Olivia had always thought of herself as a rational person.
She liked facts. Logic. Clear boundaries.
But nothing about this pretend engagement was rational anymore.
Because the lie was starting to feel real.
---
The Morning After
She barely slept after last night.
The almost kiss haunted her—lingering in her mind like a song she couldn’t turn off. The way Ethan had looked at her, the way the air between them had crackled like a live wire—none of it felt like an act.
And that was the problem.
Because it was an act.
Right?
By the time she made it downstairs for breakfast, she had convinced herself that it didn’t mean anything.
Then she saw Ethan.
He was already at the long dining table, sipping coffee, looking infuriatingly unbothered. Like he hadn’t just made her question every
