Giana

The man's timing is terrible. Why couldn't he wait a few days until after Grandma was feeling better? Instead here he is mere hours after her surgery and he's already telling me how much we're going to owe.

Granted, I did go to the billing office this morning to ask for an idea of how much the bill would be and that could they let me know as soon as possible but still... They could have at least given me a day. But terrible timing or not, it's done.

Still, even with insurance paying their share, how could they bill my grandmother so much?

My head is spinning, thoughts running a mile a minute inside my head. It'll mean living more frugally than I've ever done but I'm sure I can handle it. What matters is that my grandmother's out of surgery and I have a job.

I can do this.

As the man walks away, I turn away from the door only to find myself face-to-face with Bryce. What the hell is he still doing here?

"May I have a word with you?" He glances back at my grandmother. "In private."

"What do you want?"

"Just a word. We need to discuss something important."

I eye him suspiciously. Is he firing me after all? "Is this about work?"

Bryce shakes his head. "It's just for a moment, Giana. Please?"

"Grandma, we'll be right outside, okay?" I say as my grandmother nods, yawning.

"Take your time, dear. I'm going to close my eyes a bit."

Bryce and I step out onto the hallway. All around us, people walk down the hall with determined strides, doctors, nurses, orderlies, each one paying us no mind at all.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I saw your bill."

I cross my arms in front of me. "That's private."

"I know, and I'm really sorry that you're facing an absurd medical bill."

"So says the man whose family name graces the pediatric cancer ward," I say, my patience running thin. "Are you just adding insult to injury, or what?"

"I can help you."

I scoff. Of course, the rich guy can help me. "Let me guess. And in return, you want to arrange something beneficial."

"Yes."

I frown. "Is this a joke?"

He shakes his head. "No joke. I need a woman, Giana. I need someone who is willing to go along with what I want her to do."

"Is this some sort of a sex thing?" I ask. "Because you're a rich guy and I'm a woman in financial distress. Not completely since I can make payment arrangements for the next two years, but I've read enough romance novels to know where this is going."

"Wait. What kind of romance novels do you read?" He pauses. "No, don't answer that. Look, I'm really sorry it came out wrong but this isn't a sex thing. In fact, there's no sex required."

"Oh." I don't know whether to be disappointed or not. "So what is it?"

"I need a fiancée and I need one fast. Before this weekend."

I frown. "Why?"

As Bryce leans against the wall, loosening his tie, my stomach clenches. I've never allowed myself to pine for Bryce because I knew he'd never look at me as more than just another of his junior assistants. But this changes everything. Sure, he only needs a fiancée for show and there's no sex involved but the mere thought of being alone with him is sending my imagination into overdrive.

"My father is losing faith in me, Giana," he begins. "He thinks I'm just a spoiled brat who can't get anything done."

"No offense but he's not far off the mark," I say. "You haven't exactly been employee of the year."

"Don't get me wrong. I want to change," he says. "But I'll lose that chance if he cuts me loose and sends me on my way."

I almost say something smart but there's something earnest about Bryce opening up like this. I'd heard about how his father is a hard taskmaster and all Bryce ever did was try to live up to his father's expectations. I can only imagine it must feel constantly trying to live up to your father's expectations of you.

"When he started comparing me to his friends' kids who are..." Bryce hooks two fingers in the air. "...pillars of society, are married with kids, blah blah blah, my dumb ass decided to tell him that I was spending a lot of time with my fiancée."

"He's not expecting you to give him grandkids, is he?"

Bryce frowns. "What? No, I told you. I'm not asking you for sex. I just need to prove to him that I can get serious about a girl and... even work. I can show him that I've moved on from one-night stands."

"Have you, though?"

"Does it matter? The arrangement's only for a few weeks." He thinks for a few moments. "Look, I just need an illusion for him while I pull myself together."

"And as your fiancée, what am I supposed to do?"

"You just pretend. Wear a ring for a bit. Go to dinner with me, be touchy-feely—but remember you don't have to go past your comfort zone," he replies. "Then in a few weeks, we break up. Let's say thirty days. I'll say it was a mutual parting of the ways, that we realized we weren't meant for each other."

"You make it sound so easy." Not that it's difficult to pretend to be in love with Bryce Holden, Jr.

"How hard can it be?"

"There is one stumbling block, Bryce."

"What's that?"

"Why on earth would you want to be with me? I'm not an actress or one of those social media personalities you date. In fact, you can have anyone you want," I say. "You're one of the most eligible bachelors in the country. You're number six as far as the local rankings go. So how can your father believe you'd fall for some frumpy junior architect like me?"

He almost looks offended. "You're not frumpy, Giana, and I actually find you cute. In fact, this might surprise you but some guys like real women with real curves, women who don't have to wear a ton of makeup all the time and are comfortable in their own skin."

"We've only really started working together yesterday."

"True, but you've been with the firm for over a year and I know you've handled a few of my projects in the past. I've seen your name enough times and so has my dad," Bryce replies. "Just because we haven't been directly working together doesn't mean we couldn't have struck up a friendship which then turned into a relationship. We could have met elsewhere. Besides, it's not like we could let anyone at work know."

"I guess." I start to fidget. He's definitely starting to make sense about how this can work.

"And my father respects you."

I scoff. "He doesn't even know who I am."

"Oh, yes, he does, and he knows you wrote that report and all the blueprints," he says. "I may have gone to the best schools, earned my masters and everything, but my dad built his companies from the ground up. He knows his shit, and I guess he's been paying attention to the projects you've been involved in."

"No way."

"Why do you think he chose you to do this proposal?"

I stare at him in disbelief. His father knows my name? But even as I almost levitate a few inches off the ground from pride, I remind myself to focus on more important things. "What do I get in return exactly?"

"I'll pay all your grandmother's medical bills and then some," Bryce replies. "I'll make sure you're well taken care of, Giana. I promise."

I turn to look at Grandma sleeping in her bed, still holding one of her favorite paperbacks in her hand. Thirty days is all Bryce asks for and as far as finances go, I'll get to breathe. And all I have to do is pretend to be in love with him which isn't hard at all. "All I want is the best for her. She's the only family I have left."

"Then say yes."

I take a deep breath. This is it. No turning back now. "Let's do it then."

Bryce holds out his hand. "I'll get an agreement drafted but for now, let's shake on it." As I shake his hand, he continues, "It's going to work out for both of us, Giana. We'll even get to work on the same project together."

I raise an eyebrow, skeptical. "You promise you won't let me do all the work this time?"

"Of course." He pauses, smiling sheepishly. "I've kept you away from your grandmother too long so I'm going to go and take care of a few things."

As he turns away, I touch his arm. "Before you leave, can you tell me what this weekend is all about? Where are we going?"

"It's a golf tournament my mother's charity is holding at the country club. My parents are looking forward to meeting my fiancée."

"I assume jeans and a shirt won't cut it?"

Bryce shakes his head, laughing. "Nope, which means I'm going to be spoiling you. Spa, salon, shopping. Lots of shopping. In fact, I'm going to drop off a credit card for you to use however you please. Buy whatever you need to look the part."

I frown. "You don't have to do that, Bryce."

"Of course, I do. You're playing a role and you have to look the part."

"You don't get to dictate how I look, do you? Like fishnet stockings and–"

Bryce laughs. "No fishnet stockings, no. You just need to be yourself."

I chuckle. "I guess that makes sense."

"I'm going to see if my friend Harper is in town. She can help you with the whole thing."

"Will she know what's going on?"

"The only thing she'll know is that you're my fiancée and the sky's the limit. Get whatever you want."

As Bryce walks away, the sight of him in his perfectly tailored suit amid a sea of medical scrubs and lab coats is a stark reminder that Bryce Holden, Jr. is not like anyone I've ever known. At the same time, I need to stop thinking that. After all, he's now my fiancé.

My fake fiancé but still, this weekend, I have to act like he truly is my future husband.

I just hope I don't screw it up.