Page 7 of The Fake Affair

As she falls in step next to me, I catch Audrey’s name lighting up her phone. That’ll be an interesting conversation. My sister will assume I’m repeating my usual pattern with her friends, never knowing Bella’s been the exception all along. The one I actually wanted and couldn’t have.

Until Audrey’s wedding.

But right now, I have a meeting to dominate and an assistant to put in her place. No matter how much I wish things had gone differently.

* * *

Four days in,and it’s clear Bella is waging war. My meticulously organized schedule has “glitches”—conflicting meetings, overlapping appointments, and double-booked gym sessions. Through the glass, she works efficiently, humming under her breath. Infuriatingly, she’s good at her job despite the sabotage.

“Mr. Fraser,” Bella chirps, too sweetly. “Phillips Corp. is here for your two p.m.”

I blink, already frowning. Phillips? That’s not on the schedule.

I spin toward my screen, checking the calendar again—blank. No meeting. No alert. Definitely no notice of ourbiggest competitorwaltzing into the building unannounced. “Interesting,” I say evenly, pressing the comm. “Phillips Corp., you said?”

There’s a pause, just for a second, and in my head, I imagine Bella biting down on her lower lip as she thinks up a quick reply. No surprise, it comes moments later. “Yes. The system must be glitching. I’ll have IT look into it.”

Glitching, my ass.Phillips is our biggest competitor. She knows exactly what she’s doing. I’m over the back and forth. I stand, smooth down my sleeves, and walk out of my office with my hands in my pockets. She looks up as I reach her desk, lips painted the kind of red that makes a man think of everything he shouldn’t. That smile curves like sin, lazy and confident, and her eyes drag over me.

“Clear your evening,” I tell her, passing her desk. “We’re staying late to fix these glitches.”

Her victorious smile vanishes.

Got you now, love.

I don’t wait for whatever comeback she’s holding. I turn, head back to my office, and close the door with a soft click. The laugh slips out before I can stop it, quiet and low, more exhale than sound. Two o’clock rolls around fast, along with the Phillips meeting. It starts off well enough, until my phone begins to buzz incessantly. I spare a glance at the name of the caller, and of course it’s Audrey. My stomach drops. Audrey. I send it to voicemail, but she calls again. And again. I should have known this was coming.

The conference room doors finally swing shut behind me, two full hours after Phillips Corp. stormed in to interrogate me about Monarch’s latest moves in the AI space. My jaw aches from holding my composure, my tie feels like a noose, and my brain is still buzzing from the sheer mental gymnastics it took to avoid giving away our next move.

I loosen my collar with one hand, muttering a curse under my breath, but the moment I push open the door to my office, any relief I expected evaporates.

Audrey is sitting in one of the chairs across from my desk, arms crossed and eyes blazing. Her posture is rigid, but it’s the kind of restraint that barely holds back an explosion. She doesn’t even wait for me to fully step inside before delivering her greeting.

“You absolute wanker.”

I shut the door behind me, grateful for the soundproof glass as I take in her stormy expression. “Hello to you too, sister dear. Wasn’t your honeymoon supposed to last a month?”

She stands slowly, one hand going to her hip. “Did you really think Louis and I would leave business hanging for a month?”

I move to the bar cart by the window and pour myself a splash of scotch. “And I take it you’re here for business, too.”

“Don’t,” she snaps, taking a step closer. Her voice rises with the full force of her Edinburgh accent, sharp and furious. “You slept withanotherone of my friends? Again?”

I grip the edge of the bar and exhale before turning to face her fully. “Bella told you about it?”

“She told me everything. How could you be so cold? After what happened with Karen last year? And Melissa before that?”

I drag a hand down my face and sink into my chair behind the desk, suddenly exhausted. “It’s not what you think.”

She leans forward, both palms flat on my desk, eyes locked on mine. “It’s exactly what I think. You find my friends, charm them with that accent, and then treat them like they’re disposable. And now she’s your assistant? Are you trying to punish her?”

“I didn’t hire her.”

She straightens, pacing now, her heels clacking across the floor. “But you’re making her life hell.” Her hand flies up, tugging at her sleek blonde hair in frustration. “Logan, you’re my brother, and I love you, but you’ve got to stop this pattern. My friends aren’t your personal dating pool.”

I watch her carefully, weighing what I can say without making this worse. “Dating implies more than one night.”

“You’re impossible.” She lets out a scoff and walks to the window, staring out at the skyline as if it might help her make sense of all this.

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