Public Pretend
772 Words
I didn’t sleep much that night.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Ethan’s face. Calm. Serious. Like he already knew how this whole thing would end while I was just… winging it.
A fake girlfriend.
For a billionaire.
My life officially made zero sense.
By morning, I convinced myself it was just a business deal. Nothing more. I wasn’t falling in love, I wasn’t getting attached, and I definitely wasn’t letting some rich guy mess with my head.
At least, that was the plan.
My phone buzzed around 9 a.m.
Ethan: Pick-up is at 10. Be ready.
No “good morning.” No emoji. Just straight to business.
I sighed and replied, Okay.
Ten minutes later, I was already stressing about what to wear. I didn’t own anything “billionaire girlfriend” worthy. Everything in my closet screamed broke student trying her best.
In the end, I settled for a simple black dress and white sneakers. Nothing fancy, but at least I looked… decent.
At exactly 10:02, a black luxury car pulled up in front of my building.
My heart started racing again.
I walked outside, trying to act normal, but the driver already had the door open for me.
“Miss Morgan,” he said politely.
Okay. That felt unreal.
Inside the car, Ethan was already sitting there, dressed in a dark grey suit, looking like he stepped out of a magazine.
He glanced at me. “You’re late.”
I blinked. “It’s 10:02.”
He paused. Then, for a split second, I thought I saw the corner of his lips twitch.
“Get in,” he said.
The car started moving, and silence filled the space between us. The kind of silence that made you too aware of everything — the soft hum of the engine, the smell of his cologne, the way he looked completely unbothered while I was internally panicking.
“So…” I said, trying to break the tension. “Where are we going?”
“Brunch,” he replied. “With investors.”
I frowned. “Brunch? As in… public?”
“Yes.”
My stomach dropped. “You didn’t say today would be public.”
“You signed the contract,” he said calmly. “This is part of it.”
I crossed my arms. “You could’ve warned me.”
He finally looked at me properly. “Nervous?”
“No,” I lied instantly.
He studied me for a moment, then leaned back. “Relax. Just smile. Hold my hand. Don’t say anything stupid.”
I gasped. “Wow. So encouraging.”
He ignored that.
When we arrived at the restaurant, I understood what he meant by public. Cameras. Fancy people. The kind of place where menus didn’t have prices.
The moment we stepped out of the car, flashes went off.
My brain froze.
Ethan didn’t hesitate. He wrapped an arm around my waist like it was natural, like we’d been doing this for years.
“Smile,” he whispered.
So I did.
And somehow… it worked.
Inside, everyone was staring at us. Whispering. Smiling. Some looked surprised, others curious.
“Ethan!” a woman called out. “You didn’t tell us you had a girlfriend.”
He smiled politely. “I like to keep my personal life private.”
Then he looked at me. “This is Ava.”
All eyes turned to me.
I swallowed. “Hi.”
That was it. That was all I could manage.
Brunch was… overwhelming. People kept asking questions. How we met. How long we’d been together. What I studied. Where I was from.
Ethan answered most of them, smoothly, confidently. Like a professional liar.
But the weirdest part?
He was actually… nice.
He poured my drink. Pulled out my chair. Leaned in when he spoke to me. At one point, he even brushed something off my cheek without thinking.
My heart skipped.
And I hated that it did.
When it was finally over and we were back in the car, I let out a long breath.
“That was exhausting.”
“You did well,” he said.
I blinked. “Was that… a compliment?”
“Don’t get used to it.”
I laughed softly. “You know, for someone so cold, you’re surprisingly good at pretending.”
He looked at me for a moment. “I’m not pretending.”
The words hung in the air.
I didn’t know why, but suddenly everything felt different.
This wasn’t just a contract anymore.
This was going to be complicated.
And deep down, I had a feeling…
Three months was going to change everything.
- Writer
