Chapter 8
ILIAS
el ingeniero - Alleh his attention perked. “You’re talking about Sofia, aren’t you?”
“Doctor Sofia?” Jamie deadpanned.
Not encouraging.
“Yes. Clearly.” Alejandra waved her off.
“I just read a romance book where the characters staged a PR stunt to help both their careers. Why can’t you do the same?
Fake a relationship with Sofia, and TerraVive gives her a sponsorship for Salacia.
She has a spotless public image. She’s smart, talented, compassionate, and passionate about the ocean. She lives for her research.”
“But what would TerraVive gain from it?”
“She’s a huge content creator with an immense social media following—you can check, if you haven’t already—and she can bring even more people to TerraVive.
I’ve seen her media kit, as you should have, Jamie, and it’s outstanding.
Past campaigns she’s done have helped small businesses reach huge numbers.
Imagine what she could do with a bigger sponsor. ”
“I saw her media kit; it’s impressive,” Jamie noted, “but Salacia is too new, too small to ensure big business. And she hasn’t published anything under her own name in a year or so.”
Alejandra shot her a withering look. “That’s something you should discuss with her.
She studied her ass off in Italy, earned a scholarship to the best marine biology school in the States, and became a highly respected member of Neptune before launching Salacia.
While she wrote amazing papers, she became super famous online with her videos and grew her community massively in just a few months.
And at Salacia’s clean-up, she’s already sold out all the whale-watching tours, clear proof she can attract clients. ”
“Which speaks volumes about her,” Jamie muttered, still half-on-the-fence.
“Exactly. Look at what she built in four months, alone, with tiny sponsors. Imagine what she could do with a proper sponsor behind her.”
“And a fake PR relationship with a surfer? How could that help her?” Jamie asked, interrupting again.
“Financially, with an exclusive sponsorship from TerraVive, she could upgrade her equipment. But also, pairing her with Ilias could help her reach the surfer community that doesn’t know about her,” Alejandra added quickly.
“If you leverage the gossip from Ilias and her being together, you could make them showcase your clothes, gear, everything,” Gretchen jumped in, riding Alejandra’s wild train of thought.
“Plus, she’s a surfer too. Longboarder. We’ve been surfing together since we were kids.
She breathes the ocean. You could make campaigns with them together, and people would eat this shit up.
A surfer and a marine biologist, both famous in their own fields?
People will be attracted to them like a moth to a light. ”
Jamie pressed her lips together, thinking, then turned to Ilias.
“If the TerraVive bosses say yes, would you be willing to do this? Fake a relationship with Dr. Sofia? With all that it implies about being a womanizer?”
Would he? He hadn’t dated in years, not since his father passed. Even before that, there had been a lot of hookups. Did he know how to act in a serious relationship? Could he mess it up? Still, he had been thinking about Sofia constantly, even if lately his focus had been more on his suspension.
“What do you mean by ‘all that implies’?”
“You can’t be seen getting affectionate with other women. You’ll have to show your private life publicly and accept criticism and comments like Steven’s,” Jamie explained. “And don’t explode. Show how you’ve grown. And accept the schedule TerraVive gives you.”
“I think I can manage that. How long would it last?” he asked, not overly worried.
“I’ll have to speak with TerraVive’s bosses, present the idea thoroughly, including all pros and cons, for both of you and financially,” Jamie continued.
“I think we should tell Sofia only after TerraVive agrees. I don’t want to create worries for her when there’s no possibility. I don’t know if she’ll say yes or no, but I’d rather the bosses be sure before giving her hope,” Alejandra admitted, sinking back onto the couch.
“But they need a guarantee that Sofia will accept,” Jamie pressed.
“I can’t promise anything. But she’s not stupid enough to turn it down just because she gets annoyed by him.”
Ilias sighed. “What the hell did I do?”
“Cling to her? Obsess? Pine openly?” Amira counted on her fingers, smiling sweetly.
“I can’t promise I won’t crush on her.” Ilias grinned. “But if she’s okay with that, I’m game. She gets the final say. I could think of worse ways to fix my reputation.” He turned to Jamie. “So? What do you think?”
Jamie sighed long and loud. “I’ll take this to the board. I’ll have an answer by tomorrow.”
“She’s going to hate me,” Alejandra muttered, burying her face in a pillow.
“But me?” Ilias wrapped her in a hug. “I’m going to love you forever.”
He didn’t know why, but even with the suspension hanging over him, this wild plan gave him a flicker of hope.
If she got her funding, and he got his redemption and kept his sponsor?
That sounded like a win. And if it meant getting to know her better in the process?
Then yeah, he would be the most faithful fake boyfriend ever.