Chapter 5: Meeting Me Deluca

Nadia's POV.

"Your girlfriend," I scoffed.

"You must be out of your freaky mind.

Let me go!"

I attempted to move away, but he didn't let me.

His grip was strong and ever dominating.

"What's wrong with you, peaches? It's just a simple deal.

You pretend to be my girlfriend and help me please my father and get him off my back.

And in return, I help you keep your secrets, and you will remain in the hockey team.

It's that simple." He breathed as I continued to wiggle.

"It's a win-win for both of us." He explained, but I wasn't ready to budge.

My life was already messed up, filled with a lot of complications.

And now, I was going to pretend to be someone's girlfriend?

Not just anyone—a DeLuca, Mr. DeLuca's son.

That was absurd.

Agreeing to that was like agreeing to a death sentence.

What was he fucking thinking?

"I can't do it, okay? Do not force me to do what I don't want to.

I do not want to be your pretend girlfriend, I can't even stand being in the same room with you."

I fumed as he let go of my arm.

"This is not going to work, and I'm getting out of here."

I said, having pushed him away, reaching for the door.

"You should be ready to be kicked out of the team then.

I think I have been too nice to you, peaches.

Trust me, you don't want to be on my bad side."

He said, and I turned, amused by his persistence.

"You are threatening me now?"

I asked, and as I smirked at the nerve of this guy.

As much as I wanted to run away, to reject his offer and to leave his room, I couldn't.

Being on the hockey team meant saving my father.

My father's life meant the world to me. It was the most important thing.

I freaking became a boy just to see him live.

So pretending to be someone's girlfriend was the least I could do.

"Okay," I groaned, finally surrendering.

"What do you want me to do? How do we go about this pretend dating?" I asked, my hands hanging on my wrist.

"Good girl," he said with a bright smile that really itched my skin.

"One of the house workers will bring you a dress.

And in the next..." he paused and looked at his wristwatch.

"I will be here in the next thirty minutes to take you downstairs. We are going to have dinner."

He dipped his hands into his pockets.

"Dinner?" I asked, raising a brow.

"Yes, it's evening. Dad wants to have dinner with my girlfriend."

He smirked again, and I swear, I fought the urge to punch him in the face.

***

We walked down the stairs, my hand in a loop with his, and I couldn't help but stare in awe.

The house, a fucking mansion.

More of a castle, it smelt like lavender and felt like royalty.

The air wasn't too hot, neither was it too cold.

And I knew for a fact that I was going to mess this up.

"This is a mistake, Jeremy, your father..." I gulped as my eyes landed on a man sitting with the posture of an emperor.

Who was I kidding, I was in his empire.

"Chill, peaches, he may look super strict but he doesn't bite," he said as we reached the last step.

"He hasn't bitten me yet," he joked, and I rolled my eyes.

He was definitely going to get me in trouble.

What if his father found out I was a fake?

I wouldn't fit in their world.

Fuck, the dress I was wearing was worth my whole wardrobe.

"If anything goes wrong, I will never let you off," I threatened with a whisper as he walked closer.

The dining table was large, the hall double the size of my entire house.

When Mr. DeLuca's eyes landed on me, I felt my throat itch with a lump.

You can do this, Nadia.

C'mon, how hard could it be?

"You must be..." he asked as we reached the table.

"Nadia... Nadia Smith," I tried not to stutter.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. DeLuca."

I managed a smile as Jeremy pulled out a chair for me.

"You have a beautiful smile, Nadia.

Kind of reminds me of someone."

He complimented, and my smile deepened.

"Well, thank you."

I chirped as I sat down.

He turned to Jeremy. "How's hockey going?"

He sounded a lot stricter, and his sudden tone made me swallow hard.

Going pretty good, Dad, as always," Jeremy replied with indifference as two ladies dressed in uniform began to serve the dishes.

"I heard there's a new player in the team, he won the last game for the team?"

Mr. DeLuca continued, and I swallowed even harder.

"Yes... There's a new member in the team, he's pretty good," Jeremy replied with the same expression, and I could feel the hall heat up.

"Hmm," Mr. DeLuca groaned.

"Hockey is the only thing you know how to do, and now, you're losing your touch on it," he commented, and I could see Jeremy's jaw clench.

Oh boy...

"If you would at least..." Jeremy began, but approaching footsteps and a mocking laugh made him swallow the rest of his words.