Page 11 of Save Your Breath

I rolled my eyes.

“But this…” She tapped her notebook. “This would have people beating down our doors. Commercials, interviews,branding… I mean, the possibilities are endless. But,” she added. “I am a bit worried about the details.”

“Which ones? We are open to discussion on any of the points we brought up,” Isabella quickly fired back.

“Well, for starters — the breakup at the end of it all. We need to find a way to ensure that the scenario can work well for both of us. I understand wanting Mia to be the picture of a strong woman walking away from a toxic relationship, but we also need to preserve my client’s reputation and ensure this shines a favorable light on him.”

“He’ll be back to the pussy god the internet fandoms praise him for being now,” Isabella said flatly. “What more could he want?”

The two of them continued on, sizing the other up as they went through the details of this arrangement.

But I tuned them out, my focus sliding to Mia.

Fuck, it made my chest ache to look at her, to take in those blue eyes and pouty lips of hers. Isabella said something that made her smirk, that dimple in her left cheek popping and reminding me of all the times I’d wished I was brave enough to reach out and touch her there. Her long brown hair was straight today and a little greasy, like she hadn’t washed it in a few days. It was pulled half up in a clip on her head, the other half falling over her shoulders.

She used to wear it like that when we studied together, when she’d chew her pencil and frown at her textbook and I’d pretend I wasn’t just there to studyher.

She was too good for me back then. She was still too good for me now.

Never stopped me from wanting her, though.

“You’re fine with this?”

The words shot out of me, silencing Giana and Isabella in the middle of them working out details. Mia blinked before looking at me through the screen.

“With people thinking we’re engaged?”

I swallowed with the question, my throat tight as I tried to feign indifference.

Mia looked soft for only a moment before her lips flattened, one dark eyebrow arching. “Are you askingme, or stating your own concern?”

“We’re not exactly each other’s type,” I pointed out, thinking about her clean-cut ex. He had golden skin, golden hair, and a golden boy reputation. He wasn’t missing any teeth. His face didn’t have a single scar on it.

And then, there was me.

“Don’t worry — I’m sure the parade of women that follows you around will be waiting when this is all over,” Mia snarked. “And if you don’t want to do this, just say it and stop wasting our time.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t want to do it.”

“Well, you’re not exactly jumping up and down with excitement, either.”

I smirked. “Is that what you want, Mia? Want me to jump for you?” I leaned toward the camera. “How high, sweetheart?”

Isabella placed a calming hand on Mia’s arm as she narrowed her gaze, and Giana muttered a soft, “Aleks,” in warning.

I just leaned back in my chair and crossed an ankle over my knee, arms folding over my chest. It was defensive body language, but I’d perfected it enough that it came off as arrogance.

I kept my eyes on Mia as a moment of silence passed between us, and then Giana cleared her throat. “As long as Aleks is okay with it, so am I. My only condition is that we all stay in constant contact about what the plan is, and that there are no surprises.”

“No surprises,” Isabella promised. “Once you give the word, I’ll have my people make calls to some high-profile gossip sites and influencers to get the ball rolling. I haveinside sourcesarmed with photographs and details about how Mia and Aleks have been dating for months now.”

All eyes snapped to me, and I didn’t miss how Mia went from the wall of fortitude she always was to the girl I used to know. Her eyes softened just marginally, just barely enough for me to even notice. But I saw it in the way she subtly chewed the inside of her bottom lip, in how she was wringing her hands together in her lap.

She wanted this.

I leaned forward, elbows balanced on my knees and my attention solely on her. “What do you want out of this more than anything, Mia?”

“This is for your benefit, too, Aleks,” Giana started, but I held up a hand to ask her for a moment of quiet.