All Chapters of FAKE DATING WITH BENEFITS: MY BILLIONAIRE BOSS: Chapter 131 - Chapter 140

~ JAMIEThe Whitmore House was even prettier in person.The car pulled up to the gates a little after three thirty, and I sat there for a few seconds looking out the window before getting out.The property sat far enough from Manhattan that the noise of the city felt like it belonged to another world. A tree-lined drive led up to the pale stone house. It wasn't huge in a vulgar way. It was old and elegant. The kind of place that seemed to have stories hidden in every window.Ethan was already waiting near the entrance."Based on your face, I'm guessing messaging you was the right call.""Don't get excited. I haven't even gone in yet.""You're smiling.""I'm being polite.""Sure."A woman with perfectly pinned gray hair appeared at the door before we reached the steps."Ethan."Her face broke into a smile."Mrs. Whitmore."She hugged him."If you call me that again, I'm sending you home.""Margaret.""Better."Ethan turned to me."Margaret Whitmore, Jamie Collins."

~ SIMON "Permission?" I let out a short laugh, humorless. "Jesus Christ, Jamie.""What?""I'm your future husband, Jamie. You wanted a venue? You should've told me. If that place mattered to you, I would've found a way to get a date. That's what money, connections, and influence are for when you've got all three."She stared at me like I'd just confirmed her exact point."Do you hear how insufferably arrogant that sounds?""It's arrogant if it's a lie.""Oh my God.""What? I have resources. You know that.""That's exactly why I didn't tell you! I wanted this moment to be authentic and enjoyable. But it seems like you clearly want to turn this wedding into a power display."Her voice rose.I stayed silent.Jamie threw her arms open."I didn't want to say, 'Simon, I liked this place,' and then watch you make three phone calls, buy a date, pressure someone, offer enough money to fix everything in twenty minutes. I wanted to look. I wanted to get excited. I wanted to walk in

~ JAMIEMy mom opened the door to my old room and turned on the lamp."I changed the sheets last week."I looked around."You need anything? Tea? Warm milk?""Mom, I'm thirty-two.""And?"I smiled despite myself."Nothing. I'm fine."She studied me for a few seconds."You want to tell me what happened? You didn't call off the engagement with my favorite son-in-law, did you? Because I refuse to go through that twice. I mean, technically you didn't end it the first time... but you get what I mean. Now tell me. What happened?""We'll talk tomorrow.""That means 'never' in daughter language."She took a deep breath."But fine."She came over, kissed my forehead, and squeezed my shoulder."So sleep. Your dad's already out and I'm going to pretend I'm not dying of curiosity.""Thanks, Mom.""And, Jamie?""Hm?""Fighting before the wedding doesn't mean something's wrong between you two. Sometimes it means the opposite. You're learning to work through your differences befo

~ JAMIEI lay in my old bedroom, staring at the ceiling with my phone resting on my chest. Maya had already checked it for me: no spyware, no suspicious apps. Someone must have gotten hold of my phone. But who?I started going through the people at work when a sharp knock on the window made me sit bolt upright. The clock read eleven. I grabbed the old baseball bat from my closet, the one I’d kept from my high school days, and pulled back the curtain.My heart lurched.Simon.What the hell was he doing out there?He was perched on the side fire escape, one hand wrapped around the iron railing, his body angled toward my window. His black T-shirt stretched across his shoulders, and a charcoal hoodie was tied around his waist. His dark hair was still damp, like he’d just stepped out of the shower. Moonlight sharpened the line of his jaw and caught the vivid blue of his eyes.“You gonna hit me with that, or are you gonna open the window?” he called through the glass.I let out a br

~ CHLOEThe morning started with the sound of the kids’ laughter carrying through the first floor of the apartment.I stopped at the top of the stairs, still in my nightgown, and looked toward the dining room. Simon was sitting at the table with Lily and Sam. His dark hair was damp at the ends, his white shirt rolled up to his forearms. He’d clearly just gotten out of the shower.He’d gone out in the middle of the night. Said he had something to take care of and didn’t come back until that morning.I’d heard him come back, and well… the timing was way too suspicious.I’d known Simon long enough to know what that meant. A phone call, an old contact, a woman willing to pick up. He was never built to be alone.He could put a ring on Jamie’s finger, promise marriage, and play the domesticated man, but years of habits don’t just disappear because some pretty little thing believes she’s special.And frankly, if Jamie knew how to actually keep him satisfied, he wouldn’t have spent the