13. Aurora: But it’s a Fake One

Chapter thirteen

Aurora – But it’s a Fake One

I’ve been called many things when people thought I wasn’t in hearing distance, or when they simply didn’t notice my presence. The divorcee’s girl. The sad girl. Matthew’s sad daughter. Pathetic. Pitiable. Sad. And many more. None of those words had ever gotten to me. It is to be expected when you live in a town—the more domestic side of it at least.

Words tend to spread around like wildfire. And people never forget. Living in what used to be a small town means everyone knows your business, and more often than not, you get stuck with some names. I stopped minding those names a very long time ago.

I don’t know what to make of Jake’s proposal, or what he thought of me. I was definitely beeping on the lowest range of his radar if he could offer to me to be his fake girlfriend for three months. First, it was the comment about coming to serve drinks with a pretty face, and now this .

I should have known he was too proud to be just a worker in a construction company. I should have read between the lines when he said a construction company is a better contribution to society.

I definitely should have read between the lines when it clicked that Britt hadn’t been a sweaty, puffy mess on her way back from her morning run. She had been the perfect opposite of that, her pin-straight hair cascading down her back in an inky fall. Her olive skin had been glowing, and her eyebrows had been well-plucked and perfectly shaped.

She could pass for a photoshoot on a makeup tutorial magazine. She had been wearing black jeans with a stylish, baggy long-sleeved sweater.

The fragrance of her sweet perfume invaded my nose. I grasped onto it and slowly climbed back into reality. I had been so shaken by Alex’s text that I hadn’t noticed her lack of sweatiness at all, commenting about how her olive skin was glowing, not sweaty as I had expected.

Ryan’s visit had been unplanned, and he had fed me some advice about going for the interview. A logical conclusion dawns on me, and I perk up like an ice cube was thrown inside my shirt.

“Did my friends try to set me up with you?” I ask him in disbelief. By now, I think they would have given up, seeing as how our first meeting had turned out so bad. Jake hisses in disbelief, narrowing his dark eyes venomously at me, looking like a vengeful angel.

“You flatter yourself, Princess. Why do you think they’d set me up with someone like you? Prideful, judgmental women are definitely not my type. At least Ryan knows that.”

I clench my fist, trying my best not to punch him in his annoyingly handsome face. His presence in the elevator took me by shock, an unidentified feeling zapping through my stomach. He looks so handsome in his tailored navy-blue suit with a crisp white dress shirt. The suit fits him well, sculpting his broad shoulders and muscular arms.

He wears no tie, and his slight stubble makes him look extremely handsome and rugged. He looks more like a model than a CEO with his dark angelic eyes and tousled dark hair. He completed his outfit with polished black shoes and a stylish silver watch.

I can’t believe my ears when he asks me to be his girlfriend, popping the question out of the blue. He looks genuinely shocked, his eyes widening in slight panic and confusion, as if he hadn’t planned on dropping that bomb on me. I notice his reddened face and his nervous attitude.

To be sure I hadn’t heard wrong, I ask him to repeat the question. I half-expect him to make a snide remark or burst out laughing while pointing at my shocked face and rudely telling me it was just a silly prank.

But he repeats the question, rolling his lips nervously. Jake has been nothing but a true jerk to me since we met. He has never so much as said a kind word to me. But I feel that zapping in my stomach again. Confusion, shock, and another feeling I refuse to identify, are all warring through me.

Then I see something flicker in his eyes as he becomes more guarded than ever. The rude expression I have come to associate with him returns and gone is the humane attitude I had gotten a glimpse of. The guarded warmth I had seen in his eyes was shuttered with a blank look.

“Why did you ask me to be your girlfriend then?” I say, through clenched teeth, making no sense of his attitude.

One minute, he is acting all confused and genuine and the next, he is being all rude and closed off again.

“FAKE girlfriend, Princess. You keep forgetting the fake part of it,” he says sarcastically, raising a finger to stop me as I open my mouth to tell him what I think of his absurd question and condition.

He continues. “You see, I’m in a little jam at the moment. My mom will be coming to Birchwood this coming Saturday and I need a convincing and willing lady to act as my girlfriend. With no questions asked.”

“Little Jacob lied to mommy about a girlfriend?” I ask, snidely. His eyes narrow and he clenches his fist. But I am in no way done with him.

“Are you that despicable that you have to lie to your mom to present a fake girlfriend? Of course, you have to! No sensible woman will come within a mile of you,” I add.

“What did you say? You want a girl to present to your mom? A willing girl with no questions asked? Like a sort of shiny puppet? And you think I’d be perfect for the job? You’ve got another thing coming, Jacob. If you think I’m desperate enough to take this job, you’re absolutely wrong! You can take your job and look for some other sucker to fill it!”

I explode this all in a single breath, telling him exactly what I think of him and his insane offer. Snatching my folder from his desk, I stand up and march out of his office angrily, not giving him the satisfaction of seeing the angry tears gathering under my lids.

Storming to my car, I dial Brittney’s number, and she picks on the first ring.

“Hello, girl!” she greets cheerily, dragging out the phrase. “How did your interview go?” she asks excitedly. I could only breathe over the phone, words eluding me.

“Aurora, hey? Are you there?” she asks, worry seeping through her tone. I clear my eyes, willing the tears to not roll down my face.

“You knew Jake was the CEO all along, didn’t you?” I ask, through gritted teeth, my voice breaking at the end of my statement. Brittney sighs, her cheery mood disappearing in the vapor of her sigh.

“Before you get mad at me, give me a minute to explain myself, okay?” she says, her tone even and calm. “Where are you now, Aur?” she asks.

“I’m in my car, going back to my shops. You know, the ones I’m fully content with?” I bite out sarcastically, my tone coated with shards of ice.

She sighs, and I feel a little bit guilty because it’s not her fault that Jake’s such an idiot. All she did was try to get me a stable job. She knew I’d never give it a thought if I knew Jake was the CEO.

“I’m sorry, B. I didn’t mean to take it out on you,” I apologize.

“It’s okay, Aur, I deserved it, I guess. Let’s meet at your bar, I’ll be waiting for you. Drinks on the house!” she finishes cheerily, and I smile .

“Drinks on me, you mean?” I ask, mentally drawing air quotes around the pronoun.

I grin, knowing what’s coming next.

“Exactly what I said, boss lady! Drinks on the house – A.K.A, you,” she says, laughing.

“See you soon, B.”

“Aur, I’ll text Ryan to meet us there. Drive safe!”

Disconnecting the call, I feel a little bit better. As I leave the company’s parking lot, I glance at the topmost floor and see a figure standing by the floor-to-ceiling window. I blink, and he is gone. I must have imagined it.

Without dwelling more on that, I zoom out of the parking lot, promising to never set foot in there again.