Page 43 of Secret Baby for my Off-Limits Fiancé

The laughter in her eyes? Snuffed out in an instant.

Her entire body goes rigid, her shoulders squaring like she’s preparing for a battle she didn’t realize she was about to fight.

“Oh,” she says, her voice cool, clipped. “Right. You needed proof of this date. That’s why you bothered with all this.”

Her words land like a punch, sharp and unexpected.

I open my mouth to say something, anything, to explain that this wasn’t just about proving something to my father, that I was actually enjoying myself with her.

But before I can get a single word out, she plasters on a picture-perfect smile, the kind that looks effortless but feels too practiced. Too deliberate.

She snatches the phone from my hands.

“What are you waiting for?” she says lightly, too lightly. “Let’s put on a show.”

Click.

A perfect photo.

A couple that looks happy, like they belong here, wrapped up in each other and in the romance of the night.

But it’s all wrong.

The tension crackles between us, thick and heavy. The easy comfort we had just moments ago? Shattered.

I don’t know what I did wrong.

She pushes my phone back into my hand, her fingers brushing against mine for a fleeting second before she pulls away completely.

And then, just like that, she turns.

She doesn’t wait for me to post it, doesn’t wait for me to respond.

She just walks away.

I watch her go, frustration curling in my chest, my grip tightening around the phone.

I stare down at the screen, the image of us, looking like something we’re not.

With a sharp exhale, I post it.

Fuck. This is going to be a long six months.

***

The next evening, I head to Layla’s shop.

I don’t call ahead. I just show up.

And I’m glad I do.

She’s standing in the middle of the space, surrounded by workers, gesturing with confidence as she directs them on where to place things, how to handle certain repairs, what needs fixing immediately.

She’s in her element.

And damn, it’s sexy.

The way she moves, the sharpness in her tone, the absolute authority she carries, it’s intoxicating. She’s not just running a business. She’s owning it. And everyone around her is hanging onto her every word.

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