Page 27 of Hashtag Holidate
“The chemistry, darling,” he said, confirming my suspicion. “The unexpected romance angle. The luxury-meets-rustic narrative. It’s fresh, it’s engaging, and most importantly, it’sselling.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “There is no romance angle, Vic. Maddox is the videographer. That’s all. He didn’t sign up for any of this other stuff.”
Vic was quiet for a moment, then made a disapproving noise. “That’s a shame. But you’re on with a firefighter today, right? See if you can spark some flames with him, and then everyone will forget about Maddrian. Let’s make hay while the sun shines.”
I didn’t inform him the firefighter had canceled and Maddox had already agreed to stand in. That would only add fuel to Vic’s fire.
“I’ll try my best. In the meantime, see if you can start lining something up for January. A tropical haven, preferably. I wasn’t meant to live in a place like this. I’m wearing two pairs of socks, Vic.Two.”
After ending the call with Vic, I flopped back against the sofa pillows and stared at the ceiling. The analytics on my phone continued to update, numbers climbing in real time.
I should have been thrilled. Iwasthrilled. This kind of organic viral momentum was what every influencer dreamed about and could convince Nordique to offer me a permanent contract.
But I was also conflicted because my success had come fromthe one element I hadn’t planned or controlled—Maddox Sullivan.
Grumpy, refreshingly real, frustratingly attractive Maddox, who clearly wanted nothing to do with me or my “content farm.” Who’d agreed to help me so the town matchmakers would lay off him and had been thrown from the frying pan into the fire.
I switched from Instagram back to my text window and scrolled up to our earlier exchange, the one in which I’d suggested a local ski instructor could step in.
It had taken a surprisingly short time for his response.
Was it wrong that I wanted to read something into it? Like, maybe Maddox didn’t mind stepping in as much as he claimed? That he’d had as much fun as I had? How was it that the Maddrian hashtag and the uptick in Legacy matchmaking enthusiasm hadn’t turned him off?
I closed my messaging app and blew out a breath.Sell the fantasy, don’t fall for it, I reminded myself.
I forced myself to work for a few hours, checking in with other sponsors, responding to comments and DMs, and posting more content from our day yesterday. But every time I looked at one of our reels, it was impossible not to focus on the dark-haired man across from me at the hot chocolate table.
Finally, I couldn’t stand it anymore. I pulled out my phone and texted him.
Are you seeing this? The reaction to our videos?
Maddox
No. Some of us have actual work to do.
For some of us, this *is* the work. Don’t be a job snob.
Maddox
He’s a poet, ladies and gentlemen.
I tried to relax my cheeks, which were already sore from grinning like a fool. He was so fun to provoke.
The comments are going INSANE. Apparently you have “mountain daddy energy”
Maddox
What the hell does that even mean?
It means half my followers want to climb you like a tree. The other half want to adopt you and feed you soup.
Maddox
Disturbing. All of it.
Oh come on, don’t tell me you haven’t looked at the comments. “The way he looks at Adrian when Adrian’s not looking” has 500 likes.
Maddox
