Lila's phone wouldn't stop buzzing.
She lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling like maybe it could swallow her whole and solve all her problems in one go. No such luck had ever found her in life.
Except you count slapping a billionaire, that has to count right?
The screen lit up for the twentieth time in two minutes.
"MYSTERY WOMAN SLAPS ADRIAN KANE – SECRET LOVER OR SCANDAL?"#ISlappedTheBillionaire trending worldwide.
"Oh, fantastic. I'm famous for assault."
Another notification popped up with her own terrified face frozen mid-run. Someone had meme'd it: 'When you slap a billionaire but rent's due in 3 days.'
Lila sat up so fast she tangled herself in the blanket and toppled onto the floor. "No. Nope. Absolutely not. Delete Buzzline. Shut it down. Burn the servers. We're going back to the Stone Age!"
A loud knock rattled her room door as it opened."Lila!" her roommate hissed. "There are cameras outside!"
Lila's brain stalled. "Uh… what kind of cameras?"
There was a beat of silence, then her roommate actually laughed. "What kind of question is that? Do you even know camera models? If I told you it was a Nikon, would they magically leave?"
Lila slapped her own forehead. "Right. Stupid question."
Her roommate's voice dropped to a whisper. "Lila… they're paparazzi. Or trend seekers. Or whatever you call people who camp outside because you went viral!"
Lila pushed herself up in a rush and half-crawled toward the window. "Oh, no. Oh, no-no-no." She eased the curtain back with two fingers and peeked outside. A crowd had gathered on her rundown little street, phones and long lenses all pointed at her building.
One of them must have spotted movement, and a voice shouted loud enough for her to hear. "Lila Hart! Are you his secret girlfriend?!"
She ducked under the window in a panic. "Secret girlfriend? I don't even know his middle name!"
'Girlfriend.' Wait—oh, great. I actually am that bastard's girlfriend now. I signed the damn contract, didn't I? You still got it wrong though, lucky me- it's going to be public'
Her phone buzzed again. Unknown number.
"Speak of the devil," she muttered, flipping it over.
Come outside. Now.
"That's not creepy at all."
Her phone buzzed again right away.
Kane Enterprises. PR emergency. You have ten minutes.
Lila blinked at the words. "What now? We just signed everything yesterday! How are we already in emergency mode?"
A car horn honked outside. She peeked again, slowly this time.
A black car waited at the curb, sleek and terrifyingly expensive. Standing beside it in a dark suit, like he owned the entire block and maybe the sky, was Adrian Kane.
Lila's soul briefly left her body.
"Is that..." her roommate whispered behind her.
"Don't say it," Lila hissed. "Don't summon him with words."
The phone buzzed a third time.
Five minutes.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me."
The car's interior had that heavy, padded quiet that came with too much money, and it was twice as intimidating. Lila perched on the edge of buttery leather seats, clutching her bag like a weapon.
Adrian didn't look at her right away. His gaze was on his phone, fingers moving in controlled, efficient taps. The only other sound was the faint hum of the engine.
Finally, he spoke without looking up. "Ms. Hart."
Her mouth opened before her brain had anything useful to say. "Uh… sorry about your hoodie?"
Adrian finally glanced at her, his expression giving nothing away. "Congratulations. We're officially public now."
Lila let out a short, humorless laugh and sank a little deeper into the seat.
He handed her a slim folder without ceremony. "There is a press conference in one hour. Congratulations on your first day as my girlfriend."
Lila flipped the folder open and groaned. "Why does this sound like a job orientation?"
From the front seat, a new voice chimed in. "Because it is."
Lila jumped. The driver wasn't just a driver. A woman in a black suit glanced back with a tablet in hand, there was this quiet, composed vibe to her. And it took Lila a second to place her.
Valerie. Kane Enterprises' PR lead. Of course Adrian would bring the cleanup crew straight to her door.
"Ms. Hart," Valerie said smoothly, her voice as even as Lila remembered.
"Of course you did," Lila muttered. "Figures. Subtlety's overrated anyway."
Valerie's polite smile didn't budge. "We have a department for protecting Mr. Kane's assets."
Lila threw her hands up. "Great, I'm an asset now. Guess I'll get my barcode tattooed later."
Adrian didn't even glance up from his phone. "You signed the contract."
She slumped against the seat. "You know, you could say thank you or good morning like a normal human."
"Good morning," he said flatly.
"That was…worse, actually."
Valerie cleared her throat, mercifully cutting off the deadpan duel. "Ms. Hart, the press is outside Kane Enterprises headquarters. The narrative is simple: you and Mr. Kane have been in a private relationship for the last four months. Yesterday's… incident…was a minor lovers' quarrel."
Lila dropped her face into her hands. "Oh, sure. The internet thinks I'm violent. Next they'll think I'm violently in love."
Adrian's voice was calm. "They'll think exactly what I tell them to think. That's the point."
Lila peeked through her fingers. "Do you practice that whole scary-billionaire tone, or does it come free with the suit?"
"If it works, why change it?" he said in that same calm tone.
Lila groaned. "You even make sounding terrifying practical."
The car rolled to a stop at the base of a skyscraper with KANE ENTERPRISES spelled out in huge letters across the building.
Lila's throat went dry. "Is this where I die?"
"No," Adrian said, finally sliding his phone away. "This is where you start earning your paycheck."
The car door opened. Outside, the sound of shouting reporters and flashing cameras slammed into her like a wave. Valerie handed her a sheet of talking points like she was passing her a lifeline.
"Smile when you get out," Valerie instructed. "Hold his arm. Don't speak until he does. And whatever you do..."
"Don't slap him," Lila finished weakly.
Adrian's expression didn't change, but his voice was smooth and steady. "It's showtime, sweetheart."
Lila took his offered hand and stepped out into the roar of Buzzline's reality.
Public girlfriend, she thought. Public execution more like it.