The silence between us

Later that evening, everyone was getting ready to go back to their various houses, Jake came in and took my hands heading to the car packed outside.. I entered the car without saying a word

The coldness Jake gave me was enough to set my mind straight, the ride home was lonely even if we were two in the car it felt like I was all alone.

I stared out the window, watching the moonlight spill over the empty fields. The further we drove, the heavier the silence became, until I couldn’t take it anymore.

“You didn’t have to be so hard on Liam,” I said softly, breaking the silence .

Jake’s jaw clenched, his eyes fixed on the road. “Liam doesn’t know when to keep his mouth shut. He thinks he can stick his nose into things that don’t concern him.”

I hesitated, my fingers fidgeting in my lap. “He was just trying to be nice.”

Jake let out a dry laugh, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Nice? Liam doesn’t do anything without a reason, Sophy. Don’t mistake his concern for something genuine.”

I frowned, unsure whether to believe him. Liam’s words earlier had felt sincere, his concern also felt real. But Jake’s hostility toward his brother made it clear there was a history between them that I didn’t understand.

“Look,” Jake continued, his voice softer but no less firm, “Liam’s not your problem. Just focus on what we agreed to, and everything will be fine.”

I nodded, though I wasn’t sure if I was agreeing with him or just trying to end the conversation. The truth was, I didn’t want to think about Liam, or Jake, or this entire situation. All I wanted was to make it through the next six months and get my life back.

When we finally pulled up to Jake’s house,I felt a bit of relief. At least here, I wouldn’t have to endure the watchful eyes of his family.

Jake parked the car and stepped out without a word, leaving me to follow. I went straight into my room and so did Jake.

I dropped my bag on the bed and sat down, my head in my hands. The events of the day played over and over in my mind, each moment more exhausting than the last.

I thought about Liam, about the way he had looked at me as if he could see right through the walls I’d built around myself. And I thought about Jake, about the way his presence felt both comforting and suffocating at the same time.

This arrangement was supposed to be simple: pretend to be his fiancée, play the part, and walk away when it was over. But nothing about it felt simple anymore.

A soft knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts. I looked up to see Jake standing in the doorway, his expression still guarded but slightly less sharp.

“I know tonight wasn’t easy for you,” he said, his voice more calm than before. “But this will get easier. You just need to follow my lead.”

I didn’t respond right away, unsure of what to say. Finally, I nodded, forcing a small smile. “I’ll try.”

Jake hesitated for a moment longer, as if he wanted to say something else, but then he turned and walked away, leaving me alone in the silence of the room.

I lay back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. The house was quiet, but my mind was anything but. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was walking on a tight rope , and one wrong step could send everything crashing down.

Six months. That was all I had to get through. But as I closed my eyes and tried to sleep, I couldn’t help but wonder if I would make it that long without losing myself completely.

*********************************************

Jake closed the door to his bedroom leaning against it for a moment and then exhaled a breath of relief he has been holding back without knowing.

Just one day job and I already feel tired of everything Jake had said to himself.

I still have a lot to do, there’s a company dinner which I should prepare for

The company dinner. Just the thought of it made him groan. Another round of performances, another stage where everyone would be watching him. And now, with Sophy in the picture, the scrutiny would be doubled. His family would inevitably be there, ready to pick apart his every move, searching for cracks in his carefully constructed facade.

He couldn’t stop thinking about the way she’d looked at him tonight—her quiet strength, her restrained frustration. Sophy wasn’t like the women he usually dealt with. She wasn’t trying to impress him or manipulate him; she was just… real. And that made her a wild card.

Jake shook his head, pushing the thought aside. He couldn’t afford to get distracted. He had a job to do, and emotions had no place in it.

Grabbing his phone from the nightstand, he scrolled through his calendar. The company dinner was two days away, and he hadn’t even begun to prepare. Normally, he’d go alone and spend the evening dodging questions about his personal life. But this year would be different. This year, he’d have Sophy by his side, and the stakes were higher than ever.

His jaw tightened as he stared at the screen. Sophy had handled herself well enough tonight, but his family’s dinner had been small potatoes compared to what awaited them at the company event. There would be clients, colleagues, investors—people who mattered in his world. And they would all be watching, waiting for any sign that this engagement wasn’t what it seemed.

Jake stood and began unbuttoning his shirt, tossing it into the laundry basket before heading to the bathroom. The cool water from the sink splashed against his face, grounding him, but it didn’t wash away the unease that had settled in his chest.

When he returned to the bedroom, he paused by the window, staring out at the city lights in the distance. The house was quiet, but his mind was anything but. He thought about the way Liam had looked at Sophy earlier, the concern in his brother’s eyes, and it made his blood boil.

Liam didn’t know what he was talking about. He never did. Always so eager to play the hero, to swoop in and fix problems that weren’t his to fix. Jake clenched his fists at the memory of Liam’s probing questions, his audacity to interfere. Liam had no idea what Jake was doing or why, and he didn’t need to know.

But then there was Sophy. She was a different story. Liam had gotten to her; Jake could see it in her face, hear it in her voice. She was starting to doubt, to question. And that was dangerous. Jake needed her to stay focused, to trust him enough to stick to their agreement without second-guessing everything.

But how could she trust him when he couldn’t even be honest with her?

The thought hit him like a punch to the gut, and he turned away from the window, running a hand through his hair. Honesty wasn’t an option. Not in this arrangement, and not in his life. He’d built his empire on control, on carefully managing every detail.

Jake let out a frustrated sigh and fell back onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. He needed to focus, to keep his head in the game. The company dinner was just another hurdle to clear, and he couldn’t afford to trip.