Alle Kapitel von Fake dating my ex’s Hockey-star Brother: Kapitel 11 – Kapitel 20

Old WoundsEthan's PovSophie falls asleep in the passenger seat somewhere between my mother's house and her apartment, exhausted from an evening that would have worn down anyone forced to sit under Victoria Carter's careful scrutiny for three straight hours.I do not wake her right away when I pull up outside her building. Instead, I sit there for a few minutes, watching the streetlight flicker across her face, and let myself think honestly about everything my mother said tonight.Ethan has always felt like he lives in his brother's shadow.She is not wrong, though hearing her admit it out loud, even to Sophie and not to me directly, lands somewhere between vindication and old, familiar grief. Growing up, Ryan got the easy praise, the effortless charm that made teachers and coaches and eventually my own mother light up whenever he walked into a room. I got the comparisons. Why can't you be more like your brother. Ryan never had trouble making friends. Ryan always knew what he wanted.

The Weight of PretendingEthan's PovMarcus calls an emergency meeting Monday morning, and the second I walk into his office, I know it is not going to be a short one."Sit," he says, gesturing at the chair across from his desk, already pulling up a spreadsheet on his monitor filled with numbers I do not fully understand but can tell are meant to impress me anyway. "Engagement is up forty percent since the charity skate. Sponsor confidence has completely turned around. Apex wants to extend their deal through next season, and two new brands have reached out about partnership opportunities.""That's good news," I say carefully, waiting for the catch I already sense coming."It's great news, Ethan, and I want to keep the momentum going." Marcus leans forward, steepling his fingers together. "Which means more appearances with Sophie. More curated moments. I'm thinking a magazine feature, maybe a joint interview where you two talk about how the relationship started, humanize the whole thin

Damage ControlEthan's PovBy morning, the story has multiplied into a dozen different versions of the same ugly lie.Every sports blog in the city runs some variation of the same headline, twisting an anonymous tip into confirmed fact with the kind of casual disregard for accuracy that makes my blood boil. *Carter's Girlfriend Was Never Real: Inside the PR Stunt That Saved His Career.* By the time I get to the arena for morning practice, three separate reporters are waiting outside, shouting questions I have no intention of answering before I have even had coffee.Marcus meets me in the hallway before I can escape into the locker room, his expression tight and calculating in a way that puts me instantly on edge."We need to get ahead of this," he says without preamble. "I've already drafted a statement. Something about how the relationship started casually and became real over time. Keeps things simple, doesn't confirm or deny the original circumstances.""That's not a denial, Marcus

Whispers in the Locker RoomEthan's PovThe anonymous email lands in my inbox seconds after Sophie forwards it, and I read it standing in my kitchen with my coffee going cold in my hand.*Someone inside Ethan's organization wants this relationship to fail. Watch who benefits most from the chaos.*I call Mason immediately, skipping any pretense of a normal greeting. "Have you found anything?""Actually, yeah." His voice sounds tired, like he has been up half the night. "I pulled some old scheduling logs, just out of curiosity, checking who had access to information about your personal calendar over the past few months. Ethan, there's a pattern I don't like.""What kind of pattern?""Every time a negative story broke about you, whether it was the fight with Miller, the rumors about your temper, even this latest leak about Sophie, the timing lines up almost perfectly with dates Marcus had private meetings scheduled with the sponsors. Meetings that conveniently happened right before each

Too Many CoincidencesEthan's PovI meet Mason at his apartment that night, laying out everything Sophie learned from Amelia while he listens with a growing frown, his laptop open on the coffee table between us."So Marcus knew you had feelings for her before any of this started," Mason says slowly. "And a few weeks later, he's the one pushing hardest for the fake relationship idea in the first place.""That's too convenient to be a coincidence," I say, pacing his living room, unable to sit still with the anxious energy coursing through me. "He didn't just suggest a fake relationship to fix my image. He specifically suggested Sophie, knowing exactly what that would mean to me.""Which means he wanted this relationship to happen," Mason says. "Or he wanted the chaos that would inevitably come with it. Your brother's ex, your own long-buried feelings, Ryan's ego getting bruised in the process. That's a recipe for exactly the kind of drama that keeps everyone emotionally unstable and eas