Page 94 of Pretend To Be Mine

Holy shit.

It was sexy without being vulgar, bold without being obvious.

Dress after dress came out, each one more daring than the last. This wasn’t the elegant restraint of Adrian’s Legacy collection. This was excess, indulgence, the pure pleasure of fashion taken to its extreme.

I loved the boldness of it. Loved Sebastian’s complete commitment to his vision and his willingness to push boundaries. He didn’t care what the critics thought.

It made me want to be braver. To design pieces that made people gasp instead of nod approvingly. I needed to focus on that.

Not on my fake engagement and its rapidly approaching expiration date.

A flash of silver caught my attention—the model in the sheer dress from earlier, the one Annika had been working on. On the runway, under the lights, it was breathtaking. Moving like water, just as Annika had said.

The model turned at the end of the runway. That was when I recognized her.

Clara Moreau.

Adrian’s ex.

She was stunning, obviously, with that otherworldly beauty that models possessed. The dress looked incredible on her, and she knew exactly how to work it, how to make every movement count.

I told myself I wasn’t jealous. Told myself it didn’t matter that she’d slept with Adrian and had history with him. I hated that she probably knew his body better than I did. How long had they dated?

When Adrian told me Clara was at the show, it didn’t fully register. Obviously, I knew who she was. I was pretty sure there wasn’t a single person in the world who didn’t know who she was. It just didn’t click until that very moment.

The woman would look gorgeous in a paper bag. How did one person have so much sex appeal? Even without the lighting and the music, she would be sensual. She was sex on a stick.

There was no way I could compete with a woman like that. Yes, I was his fake fiancée, but once it was all said and done, there was nothing stopping him from returning to the pool of models all waiting to crawl into his bed.

I didn’t get to be jealous. I didn’t get to wonder who he was having sex with. We were just pretending. I could have sex with anyone I wanted to as well. I almost snorted because my options were significantly less than what Adrian would be working with.

Clara strutted down that runway. My eyes drifted over the crowd that appeared to be under a spell as they tracked her movement. Men and women alike were mesmerized by her beauty.

I couldn’t help but wonder if he ever compared us in his head and found me lacking.

Stop it, I told myself firmly. This is not helpful.

The show continued, each look more daring than the last, and I forced myself to focus on the designs. I was here to learn and grow. I had to keep learning to become the designer I was meant to be.

I couldn’t let love and feeling distract me.

31

ADRIAN

Sebastian was basking in the applause, champagne glass raised high as he grinned at the audience. Mom looked pleased with everything from her spot backstage. I stood at stage left with my eyes on the crowd in search of Elizabeth. I had seen her just before the show started but she wasn’t in that spot anymore.

I hated the chasm between us. I didn’t know when the switch had happened, but I needed her. She calmed me. Not just the usual way. It was like my soul settled. For most of my life, I’d always felt a strange energy. Maybe it was hyperactivity or maybe it was just the way my brain was wired. I was just always the kid with ten projects and a hundred thoughts running through my head.

I was pretty sure that’s why my dad got me into the model-airplane thing. It calmed me down. Had me focusing on just one thing.

And now I was focused on Elizabeth, like she filled the same soothing role the building had.

I spotted her and stepped off the stage to go to her. I hated that I couldn’t stand with her and watch the show but it was a shitshow behind the scenes. I was going to kick Sebastian’s ass for that later. I had suspected he didn’t have shit locked down.

Thankfully, the show went off just fine, but it had been close. The music Sebastian wanted wouldn’t load so we had to go with the backup plan. My backup plan because Sebastian didn’t ever plan for shit to go wrong. I happened to know there would always be something that failed.

Elizabeth was chatting with a couple of people. I was about halfway there when I heard my name.