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I take the call off speaker as soon as I park and put the phone to my ear.

“Go ahead inside,” I tell Nina. “This won’t take long.”

She nods and hops out, and I brace myself. I’ve been avoiding this since he first brought up staging a fake relationship with my costar. Looks like I’m out of excuses.

“If this is about Joy and the whole fake romance thing,” I grumble, “I stand by what I told you before. It’s a bad idea, and I’m not doing it. I’m sure Joy isn’t thrilled either.”

“Whether either of you is thrilled is beside the point,” he shoots back. “The studio execs don’t really give a fuck about personal feelings. They want to make money. Besides, you’re both professional actors, and you’re both single. Neither of you should have any problem making a relationship look believable.”

I groan. I don’t want to think about any of this on my holiday break, especially when the only thing I want to think about is Nina.

“Look, I didn’t want to say it this bluntly, Jarek, but you don’t have much of a choice,” he says flatly. “The execs aren’t backing down. They think this is the best way to get people talking and sell tickets.”

“Fine,” I snap.

I don’t like being told what to do. I especially don’t like people meddling in my personal life. I already hide enough of myself behind the charming-movie-star act without putting my love life on display too. Faking shit like that just feels wrong. Acting on screen is one thing, but my life off screen should belong to me. When those lines blur, I start to question everything.

Like, what if the man Nina is so attracted to is the actor, not the man I really am? What if the romantic fantasy my career is built on is what ruins any chance I have at the real thing? Millions of fans love me. Somehow, the only one I actually care about is inside that post office.

“Can it at least wait until after Christmas?” I ask. “I’m trying to enjoy my time off, and I don’t feel like working through the holidays.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” he says, audibly satisfied that I’ve stopped fighting him. “I’ll get back to you soon. Enjoy your⁠—”

I hang up before he finishes. It’s not really my publicist I’m mad at. It’s the studio executives pulling all the strings with their checkbooks. He’s just the guy they send to deliver the bad news.

“Everything alright?” Nina asks when she gets back in the car. “You look stressed.”

“Me? Never.” I try to play it off.

She hasn’t been in our lives for long, but Nina sees right through me.

“You know,” she says with a tender smile, “you don’t always have to be so charming. You’re allowed to have a bad day.”

“Not me!” I tease.

But she’s right. Keeping up appearances all the time gets exhausting, especially with someone I think I might want to let in.

I don’t say much on the ride to the coffee shop. But once we’re settled with our sweet, syrupy lattes, Nina starts in on me again.

“So.” She eyes me over the rim of her mug. “Are you going to tell me what that phone call was about?”

“Nope.” I beam with my usual rehearsed grin. “That’s the beauty of being charming. Nobody notices when I change the subject.”

She giggles, then sets her mug down and reaches across the table to touch my hand.

“I noticed,” she says. “And for the record, I like all the sides of you I’ve seen so far, Jarek. Not just the charming one.”

My first instinct is to deflect. It always is.

“Other sides?” I lean back in my chair. “Sweetheart, this is my only side. It’s also my best one.”

“Mhmm.” She doesn’t buy it for a second. “There’s the side I’ve gotten to know very well in the bedroom. There’s the sweet side that drove me around this morning because he was worried about my tires. And I think there’s a side that hates asking for help. A guy who thinks he always has to be on, instead of just letting people see him.”

Aside from Zander and Pascal, no one in my life has ever been able to tell when I’m performing instead of being myself. Not until Nina.

Without thinking, and without remembering that we’re sitting in a very public café, I lean across the table and kiss her. Slow, soft, and deliberate. I want her to know I’m not performing with her.

“Alright.” I pull away. “Enough emotional drama for one day. Time to have some fun!”