Page 35 of The Pretender

“I think it will be easier to convince them this relationship is real if they see us together without a camera.”

Vee waves me off. “I know. I’m not saying we shouldn’t be seen together.” She shrugs. “I just think the video shot at the party was pretty convincing on its own.”

“You watched it?”

She huffs. “Of course. I had to see what the hell you were all excited about.”

“I wasn’t excited,” I correct. “I was merely pointing out the business opportunity that presented itself to us.”

“Look at you sounding all professional. Those business classes are paying off.”

And we’re done.

I take another bite of my taco and try to find the patience to get through this date that is definitely not going to end well.

“Are we in agreement to try and be seen together?” I wipe my hands. “You think Aspen will believe it?”

Vee keeping something from Aspen is my biggest concern. Best friends tend to share everything, at least girls do. Maverick and I like our secrets.

“Yeah.” She sighs. “Unfortunately, I think she’ll believe it.”

I want to prod as to why she added unfortunately, but then I remember my timeline and let it go.

“Can I ask a favor, though?”

She’s asking for a favor and not demanding? That’s new. “Sure.”

“Can we do some of the filming ourselves?”

“What’s wrong with Brick?” Other than the fact he isn’t here filming when he should be.

She shrugs. “Nothing. I don’t really know him. I think I just prefer shooting some of the more—” she covers a cough, “—intimate shots ourselves.”

The word intimate shoots straight to my dick, and he rejoices at the mere thought of doing any kind of intimate related things with the enemy. I never said he made sense. “Are you not worried about using the tripod?”

I know she doesn’t like to use them.

“I think between the two of us we can manage,” she says.

I nod. “Agreed. We’ll use Brick for the public shots, and we’ll film the raunchier ones ourselves.”

I feel a grin emerge before she says anything.

“At no point will we be doing anything raunchy together.”

I shrug. “Whatever you say. Just remember when you suggest our next date be at a hot dog truck in an abandoned alley, you’ll have to add the time for us to stop and have a quickie while we’re running for our lives.”

Her face scrunches up, and I can’t hold my laughter in.

“That makes zero sense,” she finally says when I take a breath.

“I agree. But the characters in your crappy horror movies seem to think sex is the best way to go out, even if they hated each other the entire movie.”

CHAPTERNINE

Valentina

University CamFlix Competition Submission

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