The Pretend Boyfriend
Adrian sat in his home office, reviewing financial reports on his tablet when his phone buzzed with an incoming
message.
Marcus: Transaction complete. Vincent Lu purchased the penthouse for 45 million yuan. Funds have been transferred to your account.
Adrian’s lips curved into a cold smile. Vincent had walked directly into the trap, just as expected. The man was so desperate to maintain his lies that he’d bankrupted himself to buy property he’d claimed to already own.
Marcus: Preliminary investigation shows Lu borrowed the funds from his primary creditor…a loan shark named Zhao Wei. Total debt now exceeds 53 million yuan with interest. Repayment deadline: two weeks.
Adrian let out a cold snort. It’s truly over for him this time. When he fails to pay, he’s finished.
A leopard couldn’t change its spots. Vincent was a gambling addict, a liar, and a fraud. Once the two–week deadline passed and he couldn’t extract enough money from Victoria, everything would collapse. The creditors would come calling. The lies would unravel. And Victoria would finally see exactly what kind of man she’d chosen to replace him with.
The poetic justice of it was almost satisfying.
Adrian: Secure two VIP invitations to Madame Duchamp’s business gala. The one at La Belle Époque.
Marcus: Of course, sir. May I ask who you’ll be attending with?
Adrian frowned at the screen.
Adrian: Stop prying into my personal life. There are still plenty of other matters that need your attention. The Stellar Dynamics compensation fund needs to be…
His phone rang, cutting off his typing.
The caller ID showed: Sophia Laurent.
Adrian paused, staring at the name for a moment.
Then he answered the call. “Sophia.”
“Adrian.” Her voice was hesitant, uncertain. “I… I hope I’m not bothering you.”
“You’re not.”
Silence stretched between them. Adrian could hear her breathing on the other end, could sense her struggling with whatever she wanted to say.
“I need to ask you for a favor,” Sophia finally said, the words coming out in a rush. “And I know after last night, after what happened, I probably don’t have any right to ask you for anything, but I don’t have anyone else I can turn to and…”
“Sophia,” Adrian interrupted gently. “Just tell me what you need.”
She took a shaky breath. “My family found out about the IP. About Stellar Dynamics being reinstated. And now they’re…” She laughed, but it sounded bitter. “They’re suddenly very interested in my personal life again. Specifically, my marriage prospects.”
Adrian’s jaw tightened.
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My mother has arranged a dinner party tomorrow night. She’s invited three different men from ‘comparable backgrounds‘ for me to meet.” The disgust in her voice was palpable. “I want you to pretend to be my boyfriend,”
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The Pieter Boyfriend
Sophia said quickly. “Just for the evening.”
Adrian was quiet for a moment. “Alright,” he said finally. “Send me the address and time. I’ll be there.”
“Really?” The relief in her voice was immediate.
After they hung up, Adrian checked the time.
He sent her a text: I can pick you up this afternoon if you want to prepare. Around 4 PM?
The response came almost immediately: Perfect. Thank you again.
+25 Bonus
At four o’clock, Adrian pulled up outside Sophia’s apartment building and sent her a text letting her know he’d arrived.
He waited.Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then fifteen.
Adrian frowned and checked his phone. No response to his message. He tried calling…it went straight to voicemail.
Unease prickled at the back of his neck.
He got out of the car and headed into the building, taking the elevator to her floor. When he reached her door, he knocked firmly.
“Sophia? It’s Adrian.”
No answer.He knocked again, louder this time.
Still nothing.
Then he heard a muffled curse, the sound of rushing water, and what might have been a crash.
Adrian tried the door handle and thankfully it was opened
The door swung open, and Adrian stepped inside. “Sophia?
“In here!” Her voice came from the bathroom, even more strained now. “Don’t come in! I’m…oh god, not again!”
A loud CRACK echoed through the apartment, followed by the sound of water spraying forcefully.
Adrian rushed toward the bathroom and pushed open the door.
The scene that greeted him made him stop dead in his tracks.
Sophia stood in the middle of the bathroom, completely drenched from head to toe. Her white blouse was soaked through and clinging to her skin, the fabric now essentially transparent. Her dark slacks were plastered to her legs. Water dripped from her hair down her face and neck.
Behind her, one of the pipes under the sink had burst completely, spraying water across the entire bathroom in a wild arc.
The moment Sophia saw him, her entire body sagged with visible relief. “Adrian. Oh thank god.” She pushed wet hair out of her face. “I’ve been trying to fix this stupid pipe for twenty minutes, and it just keeps getting worse. Can you…can you help me?”
Adrian’s throat went dry. He tried very hard to keep his eye on her face and not on the way her soaked clothing left absolutely nothing to the imagination.
Adrian shed his jacket and rolled up his sleeves, stepping carefully around the pooling water. He knelt beside the broken pipe, assessing the damage. The connector had corroded and split…a simple fix if you had the right tools.
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The pipe chose that moment to shift, and the spray of water redirected straight at him.
+25 Bonus
Cold water hit Adrian’s chest and face with surprising force. He swore under his breath, He reached for a towel at the same moment she did.
Their hands collided. Sophia’s foot slipped on the wet tile. She grabbed for his arm to steady herself, but the momentum was already pulling her down.
They crashed to the floor together in a tangle of limbs and wet fabric.
Adrian’s back hit the tile hard, and Sophia landed on top of him, her body pressed fully against his. Her face was inches from his own, her wet hair falling around them like curtain. Her hands braced on either side of his head.
Neither of them moved.
Adrian’s heart was hammering so hard he was certain she could feel it. Her eyes were wide, her lips parted, her breathing uneven. The sound of water still dripping seemed impossibly loud.
“Sorry,” Sophia whispered, but she didn’t move away.
“It’s fine,” Adrian managed, though his voice came out strained.
Her gaze dropped to his lips. His hands, which had instinctively come up to steady her when they fell, were now resting on her waist. He could feel the heat of her skin through the thin, wet fabric.
The tension in the small space was suffocating. Every instinct told Adrian to close the distance between them, to finish what had started in the car last night.
But then he heard it…the sound of the front door opening.
“Sophia? Darling, are you home?”
Sophia’s eyes went wide with horror. “Oh no.”
“Sophia!” A second voice, sharper. “Where are you?”
Footsteps in the hallway, heading toward them.
Both Adrian and Sophia scrambled to their feet just as three people appeared in the bathroom doorway.
An older woman in an expensive designer suit…clearly Sophia’s mother based on the resemblance…stood frozen, her mouth falling open. Beside her was another well–dressed woman, slightly younger, with the same sharp, assessing eyes…probably an aunt. And behind them both, looking smug and triumphant, was Alexander Chen.
All three stared at the scene before them: Sophia and Adrian, both soaked to the bone, their clothing transparent and clinging, standing in a flooded bathroom with their hals still on each other.
Sophia’s mother’s face went through several rapid color changes…shock, horror, fury.
“What,” she said, her voice deadly quiet, “is going on here
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
