Silence fills the room, and all four of us look at one another. Hoping the other has an idea that can get me out of this. But we’re tied to an invisible rope. We signed our lives away. I can’t get out of this, no matter what I do.
I’m stuck.
“Why didn’t they talk to us about this?” Elijah says, stress clouding his normally happy face.
“Have they ever talked to us about stuff?” I reply blankly.
“Nope.” Leonidas shakes his head. He lowers his voice. “I’m sorry, Amelia. I wish there were something I could do. I hate that you have to do this.”
I nod, unable to find words.
I feel so defeated that I’m just accepting my fate.
“If anyone can put this guy in his place, Amelia, it’s you. You got this, girl,” Trinity adds in softly. “It’s not permanent. You can do this.”
Elijah tries to lighten the mood. “Let’s hope she doesn’t kill him.”
“If I see him touching her while I’m around, Amelia is not the one you have to be worried about,” Leonidas points out with a frown.
“There won’t be any unnecessary touching,” I mutter, not wanting to be around him for even a second.
My brothers are handling the situation better than I expected. We all know deep down that we just have to deal with this and move on. The faster we accept my horrible fate, the faster this will be over.
This isn’t a forever thing …
* * *
“I’m just saying!” Trinity exclaims when I shove her shoulder from where we sit, cross-legged, on my bed, chatting away. “He’s not the worst-looking guy you could fake date.”
I raise an eyebrow at the very obvious matchmaker. “How would my brother react if he heard you talking like this?”
She points a finger at me. “What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, right?”
I shake my head at her. “Trinity, every single time I see his smug face, all I want to do is punch it.”
Lying on her stomach, Trinity places her chin in her palm and stares up at me. “You realize you’re talking to a romance reader, right? My favorite tropes are enemies to lovers and forbidden romance. I would totally write a book about your relationship.”
I throw my hands up, getting tired of repeating myself. “There will be no future book if there isn’t a relationship to base it on.” I roll my eyes at her.
“But just imagine!” She laughs, sitting up and throwing a pillow at my face.
Grabbing the same object she just assaulted my face with, I whip it at her face more forcefully. “I have a horrible imagination!”
“I’ll help you—”
I slap a hand to her mouth, but she keeps talking behind my hand as I give her a pointed glare. “You done?”
Snatching my hand away, she smirks. “Nope.”
“Trinity, do you not understand my anxiety? I have to fake date Levi Miller. The man who came into our studio and immediately acted like a jerk, like he’s a king and we’re his peasants. I spilled coffee on his hand by accident and handed him tissues from the goodness of my heart, but he refused to take them with a look of disgust on his face. Not to mention, the night at the club, we made eye contact, and he gave me his middle finger. Oh, and he brought my pussy into an argument with my brother,” I stress, watching my best friend’s excitement vanish from her face.
“Yeah, that was pretty messed up.” She winces.
“And now, I have to pretend to be in love with him,” I scoff, feeling like the entire world is falling onto my shoulders. “I can’t even be in a room with him without wanting to punch that stupid smirk off his face.”
“I would be just as mad as you, but when you’re feeling upset about the situation, just remember, this isn’t a forever thing, okay?”
Nodding, I give her a small smile and pretend to be okay when all I want to do is crawl into a ball and cry.
