“I wouldn’t say he’s best friends with Rhys. They have…” Bridget paused, “an interesting relationship.”
“Forget Rhys,” Jules said. “No offense, Bridge. He’s great and all, but I want to know about the boyfriend part. Stel, you don’t even want a real relationship. Why on earth are you in a fake one? Are you in trouble?” Concern dimmed some of the sparkle in her eyes.
Guilt flared to life in my chest.
I hated burdening people with my problems, but I should’ve anticipated their worry. Any romantic relationship was out of the norm for me. I wasn’t opposed to dating, I just…wasn’t interested.
I liked the idea of it. When I read a romance book, watched a romantic scene, or saw cute couples at dinner, a yearning for something similar tugged at my gut. But once the book or movie was over and I re-entered the bright light of reality, the yearning disappeared.
Romanticizing love was easy. Falling in love was harder, especially when my previous relationships had all lacked…something. Some sort of emotional connection that would make the risk of falling worth it.
Plus, I’d gotten used to being single, and I doubted the reality of love could live up to my fantasies of it, so I didn’t even try.
“I’m not in trouble. I promise,” I said when I noticed Jules’s skeptical expression. “I just…” Need more social media followers so I can make more money. My skin heated at how shallow that sounded.
The truth was more complicated, but I couldn’t dig into it without telling my friends about Maura, and that was a conversation I wasn’t prepared to have at eight-thirty in the morning.
“I’m in the running for a huge brand deal, but I don’t have as many followers as some of the other girls. I figured I could improve my chances if I hit the million mark.”
Bridget’s frown deepened. “How does that tie in with getting a boyfriend?”
I reluctantly explained the rest of my plan. It sounded even more ridiculous when I said it out loud to people who weren’t familiar with the influencer world, but there was no point in holding back.
When I finished, the silence was a thousand times heavier than the one before.
“Wow,” Ava finally said. “That’s…wow.”
“Is sex part of the deal? If it’s not, it should be. Christian looks like he would be a beast in bed.” As expected, Jules was the first to get over her shock and jump straight to the dirty part. “No offense, but you could use a little lovin’ in your life. As much as we adore you, there are some things we can’t provide.”
“No, it isn’t, and it never will be,” I said firmly.
I’d made it clear to Christian that our arrangement wouldn’t encompass any physical displays of affection unless they were necessary to sell our public image as a couple.
Sex didn’t factor into the equation. At all. No matter how gorgeous he was or how good he might be in bed.
My skin heated at a mental image of a naked—
Don’t go there.
This was what happened when I missed my morning routine. My brain freaked out and started picturing things it had no business picturing.
I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d fantasized about sex, let alone had it.
“Are you sure everything’s okay?” Ava’s concern was palpable. “You’ve never cared that much about your follower count before.”
I hadn’t obsessed over it the way other bloggers did, but saying I didn’t care was giving me too much credit.
Everyone trying to grow a platform on social media cared, and those that said they didn’t were lying.
Those little numbers could wreak havoc on anyone’s mental health.
“I’m not trying to be combative,” Ava added softly. “If this is what you want to do, we’ll support you. It just seems a little…”
“Out of character,” Bridget finished.
I stared at the half-empty takeout cup in my hand. “Maybe. But maybe it’s also time to try something new.”
I was twenty-six. I’d had one “real” job since I graduated and no significant developments in my personal or professional lifes. I considered blogging my second job, but a lot of people didn’t and I hated how I let their opinions affect the many hours of real work I poured into writing, styling, photography, and social media.
I was basically doing the same thing I’d been doing since college, only I was older and a little more jaded.
Meanwhile, Ava had moved to London (even if it’d only been temporary), got engaged, and landed her dream job traveling the world as a photographer; Bridget got married and became a freaking queen, and Jules passed the bar, became a high-powered attorney, and moved in with her boyfriend.
Everyone was starting new chapters of their lives while I was stuck in the prologue, waiting for my story to be told.
I swallowed the bitterness coating my tongue. If I didn’t shake things up, I’d be an unfinished manuscript forever. A thousand potential words that never made it onto the page. Someone who could’ve been something instead of someone who did something.
“Understandable. Change is the spice of life,” Jules agreed. Her face softened before she added, “Like Ava said, we’re not trying to challenge you on this. We just want to make sure it’s what you really want. If you’re happy, we’re happy.”
“I know.” I cracked a tiny smile. “At the risk of sounding completely cheesy…I love you guys.”
“Did you hear that?” Jules placed a hand over her chest and looked at Ava. “She loves us. She really loves us!”
“You know what that means,” Ava said solemnly.
“You guys—” I barely had a chance to put my drink down before they tackled me in a hug. “Stop!” I laughed, my earlier melancholy melting beneath their affection.
“Don’t mind me. I’m just over here in Eldorra, not jealous at all,” Bridget said.
I raised my phone so we could see her again. She wore a half-amused, half-envious expression.
“You need to visit us soon. We miss you.”
We hadn’t seen her in person since Ava’s birthday last year, when she’d surprised us at the party.
“I will, I promise.” Bridget grew serious. “In the meantime, be careful with Christian. He’s not the type of man who does anything out of the goodness of his heart.”
No, he wasn’t. But I didn’t need Bridget to tell me that.
After my friends left an hour later with promises not to tell anyone, including their significant others, about my deal with Christian, I showered and brewed myself a fresh pot of tea before I finally picked up my phone. I stared at the Instagram icon on my screen and held my breath as I tapped into my profile.
Oh. My. God.
I stared at my numbers, sure I was hallucinating.
Over one hundred thousand likes, four thousand comments, and ten thousand new followers overnight.
I pinched myself and flinched at the sharp burst of pain. Not hallucinating.
I’d expected good engagement on the photo with Christian, but I hadn’t expected this.
Giddiness ballooned in my chest while my mind raced with possibilities.
Would another photo with Christian go viral in a similar manner, or was this a one-off because it was the first one?