Page 31 of Faking it with My Boss' Son

Ryan smiled and continued watching TV. ‘‘Hi, Michelle. So, did you find an apartment?”

I walked in and sat on the other side of his bed., ‘‘Yes, I did. I will go sign the lease tomorrow and will be moving in this weekend so I can get back to work Monday.”

“That's great!” He said half-heartedly. “So, I told my dad that we are no longer in a relationship.”

My heart skipped a beat. “What did he say? He must be really angry with me.” I said as the corners of my lips lowered. I was on the cusp of crying.

‘‘Why would he be angry with you?’’ Ryan looked at me with a puzzled expression.

‘‘Because I was the one who broke off this relationship,’’ I said, starting to regret my decision.

Ryan smirked. For the past few days, Ryan smirked more and smiled less. ‘‘You thought I’d put all the blame on you? Really Michelle? I still have my conscience and I’d never dream of putting you in a bad light.’’ Ryan said with a quivering voice.

‘‘I’m sorry to offend you. You didn’t have to take all the blame. This is certainly not what I wanted to come out of all of this. I just wanted you to concentrate on your last season of soccer and not get distracted by me.’’ I said, feeling bad for everything I had done now.

‘‘My performance is going to be affected anyway,’’ Ryan said almost under his breath.

‘‘Excuse me…’’

‘‘Michelle, I understand that I’ve not been a good friend but I’m sure I’ve not been that bad that you’d want to leave my apartment so quickly.” He said with sadness in his eyes.

‘‘I just don’t want things to be awkward. I respect you a lot, but this has all been so strange. I also didn’t want to assume you’d be comfortable with me staying here.” I replied. “And I don’t want to make things difficult for you. Your dad would want to know the reason why I was still in your apartment even after the breakup, and I’m afraid that could be a problem for you.’’ I said, trying to justify my leaving so quickly.

“Ok, but you can stay here until you sign the lease.” He responded with a kind smile. “I will go back to Hidden Hills and let you have your own space.”

I nodded and walked towards my room, and shut the door.

The next day Ryan left without saying goodbye. He only dropped a text saying that he was leaving, and he didn’t want to disturb me as I was sleeping.

***

Over the next few days, I went shopping for items I needed for my new apartment.

The weekend came and Leah came to help me move and set up my new place. It was nice to have my own space and make the place feel like home.It’s in the heart of Beverly Hills and has a certain charm to it. I loved that sunlight spilled through large windows, illuminating the cozy living area.

Once we had settled everything into place, Leah and I treated ourselves to pizza and unwound on the patio, letting go of the exhaustion from a busy weekend.

I was nervous to go to work Monday morning and see Mr. Pearson for the first time since the breakup, but when I saw him, he gave me a big smile and welcomed me back from vacation.

I started going out with Leah and other girls from the office but still found myself thinking of Ryan.

We called each other almost every day, which took me back to when I was in Davenport, and he was here. I told him that we needed to hang out again and get back to how things used to be before the fake girlfriend situation. Ryan agreed.

Over the next few weeks, Ryan and I hung out a few times with friends and I tried my hardest to not let my feelings get in the way.

One evening I got home from work and there was Ryan, standing there at my door smiling. I was shocked to see him at my apartment. He didn’t even text me to warn me he was coming over.

“Ryan, what are you doing here?” I said with surprise.

He sighed. ‘‘I have a request.’’

‘‘What is it, Ryan?’’

‘‘I have been thinking a lot lately and I was wondering if you would go to dinner with me?” He asked, looking straight into my eyes.

This brought a lump to my throat, what could this be about? “Sure Ryan.” I nodded my head, ‘‘I’ll change, and we can go for dinner.” I smiled half-heartedly.

We headed in complete silence to one of our favorite restaurants. I didn’t know what this was about, so I didn’t know what to say. The restaurant was a little hole in the wall but had great food and a dance floor with a live band playing on weekends.

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