Page 115 of Would You Rather
“What about the leak?” I ask.
A few days after the news hit, the media exposed the recording Connor had warned me about. It was just a little snippet, but you can clearly hear me talking about a contract. While I never said Lucas’ name or mentioned the fake relationship, people still caught on.
“Well, the post helped,” Ana says, glancing at Lucas. A few days ago, Lucas shared a picture of us on his social media, with a story on how we met through mutual friends and quickly started dating. It wasn’t a complete lie since we’re both friends with Leila, but only the people closest to us know the real story. “But we still need to keep your relationship strong, prove that it isn’t fake.” She looks at our joined hands and chuckles. “Which won’t be as big of a problem as it was when this started.”
“So, Lucas will still have to go on dates, interviews, and stuff?” I ask, furrowing my brows. He quit to get away from this, and now, with me in the public eye, he won’t be.
“If he wants to,” she responds. “As always, you do what you’re comfortable with.”
I turn to Lucas, finding a smile on his face. “It’s not even a question, Mads. I’ll do it.”
“Are you sure?” I ask Lucas, a frown tugging at my lips. “I know you want—”
“I want you to have what you want. I want you to be happy and successful. So yeah, I’ll do whatever you need to help you reach your goals.” His thumb glides over mine, and I let out a content sigh. “Besides, it’s not like I can be completely out of the public anyway,” he says with a smirk. “People will get bored of me eventually when they realize I’m not modeling anymore.”
I shoot him a look. “There’s nothing boring about you.”
He smiles, his eyes softening. “I love you.”
“This is…” Ana gestures between us, “Beautiful, really, but we should get back to business.”
The tension in Lucas’ shoulders is visible when he releases a heavy breath and tightens his hold on my hand “What about Connor?” he asks. “Can we do something about him?”
Luckily, Ana didn’t make Lucas pay the fine for the NDA once she found out it was Connor who exposed us. But we still see Connor since he still attends Redfield. He keeps his distance and doesn’t try to approach me anymore, which is good since I don’t want anything to do with him. But Lucas doesn’t like that. He wants him to pay for what he did.
Ana shakes her head. “Even if we were to sue him for defamation, the voice recording he posted would be enough to discredit that.”
“Even if we’re dating now?” I ask.
And nods. “Unfortunately so,” she says. “What Connor posted was enough for everyone to believe it’s true. We’ll just have to continue to prove them the opposite.”
Lucas curses under his breath, running a hand roughly through his hair. “So we just have to see him every day around campus?”
“Lucas, it’s ok,” I say, attempting to calm him. I know how much Connor affects him, and I know a big part of it is my previous crush on him. But whatever I saw in Connor was a blip compared to my feelings for Lucas.
“No, it’s not, Mads,” he says, shaking his head. His beautiful brown eyes lock on mine, and he swallows. “That asshole won’t stop until he gets you, I know it.”
I turn my chair slightly to look at him and tighten my hold on his hand. “He won’t be a problem, Lucas,” I promise him. “I loveyou, not him.”
His shoulders drop as he lets out a breath of relief. “I love you,princesa,” he says, leaning in to brush his lips against mine. “So much.”
Ana clears her throat, and we pull away from each other, our attention pivoting toward her. “Ok. Great. Now that we’ve discussed that, I think it’s time to talk about your audition.”
I frown. “What about it?”
A smirk plays on her lips. “We got a call from Monica herself,” she says, sending a jolt to my chest. “She personally apologized for the rejection and has made it clear that the job is yours if you want it.”
“She did?” I ask in disbelief.
She nods, smiling. “She said she’d love to work with someone as talented and work-driven as you.”
“Holy shit,” Lucas says. “That’s huge.”
“Yeah,” I murmur, glancing to my side. I’ve wanted this moment for so long, and now it’s here. It’s within my grasp. All I need to do is reach out and grab it.
“What do you say, Mads?” he asks. “Are you going to take it?”
His question echoes in my head, making my heart pound. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted, and yet… “No.”
