Methinks we don’t like the ski instructor.
Remember we’re meeting at the Pinecone at 9. Don’t be late.
Adrian
There’s my grumpy mountain man. See you at 10. Just kidding.
And then he sent a kissy-face emoji.
I dropped my phone like it had burned me, but the damage was done. My traitorous heart was already racing at the thought of talking to him again. Of flirting with him again. Of being his… date.
Pretenddate.
It was a stupid idea, and I was stupider for being the one to agree to it.
“Be easier this way, though,” I muttered, turning back to the invoices. “Quicker. Less bullshit to deal with.”
But even I didn’t believe that blatant lie.
#DenyDenyDeny #SparkShmark #FuckingEmojis #NoFannin
7
#MADDRIANFANFICNOWAVAILABLE
ADRIAN
Somethingwarm and perilously close to excitement fluttered in my chest as I lay in my bed at the rental cabin and read Maddox’s response for the tenth time.
Maddox
I’ll do it. But this is the last time.
I tried tamping the feeling down. This was business. Content creation. A professional arrangement, nothing more. But I couldn’t stop grinning over how quickly he’d backed off his precious Rule Three.
I had plenty of other things to grin about, too, obviously.
The numbers I’d woken up to had been staggering. Views: 223K and climbing. Comments: over 8,000. Shares: nearly 15,000. These weren’t justgoodmetrics—they wereviralmetrics, the kind that could make or break a sponsored campaign.
Vic clearly agreed, based on the quick succession of voice messages he sent.
“You’re on fire,”he said breathlessly in the first.“Nordique isobsessed. Obsessed, babe. They’re talking long-term brand ambassador. Exclusive contract. Multiple campaigns across next year’s product lines. As in a private jet to Chamonix in January and a branded capsule collection next fall!”
This was followed quickly by,“They want to see sustained engagement and ‘emotional storytelling.’ And whatever that spark is between you and Mountain Man? They want more of it. Fast.”
And then, slightly more concerningly, “But don’t get soft on me. You’re selling the fantasy, not falling for it.”
I dropped my phone on the bed and stared at the ceiling.
An exclusive deal with Nordique was the dream. It would lock in everything I’d spent the last five years building. But that last line from Vic, aboutselling the fantasy, not falling for it, echoed in my head.
Why did it feel like I was doing both?
I picked up the phone and stared at the Instagram posts again. I’d known the reels would do well, but I hadn’t expected just how much my followers would engage. Even as I watched, the comments kept pouring in.
OMG the tension between these two!! You could cut it with a knife!
That grumpy mountain man is HOT. Does he have an Instagram??
