Page 87 of Faking with Three

“We don’t have much of a choice,” I mutter. “The segment’s already lined up to air. If we’re not ready for what she’s throwing at us, she’ll have the narrative before we even get a chance to respond.”

Ethan sighs, scrubbing a hand down his face. “Great. So we’re just sitting ducks.”

“No,” I say firmly, my voice cutting through the room. “We’re not. We might not be able to stop her from airing it, but that doesn’t mean we’re defenseless. We watch, we take notes, and we figure out how to counter every lie she throws out.”

Olivia looks at me, her expression sharp and determined. “She’s not going to hold back, you know. If she’s dragging us into the mud, she’ll make sure it sticks.”

“Let her try,” Marcus growls, pushing off the wall. “She thinks she can take us down? She doesn’t know who she’s messing with.”

I sigh. “How, Marcus? Because right now, all I see is Charlie Green gearing up to spin her narrative to an audience that’s ready to eat it up.”

Before he can answer, his phone buzzes. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“What now?” Olivia asks

“Check this out,” Marcus says, holding his phone up. “Some gossip blog just dropped an article about us.”

Ethan looks up from his laptop. “What is it?”

Marcus doesn’t answer right away, scrolling through the article with a look that could kill. Finally, he speaks, his tone dark. “They’re speculating about our ‘true intentions.’ Says Olivia’s using this whole polyamory angle as a smokescreen to fend off a hostile takeover at her company.”

Olivia stiffens, her eyes narrowing. “That’s ridiculous. Why is Death Crunch even mentioned there?”

“What else do you expect from psychopaths?”

“Wait, it gets better,” Marcus says grimly. “They’re also claiming that Jax—” he pauses, glancing at me, “—is doing this to bolster a custody case for Adam.”

“Wait a minute,” I say, standing up. “I thought Charlie was going to be quiet about Adam. Where did this come from?”

“Directly from the source apparently,” Ethan says.

“Fucking hell,” I say, raking my hand through my hair. “She doesn’t have an iota of decency.”

“That woman is a menace,” Ethan says. “She must really love all the attention.”

“I’m not doing this to win custody. I haven’t even—” I cut myself off, swallowing the rest of the sentence. I don’t need to justify myself to them.

Ethan gestures to the laptop on the table. “It’s almost time,” he says. “You still want to watch it?”

We don’t answer. None of us want to watch Charlie Green tear us apart live, but we don’t have much of a choice. Olivia reaches for the remote, turning the TV on and pulling up the WeTube stream. The video buffers for a moment before Charlie’s face fills the screen.

She looks composed, polished. Her expression is one of concern, but I know better. That fake sincerity is a mask for the glee she’s feeling right now. The host introduces her, and the two of them exchange pleasantries before diving into the segment.

Charlie starts slow, building her case with vague statements and half-truths. Then she goes for the jugular.

“This isn’t just about relationships,” she says. “It’s about responsibility. Love Lab has a massive following, and instead of using that platform responsibly, they’re promoting something that’s inherently unstable. Dangerous, even. Jax, now he’s a washed-up hockey player form the yesteryear trying to gun for some cheap fame. And that guy Marcus—he’s a doctor, right? He’s a member of the community, and people trust their secrets with him. And now he’s here pulling this kind of nonsense. His concerned ex-wife reached out to me the other day?—”

“Turn it off,” Marcus says. “I can’t listen to another word.”

Olivia grabs the remote and shuts off the TV, the room plunging into silence.

CHAPTER 27

OLIVIA

“…so we’re suing Charlie Green,”I say.

Heather’s face is on the other side of the screen. She adjusts her headset and tilts her head slightly, looking at me like she’s ready to dissect every word I say. I’m sitting on Ethan’s couch, my untouched coffee resting on the table in front of me.

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