Chapter Three

Hannah sat stiffly on the edge of Tony's couch, her fingers gripping the fabric of her skirt. Her heart pounded in her chest—not because of Tony's ridiculous proposal, but because she was here. In his apartment.

She was sure she had never set foot in this place before. Yet Tony stood before her, arms crossed, looking completely unfazed by her apparent confusion.

"You've been here, Hannah," he said, as if repeating it would make her remember. "Two nights ago."

Hannah's brow furrowed. "Yeah, the thing is—"

"You don't remember," Tony interrupted.

"Sorry," she said. I'm freaking out now that I'm here in your house, you know.

"Before you ask, no, I didn't just let you stay. Your dad called me, and—your dad, Hannah—and said you needed to be home. I had to carry you out of here and drive you home."

Hannah felt her face heat up. Her head spun as she tried to process all that while Tony looked completely unaffected. "How is it possible that I don't remember anything at all?"

"So, about the proposal," he said, leaning against the counter. "What do we do with the deposit?"

Hannah blinked. "Deposit? What deposit?"

"The fake dating thing," he clarified. "I put in $1,500. Just send it back, and we'll call it even."

Hannah's breath caught. What money? She immediately pulled out her phone, her heart racing as she opened her banking app.

And there it was. A balance that was way higher than it should've been.

Her stomach twisted as she did the math.

"Tony," she said slowly, "there's just over $900."

He nodded. "Then just send it back."

Hannah swallowed hard. That wasn't the problem. The problem was that he had given her $1,500. Or was it not $1,500?

"Are you sure it was $1,500?"

"Am I someone who would lie about money matters?" Tony raised a brow. Of course, he wouldn't. Tony was one of the bosses in the office. If there had been anyone Mariza, the dragon lady and top boss of the department would trust everything with, that would be Tony. He wouldn't be lying now. Right?

"But...where did...the $600 go?"

Tony stared at her.

Hannah's grip on her phone tightened as she stared at the number on the screen. The longer she looked, the more her stomach churned.

"Why would you even send me this much?" she asked. "What exactly was I supposed to use it for?"

Tony let out a slow sigh as if she were the one being difficult. "The agreement," he said. "If we're going to pretend to be together, we need to make it look real. Fancy dinners, couple activities, gifts—things that make it believable."

Hannah let out a humorless laugh. "Tony, I didn't even agree to this."

"You didn't say no either," he pointed out.

Her mouth opened, then closed. Damn it. He wasn't technically wrong. The last time he'd brought up this ridiculous idea, she had brushed him off, assuming he wasn't serious. But now, with a deposit in her account and a very serious expression on his face, she realized Tony had been planning this for real.

And worse—she had somehow been involved in ways she didn't even remember.

"I'm giving the money back," she said firmly, clicking into her banking app.

"Fine," Tony replied easily, but there was something unreadable in his tone. "But if you do that, we're going to have to talk about what happens next."

Hannah paused, her thumb hovering over the transfer button. "What do you mean?"

Tony crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. "Look, I wouldn't have gone this far if I didn't need your help. You owe me, Hannah."

She bristled. "Excuse me?"

"You don't remember that night at all, do you?" Tony's voice was calm, but there was an edge to it now. "Because I do. I remember you mumbling a whole lot of nonsense about needing a 'big favor' from me. And since I'm such a great friend, I told you I'd help. The fake dating thing? That was your idea, Hannah."

Her breath hitched. "No way."

Tony's smirk deepened. "Oh yeah. You practically begged me. Said you needed someone reliable, someone your dad would trust."

Hannah felt the blood drain from her face. That… that did sound like something she might say. But why?

"What was the favor?" she asked, dreading the answer.

Tony shrugged. "You didn't exactly clarify. And by the time I got you home, your dad was already suspicious. I had to convince him that we were already seeing each other, just to keep him from freaking out."

Hannah groaned, pressing her hands against her face. This was bad.

"So," Tony continued, "I think it's only fair we follow through with this little arrangement. At least for a while."

Hannah looked up at him. "How long?"

Tony tilted his head, considering. "A month?"

"A month?"

"It's not like I'm asking for much. You just have to be 'the' girlfriend whenever my family or your dad is around." He eyed her, seeking any sort of approving expression from her. "Easy, right?"

Hannah wanted to strangle him.

But the worst part?

She wasn't entirely sure she could say no.

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Tony decided Hannah would have to go home. Hannah contemplated the roof of Tony's Bentley SUV while Tony talked about their agreement from two nights ago, which they reiterated a while ago.

"Remember, we have to make this believable. You're going to have to call me. When you go to bed, have lunch, have dinner, go to work—"

"Call you? What a pain!"

"You would say that to your boyfriend?"

Hannah looked up at the ceiling of the spacious parking lot, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. He was right; girlfriends would normally want to know what their beau was doing all the time. She had never been at that stage; it was all new to her.

Tony had continued going through more instructions about acting like a normal, sort-of-clingy, sweet, loving girlfriend.

"I didn't know you'd go for girls who are clingy, painstakingly sweet, acting adorable, and all that bullshit," Hannah said, surprisingly nonchalantly.

Tony stared at her in the eyes, and then his eyes went from her head to her feet, seeming to be in disbelief he would hear the 'B' word from her.

"I didn't know you cursed like a peddler," Tony said, opening the car door to the passenger seat for her to get in.

Hannah felt like she had been stripped, but it was all too late to continue pretending to be the goody-goody girl. She was pissed off, and she now owed Tony a sizable amount of money—money she didn't have even with her next salary coming in a few days.

"I don't care if you curse once in a while. I guess that's normal for any person, but I don't want you cursing in front of my family," Tony said as if he were placing an order at a restaurant.

Hannah sighed, crossing her arms. She then looked into his eyes. "I don't curse in front of older people," she said.

He remained staring at her for a moment, as if trying to read her mind. "I guess that's good enough for me," he said.

Hannah then pushed her way through to get into the passenger seat of Tony's SUV. She took in a deep breath after Tony shut the car door. His eyes then met hers as he walked around the car to get to the driver's seat.

All of these felt weird to Hannah. She had always wanted to know how it felt like being in the passenger seat of a man's car. She didn't think she would experience it as a pretend girlfriend. She shook her head in disappointment in herself.

Tony got in the car, and as the vehicle roared to life, Hannah smelled a hint of a male perfume. The appealing smell made her turn to the man beside her.

Jet black hair; blue, almond-shaped blue eyes; standing about six feet; and chiseled features, Tony was not just good-looking. He was someone who exuded masculinity, adding to his authoritative presence. She had not had interactions with him since his office had been in a different floor. She had heard the name Tony in the office many times, one was an executive, another was a newbie, and another was a senior staff.

How lucky could she get to actually be with the executive Tony.

"I guess I should as well just enjoy the benefit I get to experience out of all these," she thought as she pulled on the seatbelt, which seemed jammed. She jolted when she felt a hand on her shoulders, pushing her to rest her back. The mild scent of male perfume suddenly flooded her senses, and before she knew it, she had the seatbelt on.

"Okay?" Tony spoke.

Hannah nodded and resisted swallowing until his eyes were off her.

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