Chapter 35
PIP
As soon as I unlock my apartment door, Keesha jumps up from the white leather sofa, greeting me with an exuberant smile.
As usual, her laptop and a cup of tea are on the glass coffee table in front of her.
“You’re home! How was dinner?”
“Excellent,” I say, not wanting to spoil my improved mood with stalker talk. “And look who I’ve brought home…”
“Piglet!” Keesha scoops him into her arms. “He’s even cuter in person than he is in print and online. How long will he be with us?”
I hesitate, glancing down at Piglet as Keesha sets him down so he can roam.
“I—I don’t know. Everything happened so fast. We only adopted him this morning. I didn’t think beyond signing the adoption papers. But now…”
Keesha’s smile fades slightly as she looks at me. “Now what?”
I shake my head, still uncertain. “I love him. I want to keep him after the media campaign is over.”
Her expression softens. “You know we can’t have pets in this apartment. A few nights, sure. But my parents put down a huge deposit on this place, and it’s rent-controlled. We can’t afford to move anywhere else.”
I nod. “Maybe I can work something out with Snickers…”
Keesha raises her brow. “The bad-boy DJ? You think he’s ready to take responsibility for a dog in his life?”
“He’s now the CEO of a white-glove company. He’s changed his tune…”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll figure something out. Tell me about your chef duties. Anyone complain they were poisoned?”
“Haha. Very funny. You’ll be pleased to know I did well. I even got compliments from Chef Henri in the end!”
“Yeah? This is coming from a woman who smoked out our building burning toast. I demand to see hard evidence.”
I pull out my phone and flip through the pictures Kit airdropped me at the restaurant.
“Well, well, well,” Keesha says. “In this one, it looks like Snickers has his arm around you. You told me you two hated each other.”
“No. I just said he was an arrogant jerk.”
Piglet trots over, as if he wants to see the pictures too.
I scroll through the photos, pausing at one I must have missed before.
In it, Snickers’ large, strong hand rests over mine.
Kit must’ve taken the shot when he guided me on how to chop vegetables.
There’s an intensity in his dark eyes as he gazes at me.
"I really like him, Keesha. And I think he likes me too!" I flash the picture at her.
"I was with him tonight. He took me to the mansion he grew up in, all the way over on the Upper East Side."
"Nice! Why didn't you spend the night?"
"I'm... not sure. We were kissing. We were both really into it. Then he suddenly stopped.”
"Why?"
I hesitate before speaking. "He said something about not wanting to complicate things until we were finished with the media campaign."
"But what difference would that make? You slept with him before."
"Right," I say softly.
We're both silent for a moment.
"I'm glad you're enjoying being part of this media campaign. It must be fun and glamorous to have a media entourage snap photos of you and a billionaire CEO in Manhattan's most romantic places. But given all you’ve told me, I'm concerned you're forgetting this is all a temporary situation."
"I know that," I say quickly.
"Do you? I can understand how easy it is to fall in love with this fantasy, but the reality is that you've been hired to be a fake girlfriend. Part of your job was to visit an animal shelter with your fake boyfriend and adopt a fake dog."
"Piglet isn't a fake dog, he's real!" I say, lifting the Frenchie into my arms.
"Of course he's real. But the adoption was staged for that media campaign."
"What are you trying to say?" I hug Piglet tighter.
Keesha sighs and puts her hand on mine. "Maybe Snickers can see the writing on the wall. He must see how attached you've become to Piglet in a single day. It's possible he's realized you might’ve become attached to him in the same way..."
"And..."
"Maybe the reason he cut your nookie session short was because he wanted to keep things professional."
"No... that can't be it..."
Keesha's a playwright, I remind myself. She looks for hidden drama in every situation.
But I realize she has a point.
"It's been a long day. I'm going to bed," I say, carrying Piglet to our small, shared bedroom.
Keesha follows, watching as I turn down my covers and make a warm little pocket for Piglet beside me.
"He's such an adorable dog. Since you're so busy with your media tour, I’ll start advertising he's available for adoption on social media. I’m sure we can find a good home for him fast. Maybe a family with little kids. I bet Piglet would love that.”
I nod, but my chest tightens as I watch Piglet.
He wiggles under his blanket, snuggling into his makeshift bed, and letting out a contented little doggie sigh.
As he drifts off to sleep, I know I’m not ready to say goodbye.