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AMELIA

It’s my official first week at the new PR firm, and so far, I’m signed to a major cosmetics brand for the next few months before signing on to more, just to get a feel for how things operate around here.

Is it wrong that I agree with the comments calling them overpriced? Oops. Don’t tell my manager I said that.

Oh and did I mention I have my own office? I’m right by the break room, which means daily espresso with Maya, who’s already got me hooked. There’s also a massive window that overlooks the city from the twentieth floor. Perfect view of traffic I’ll be facing at the end of the day.

“Oh damn,” Jess blurts, clapping a hand over her mouth with a laugh. “Excuse my language. I forget I’m someone’s manager sometimes.”

I chuckle.

“And what about the like to follower ratio?” She leans in closer, her citrus perfume seeps into my nose.

I switch to the sentiment tracker tab and angle the screen toward her. “1.5%. Highest it’s been in sixty days.” I beam, proud of the progress I’ve made in such a short time.

“Perfect.” She grins, rounding my desk. “Let’s pretend I’m not your manager for a second.”

I click out of the tab, brows pulling together. “Is everything alright?”

“Totally. So, are you and Caleb really dating?” Jess sips her coffee, nonchalantly. “I keep up with the blogs.”

I freeze for a second. Time to fake it.

Jess has been a solid manager so far but she’s also wildly invested in my love life. Borderline unprofessional, but I’ll let it slide.

“Oh. Yeah we are.” I clear my throat, hoping it doesn’t sound fake. I know data and algorithms, never said I was an actress.

She flashes me a wicked grin, eerily familiar to Maya’s. “You know, they’re an older brand in desperate need of a refresh. And you’ve already delivered their highest performing post only on your third day. Your stats are impressive.”

She’s not wrong. Soft Muse has been around for over fifty years, but their visuals and techniques are painfully outdated. Stock images with zero depth or style.

Plain and predictable.

That’s what I’m here for. Maya helped me rework the whole grid by creating content in a soft beige aesthetic to bring into today’s standards.

“Thank you.” I chuckle. “Maybe we can have him hold up a product or something.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” Jess smirks, a devious one that makes my skin crawl.

“Oh, I was only kidding.”

“No you’re right. You should take over their campaign for the new lip product next month…with a little help from your boyfriend. Do a cute video together, a little kiss even.”

“Huh?” I cough into my elbow, stalling. Kissing? No way. “Jess, I…I don’t know about that.”

I belong behind the scenes of brands. Not starring in a couples’ skincare ad with my fake boyfriend.

“Imagine.” Jess lingers in the doorway, swirling what’s left of her coffee. “A campaign with the NFL's best rookie and his new beloved girlfriend. It’ll do numbers.”

Of course it will. It’s “authentic” and his fans would absolutely love it. Soft Muse’s brand would easily gain followers overnight with one single post if we did that.

“You might even get a raise if all goes well,” she hints, wriggling her brows.

A raise? Damn it. I need all the money I could get, my apartment is beautiful but the rent…not so much.

“I’ll…think about it.” I flash her the best smile I could offer. It’s a ‘please leave my office’ smile.

“You do that.” Jess grins, slipping out the door.

This brand could make or break my future at this company. No pressure.

When noon hits, I make a beeline for the break room, fix Maya and me coffees, and dart straight to her office, hearing it slosh dangerously inside the cup before I slam the door shut behind me.

“SOS.” I pant.

She swivels around, raising a brow. “You look awful.”

“Thanks,” I deadpan, handing her the coffee.

She chuckles, taking a sip. “Thanks. So what happened? Did Jess say something weird again? That woman is entirely too comfortable with us.”

“Kinda but first…” I plop down in one of her rolling chairs, gliding across the carpet toward her. “Caleb and I did something insane.”

“Yes!” Her eyes gleam. “You two fucked already?”

I scrunch my nose, setting my scalding hot coffee on her desk. “No.”

Definitely not. Why is that always on her mind?

“Oh like having sex with him would be the craziest thing you’ve ever done.”

Ignoring her statement, I continue. “We’re dating.”

Maya freezes mid-sip. Her cup hovering in the air before she places it down, slamming her desk with a bang, sending her stapler flying off the edge with a thud. “This is the best goddamn thing I’ve heard all day.”

“It’s only one in the afternoon.” I say dryly.

“Exactly.”

“Wait, so you didn’t have sex yet? Are you guys taking it slow or?—”

“Fake dating,” I correct, blurting it out before she gets too excited.

“Boring.” She frowns. “But, what the hell? Why?”

“Basically, I need help and so does he. I’d rather not listen to people at the wedding comforting me like I’m some wounded deer on the highway. So, I came up with an idea.”

“Makes sense, but damn, until the wedding? That’s a long time.”

“I know, but there’s more…”

She slides back into her chair. “Spill it.”

“Jess wants me to use my ‘new relationship’ for Soft Muse.”

“No shit.” She sips her coffee. “This is gonna be a golden fucking ticket for that brand. Are you gonna do it?”

“I don’t think I have much of a choice.” I groan, resting my head on her desk. “We haven’t even posted official photos and she’s already trying to make us a face for the campaign.”

Maya lets out a wheezy laugh. “Tia’s gonna laugh so hard.”

“This isn’t funny.”

Later in the evening, Maya and I head straight to Tia and Amir’s house after work, telling them everything.

“No way.” Tia leans back against the couch, already laughing. Of course.

“Come on, this isn’t a joke.” I whine, grabbing a pillow and smashing it over my face. “Between his campaign and now mine. I’m overwhelmed already.”

I’m used to the stress that comes with analytics and brand management. But now that Caleb’s tangled up with my job, it’s turning into a whole other level of chaos I’m not ready for.

Amir walks in, handing us all water bottles. “What exactly would you and Caleb have to do?”

“She wants me to kiss him, guess the scent, and smile wide for the camera. Please kill me now.”

When I got back to my office earlier, Jess had sauntered in again with a campaign brief in hand, already talking deadlines.

It’s called Soft Muse’s Summer of Romance.

The brief mentioned that we’d kiss each other and try to guess what the flavor is, but I am not doing that.

I’m tweaking it. Kissing him would be the most awkward thing ever.

“She’s going to full on make out with your brother,” Maya says, winking at Tia.

Tia’s face contorts, horrified. “Okay, gross. What’s the brand called again, so I can block every account associated with it.”

“I’m not kissing him.” I hurl the pillow at Maya.

I’m not even bringing it up to him until Jess circles back. The campaign’s a month away, by then, it’ll blow over, and I’ll come up with something better (less lip-locked).

Amir chuckles. “What’s the first step of this plan?”

I heave a sigh. “I’m thinking Venice Beach. Post some photos from his main account and officially start this.”

“Oooh!” Maya grins. “There’s an ice cream place with a photo booth there. You two can lick off each other’s cones.”

She’s actually insane.

“Please don’t word it that way.” Tia winces. “My ears are bleeding.”

I pull out my phone and shoot Caleb a quick text.

You free this weekend?

Operation: Fake Date Caleb.

Starts now.