we'll break up amicably, but remain friends. That way it won't look weird if we still hang out when I come back."

Mateo nodded. "Alright, but if we go with that story then we're pretending to be with each other for the rest of your time here."

"That's true, but I don't know how else for us to end it. We can't just break up the minute Sven leaves. That'll look weird and I don't want it to be a bad break up either."

"I don't mind carrying this on until you go back to Amsterdam if that's what you want, but it seems kind of silly to keep it up if Sven's not around."

"Yeah, I know, but how else are we going to break up and still be friends? People are going to talk and I don't want you to have to be here and deal with them gossiping about our break up or talking shit about you because of it."

"Mm, true and I don't want people talking bad about you either," he said, dragging a hand through his hair. "Alright, then we're a couple for the next few months and we'll end it like you said."

"Good, now that we have our story," she said, drawing a line under that bit in her notebook. "Let's talk about boundaries. Obviously, sex is off the table. We don't need that to fake this."

"No we don't, but how are you going to act when the ladies at the coffee shop ask you how I am in bed?"

"Oh God," Maia said, laughing as her cheeks burned up to her ears. "Yeah, that convo is definitely going to happen."

"Mm-hm," Mateo grinned with his brown eyes full of mischief. "So, what am I like?"

"I think you're enjoying this way too much."

"Maybe, but I like making up stuff with you." Mateo shrugged. "You could say my bedroom skills need some work, but my looks make up for it."

Maia raised an eyebrow. "I don't think I've ever met a man that was happy for someone to say he sucks in bed," she said, chuckling softly. "Your humbleness would suggest the opposite."

"Well, I don't want to come off too perfect. I gotta have some flaws."

"You do, but we can't ruin your whole mystique. I'll just say...you keep me up for hours, but you have a terrible snore or something."