I was halfway through typing up the report he'd asked for─okay, procrastinating by staring at the blinking pointer when the intercom buzzed on my desk.
His voice came through, smooth but firm.
"Isabella. My office. Now."
I sighed and pushed back my chair. It was barely noon and I was already on edge. That man was a master at turning oxygen into pressure.
I quickly checked myself in the mirror my heart pounding hard in my chest and walked down the hall to his door. As I approached, I noticed that it was opened a little bit but I still knocked softly.
He called out, "come in." I took a deep breath and walked inside, trying to keep my hands still and appear composed under his gaze. He looked… composed. Too composed. Which only made me more nervous.
"You called?" I asked, my voice calm despite the way my stomach flipped.
Adrien leaned back in his chair, fingers under his chin, his eyes watching me like I was some puzzle he hadn't quite solved yet.
"Yes," he said finally. "Close the door."
Oh God.
Was this about the coffee? Did I bring the wrong milk? The wrong cup? Did I offend the sacred ritual of Adrien's Caffeine Hour? I technically did by coming late but still.
I turned and shut the door with a soft click, bracing myself.
Then I faced him again trying not to look as nervous as I felt.
"Is there a problem?"
He tilted his head. "Do you always ask that when someone calls you into their office?"
"No," I said carefully. "Just when that someone is you."
He almost—almost…smirked.
He stood up from the desk slowly and walked around his table to stand in front of me, a few feet away but close enough that I could catch a faint smell of his cologne—clean and fresh. With a single word, he commanded, "Sit." He said, not too harsh nor kind. Just… firm. Direct.
My heart pounded a little bit faster in my chest as I sat down feeling a little biit nervous. He looked at me strangely as if he was thinking deeply. Adrien spoke up, his fingers tapping on the desk like he was preparing for a big task. "I have a favor to ask you."
I waited unsure whether to brace myself or laugh. Knowing him, it could be anything from filing three hundred contracts to flying across the world for a one-hour meeting.
Then he dropped it.
"Can you act like my girlfriend?"
…
I blinked in hopes i was dreaming. "What?"
He didn't repeat it. Just stared at me as if the weight of those words would eventually sink in if he gave it enough silence.
And damn it, they did. He wasn't joking.
"You want me to what now?"
"Act like my girlfriend. Just for three months."
My mouth opened. Then closed. Then opened again because─what the hell?
Three months? Girlfriend?
I laughed. Not a real one. That nervous, awkward what-did-I-just-hear type of laugh. "Is this one of those weird CEO things? Like a business strategy I don't understand?"
His jaw ticked slightly, but he didn't answer that.
Three. Whole. Months of pretending to be his girlfriend? Had he lost his mind?
"we will sign a contract of course," Adrien added smoothly like we were discussing a simple business link-up. "I've thought it through. You're the perfect candidate."
I stared at him.
A contract?
Perfect candidate? For a fake relationship?
He said it like he was hiring me for another job like being his pretend girlfriend was just another bullet point in my work duties.
I leaned forward a little, brows arched in question. "You want to sign a contract with someone to pretend to be your girlfriend? Why not just─I don't know─get an actual girlfriend?"
He looked straight at me and said, his expression cold and dismissive, "That's none of your business." I was taken aback and slightly annoyed. "Excuse me?" I countered trying to keep my tone even. He held my gaze without flinching. "All you need to know is, I need a girlfriend for three months. You'll play the role, follow the conditions in the contract and be compensated."
"Compensated," I echoed. "Wow."
He said nothing. Just waited.
I didn't know whether to scream, laugh or walk out of the office.
He really wanted me to fake-date him. For a quarter of a year and he thought that was normal.
Was I insane for even considering hearing him out?
"Why me?" I finally asked, arms crossed.
He shrugged slightly. "You're already here. You're not clingy. You understand boundaries and you're not emotionally invested."
Not emotionally invested.
Right.
Of course.
Because that would be inconvenient for his perfectly scheduled fake relationship.
I sat back in the chair exhaling.
What the hell kind of situation was this?
ADRIEN'S POV
The conversation with my mother that morning still lingered in my mind, a constant buzzing in the back of my head.
She'd called all excited asking about a potential match for me─A famous hotel'sdaughter who apparently met all the right qualifications. It was as if I didn't have a say in the matter.
When I told her I wasn't interested and that I already had a girlfriend her tone shifted. It was like flipping a switch.
"You have a girlfriend? When were you going to tell me?" she asked, not buying it for a second.
I sighed. "I've kept it private, Mom. I didn't think it was necessary to announce to the world."
Her response was immediate. "Well, I spoke to Cameron, and he mentioned that you've never had a woman around. People are starting to think you might be…" She trailed off, her voice quieter. "Gay?"
I actually facepalmed. Really? This was the excuse they'd decided on?
"I'm not gay," I said, the words too sharp. "I have a girlfriend. She's just… private."
Of course, that wasn't good enough. No, she wanted proof.
"I need to meet her," she demanded. "If you're serious about this, you'll bring her here. Let me meet her. Prove to me she exists."
Prove it.
My jaw clenched. I couldn't afford to deal with this nonsense. Not when I had work to focus on, not when I had things under control─at least, I thought I did.
But she wouldn't let it go. Her words kept echoing in my mind, a relentless reminder that I needed to keep up appearances. The last thing I wanted was to be dragged into another one of these family matchmaking schemes, especially after all I'd worked for. I didn't need someone else trying to plan my life.
After my mom's demand, I ended the call my hand still holding the phone as I stared at the screen. Shit. Shit, what the hell did I just agree to?
She was relentless, pushing and pushing, until I caved in. "Fine, you'll meet her," I muttered barely even hearing the words come out of my mouth.
I cut the call and exhaled heavily. This was a nightmare. How the hell was I supposed to get a girlfriend overnight? I didn't have time for this. I didn't want to deal with any of it.
But then something clicked. Isabella.
She was already right under my nose. She was perfect. She was here, working for me, already in my life. She didn't know what I was thinking. Hell, she probably thought she was just going to keep being my employee. But if she played along... this could work.
Wait a minute. She was practically the perfect candidate, wasn't she? She'd always wanted me to notice her, to be close to me and now... now I had the perfect opportunity to make that happen.
She wanted money. I knew that much. Hell, it's probably what she wanted all along. That's why she was here, working for me. It was clear─she didn't think she'd be getting anything unless she played her cards right. Well, I could work with that.
A contract. That's how I'd get her to play along. Big bonuses, encouragement... all the things she wanted. I'd give her what she wanted─money, comfort, whatever it took. In exchange for her pretending to be my girlfriend? It was perfect. She'd go along with it. I knew it. She'd do anything for money and I had plenty of that to offer.
I'd get what I wanted: a way to keep my mom off my back while keeping an eye on her. It was genius, really. She'd never see it coming.
Perfect.