Page 20 of Falling for My Billionaire Fake Date

“Jacob, please don’t use that tone with me. We were supposed to be here alone, without company. But someone got a little excited about visiting you, let it slip, and now she can’t get rid of the unwanted company who decided to tag along.”

“Mom!” Bella cries out, glancing behind me with an apologetic look.

Mom has never bothered to hide her great distaste for Sophia. Ever since she found out the truth about what Sophia did to me, Mom has never missed the opportunity to show she’s not her biggest fan.

“What? It’s the truth,” mom grumbles and makes to enter the car, barely acknowledging Sophia’s presence.

Taking a calming breath, I turn around to face Sophia. She looks as beautiful as ever, her features softening as our gazes collide.

“Hi, Sophia. Been a while,” I greet her politely, wishing to get this done and over with quickly.

“Hi, Jake. You look good. How have you been?” She smiles pleasantly. That smile used to be the highlight of my day. She has a beautiful smile that never ceased to make me dance to her tune. But staring at her now, thankfully, I feel nothing.

She seems to realize this too, and her smile falls a little, but she holds it up, trying to seem unaffected.

“I’ve been good.”

“What are you doing here? Why did you tag along?” I cut straight to the chase, not wanting to make unnecessary small talk.

“Jake, come on!” my sister protests. I had almost forgotten her presence.

“It’s fine, Bells. It’s to be expected,” she says, smiling sadly. I scoff inwardly. She isn’t sad at all. She only wants Bella to feel sorry for her and make me out to be the bad person.

“Could you excuse usfor a minute? Please, Bells?” She pleads with my sister softly, her expression a perfect blend of sadness and worry. But I know it is all a façade.

“What do you want, Sophia?” I’m not in the mood for her games.

“I’ve missed you, Jake. I haven’t heard from you in a long time.”

“I wonder why?” I bite out sarcastically. “Now, tell me. What exactly are you doing here with my mom and sister? You know your presence isn’t appreciated, obviously,” I say, regarding her with narrowed eyes.

Something flashes in her eyes, and her pleasant smile turns sour.

“Heard you got a new girlfriend. I wanted to come see things for myself.”

I wipe my face blank of every emotion, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of her words getting to me.

“I’ve kept my family waiting long enough. If you’ll excuse me.” I nod and turn to move towards my car when her voice stops me.

“Would you really leave me here to find my own way in an unknown environment?” she replies, angrily. I make to leave, denying her a response, because I plan to do just that - leave her there. Her phone chimes and she speaks hastily, stopping my departure.

“Don’t you want to meet my fiancé?” she says, her voice coated in sugar. I stop, facing her again. She wears a smug expression on her face, eyes glowing wildly. If she thought I’d be jealous over that piece ofinformation, she’s gravely mistaken.

“And why would I want to do that? What do I care?” I answer her, keeping my voice even, not an ounce of emotion seeping through.

“Are you not jealous?” she asks haughtily.

I snort and her eyes flash with anger.

“Jealous? And why would I be jealous of your engagement, Sophia? Listen to me: I meant it when I told you it’s good riddance. What you do now or who you spend your time with has nothing to do with me. I simply do not care. I see no reason why I should care about who you want to spend the rest of your life with. Accept my congratulatory message on your engagement,” I finish, ending with a sarcastic smile.

Her lips curve into a snarl as she is about to respond when yet another voice sounds right behind me.

“Babe?”

If I hadn’t been conversing with Sophia all along, I would definitely be convinced she had a pleasant expression on her face all along.

“Hi, baby,” she says to the guy now standing beside her, looking in between us suspiciously.

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