Page 104 of Fake It 'Til You Sleigh It

“Your relationship with her is fake!” she screeches, eyes wild. “ I’ve got proof, assholes! It’s all over my Ethan Addicts fan page!”

Security finally gets their shit together, closing in on Gail. She ducks and weaves like a cornered animal.

“They’re scamming you!” she yells to the stunned audience. “This whole relationship is one big lie! You gave them exactly what they wanted—subscribers!”

The crowd’s murmuring grows louder, a wave of confusion and disbelief. I can feel their eyes on us, questioning, judging.

As security drags Gail away, she lets out one final, chilling screech: “Watch your back, you lying bitch! He belongs to me!”

The stage is in chaos. The Christmas tree’s toppled over, fake snow everywhere. A camera lies smashed on the ground, a casualty of the madness.

Gail’s words hang in the air, ugly and accusing. The crowd’s murmurs fade to static as I kneel down beside Chase. My heart’s slamming against my ribs so hard I’m sure it’s gonna crack a bone.

“Are you okay?” I ask, my voice raw with fear. “Chase, talk to me. Are you hurt?”

My hands hover over her, desperate to touch, to hold her close, but afraid she’ll reject me. Her eyes are frantic, scanning the mess we’ve made like she’s trying to find an escape route.

“I’m fine,” she says, but the tremor in her voice betrays her. Her hands are shaking, fingers curled into tight fists, knuckles white with strain. She’s holding on by a thread, and it’s killing me.

“Bullshit,” I growl, low and urgent. “None of this is fine.”

“Gail’s right,” she whispers, almost inaudible over the confused buzz of the audience. “This is fake. We can’t… We can’t keep lying.”

My heart nosedives into my stomach. This is it. The moment of truth, where our carefully constructed lie comes crashing down. She might hate me forever, might never wanna look at me again, but I have to go off script.

I’m not waiting another second.

“It’s not fake for me,” I admit, the words spilling out. “I love you, Chase. I love you so goddamn much, it scares the shit out of me. Love was just a word, an empty line I recited for the cameras. But then you came along and turned my life into a romance movie written uniquely for us.”

Her eyes widen, a storm of emotions raging in them. Hope, fear, disbelief, longing—all there, raw and exposed.

“And I feel like I’ve already lost you,” I continue, my voice cracking with the weight of my fear.

She looks away, tears welling in her eyes, and I hate myself for putting them there. Gently, I turn her face back to mine, my touch as light as I can manage with my trembling hands.

“I'm so sorry,” I say, the apology feeling pathetically inadequate. “I let you down, with the subscribers and when we worked together on set and—”

“I don’t care about that. I…” She stops, and I notice that familiar wall creeping into her eyes.

“No, don’t shut me out,” I plead. “Tell me what you’re thinking. Please.”

She takes a shaky breath. “I’m scared, Ethan. I don’t know if I can do this. It’s too much.”

I nod, understanding flooding through me. Shit, I’m scared too. Hell, I’m terrified. But losing her? That’s the kind of fear that threatens to swallow me whole.

How do I ease this tension?

How do I get her to smile?

How can I make her feel safe again?

I cradle her face in my hands. “Falling in love is like stepping under this mistletoe. It’s thrilling, maybe a little nerve-wracking too. But I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be right here, waiting for the moment you take my hand and say, ‘Let’s see where this Christmas magic leads us.’”

A small smile tugs at her lips. “Are you quoting your character fromJingle Jokes & Mistletoe?”

I give her a charming wink. “See, sweetheart, I CAN memorize my lines. And I’ll recite every word you’ve ever written if you keep smiling like that.”

The audience has gone quiet, hanging on each statement we make. The cameras are still rolling, broadcasting our personal drama to the whole world, like an unsanctioned soap opera.

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