Michael's expression darkened at the mention of his brother's name. "Of course. This has Liam written all over it. I should have known that my twin brother's reckless behavior would come back to bite me eventually."
"So let me get this straight," Michael said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You slept with my brother, thought he was me, and now you're pregnant with his child. And instead of tracking him down, you decided to show up here and slap me in the middle of a crowded restaurant?"
I let out a wincing sound at the bluntness of his words. When he puts it like that, it makes what I said sound absurd. But I can't back down now, not when my life was on the line.
"I didn't know," I said whispering in a small voice. "I didn't know he had a twin."
Michael lets out a long, slow breath,barely holding his anger in. "I'm not sure which is more frustrating….the fact that my brother has once again caused chaos in my life, or the fact that you dragged me into it without even bothering to verify the truth."
"Fine," Michael said, his voice cold and clipped. "You didn't know. But now you do. And now you're going to clean up the mess you just made."
I blinked, feeling confused. "What do you mean?"
"You owe me," Michael said simply. "You ruined my relationship. You made a scene. Now you're going to help fix it."
"Fix it? How?"
Michael's lips curled into a grim smile. "By pretending to be my girlfriend. You cost me one, so now you're going to replace her."
I stared at him, horrified. "You can't be serious."
"Oh, I'm dead serious," Michael said, his eyes locking onto mine. "And if you don't want this whole thing to blow up even further, you'll agree."
My breath gets caught in my throat." Pretend to be his girlfriend? The absurdity that came with him saying that is so disarming. I am still currently overwhelmed by the shock of finding out that Michael wasn't the man I slept with, but now he was blackmailing me into a fake relationship? " I thought , blinking as I tried to scramble for words in my mind, but all I could say was a weak, "No. I can't."
Michael's eyes narrowed, his jaw tightening further. "You don't have a choice. You owe me."
"Why would I agree to something so… so ridiculous?" I stammered, feeling my pulse quicken again, this time from fear rather than anger. "This doesn't even make sense! You can't just force me to be your—"
"I'm not forcing you." He said. His voice was low, clipped, and somehow more dangerous than when he had been shouting. "I'm giving you an option. You want this to go public? Because trust me, it will. And when the tabloids get a hold of this story, your life will be a living hell."
I could feel my face drain of color. He was right. I just made a public scene in one of the most elite restaurants in the city, in front of dozens of witnesses. I could feel the whispers and glances that I ignored earlier now pressing down hard on me like a weight I can't lift. This isn't just some private argument—it was a spectacle, and if word got out…
The image of my life being dissected by the media flashed before my eyes. A scandal like this would destroy me. Not just because of the pregnancy, but because of who Michael was. The Hartley family is a powerhouse. Their name alone commands headlines. I would become "the woman who slapped Michael Hartley," and everything else in my life would crumble around that single mistake.
"I…" I swallowed my spit hard, glancing around the restaurant. I could still feel the eyes of people on me, the curious gazes from patrons who witnessed the drama unfold. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I thought…"
"I know what you thought," Michael cuts in, his voice icy. "But it doesn't change the fact that you screwed up. And now I'm offering you a way out of this mess. A way for both of us to save face."
My mind was racing. This is madness!. I am not some sort of socialite who could handle this level of deceit. I'm literally not equipped for the Hartley world of money and power.
But what other choice did I have exactly? The alternative for this is public humiliation, endless media scrutiny, and the kind of attention that would follow me for the rest of my life. The thought of this was so horrible plus the fact that it wasn't just me alone, I also had the baby to think about
The baby.
My hand instinctively moved down to my stomach, and I rubbed it as my fingers tremble slightly. "I barely believe the fact that I'm about to become a mother , but this?. . How can I possibly deal with all of this at once?"
"Why?" I whispered, my voice sounding barely audible. "Why would you want me to be your girlfriend?"
I noticed Michael's expression soften for a fraction of a second, but his cold resolve returned quickly . "Because I don't like losing. And I don't like being humiliated. You cost me my relationship with Vanessa. Now, I need to save my reputation, and you're going to help me do that."
"But how? How does pretending we're together fix anything?"
"You're going to make it look like we've been together. That's the story. You weren't some random girl who slapped me. You were my girlfriend, angry over something personal. A misunderstanding. The press will eat it up. And once we've smoothed everything over, we'll go our separate ways."
All i could do was just stand there like a stick, frozen , with my heart hammering in my chest. This isn't how my life is supposed to go.
I'm supposed to be handling my pregnancy in peace, just going with the flow and figuring out my next steps. But now…..this?
I looked up at Michael who now was watching me with his gaze sharp, calculating. I guess he's probably used to getting what he wants. His tone was making it clear that there wasn't room for negotiation. Either I play along, or the consequences would be even worse.
"Fine," I breathed out, barely recognizing my own voice. "Fine, I'll do it."
Michael didn't smile. I don't think he even needs to. The satisfaction in his eyes was enough to understand what was going on in his head.
"Good," he said, with his voice brisk. "We'll discuss the details later. But for now, we leave this place together. We need to make it look convincing."
I blinked fast, my mind spinning. "Wait—now? You want to start now?"
Michael made a nodding motion, gesturing at me to look at the patrons which I did, and noticed that those busybodies were still subtly watching our every move. "You created a scene here. People are talking. If we walk out separately, it'll only fuel more rumors. We need to look united."