Dumped On Live TV, Claimed By The Hockey King

CHAPTER 1

AVA

"Finally," I muttered under my breath as I shoved my way through the sea of students packed inside the university hockey arena.

"Hey! Watch it!" someone shouted after I slammed into their shoulder.

I didn't stop; I didn't even apologize.

Right now, I honestly didn't care who I offended.

"Nic!"

My voice was swallowed by the deafening cheers echoing around the rink, not to mention the drumming of my baring heart against my chest.

My heart pounded so violently against my ribs that it hurt to breathe.

The video.

God.

The damn video.

It had been sent to me barely an hour ago.

No caller ID, no warning.

Just a message from Stacy Montgomery.

Thought you deserved to know.

Attached beneath it was a twenty-second video.

Twenty seconds.

That was all it had taken to destroy two years of my life. In those two years we had celebrated two birthdays and two Christmases together, believing I was building something real with him.

I knew his coffee order by heart; I knew his game schedule better than I knew my own class timetable. I knew exactly how he liked his food and the way he went quiet whenever he was stressed.

Nic had once told me that when he finally won the hockey championship, I would be the first person he brought home.

He had talked about the future like I was already standing in it. I had believed him all this while.

God, I had actually believed him!

The footage showed Nic in a hotel room.

With Stacy.

There was no room for misunderstanding.

No way to convince myself I'd seen it wrong.

It was clear as day that my boyfriend was fucking someone else.

From the kiss to the aggressive making out to the moans...

I hadn't been able to breathe since.

Hadn't been able to stop mowing. I needed him to tell me it wasn't true. That this was all a big misunderstanding.

As I reached him in the middle of the rink, I couldn't help but scream.

"How could you do this to us?! I seethed.

All of the calm dialoguing I had convinced myself I was going to do was out the window.

All I could see was cold, red-hot anger pumping through my veins.

"Ava? What the hell?" Nic raised a brow as if genuinely surprised by my presence. "I thought you wouldn't be able to make it to the game..."

I wasn't because I had a meeting with Professor Caleb, but when I had seen that video... I went into autopilot.

"And I thought you loved me. Stacy of all people? How could you?! After two fucking years?!" Tears blurred my vision.

I could barely breathe. It didn't help that all eyes were on us now, but I didn't care.

God, I just wanted the pain to stop.

"Keep your voice down, will you? This is being televised live."

"That's all you're going to say to me? After fucking my worst enemy?" I laughed bitterly.

An audible gasp could be heard from across the crowd.

"Can we talk about this some other time? This is important."

"No. We are talking about it now, Nic. God, you told me you were going for an interview, and I found out you went to fuck some other girl?" My voice broke.

Nic's lips straightened into a thin line of disapproval.

"I didn't fuck anyone." He whispered.

"Oh yeah, then what the fuck is this? " I pushed the GR phone in his face. Camera flashes went off at that moment, but I didn't care.

Nic stared at the video on my phone, every trace of color draining from his face.

"Where did you get this?" he demanded quietly.

"It doesn't matter where I got it." My voice trembled. "Tell me it's fake."

He ran a hand through his hair, glancing around the arena.

The cameras. The reporters.

Thousands of students watching.

"It's not what you think," he muttered.

"Then explain it!"

"I can explain, Ava."

"Explain why you're in a hotel room with Stacy!"

His jaw tightened.

"Can we please do this somewhere else?"

"No."

"Ava-"

"No!" I shouted, my voice echoing through the arena. "You lied to me! You told me you had an interview!"

Another round of camera flashes exploded around us.

He looked over his shoulder at the reporters before lowering his voice.

"You're making a scene."

"I'm making a scene?" I laughed through my tears. "You cheated on me!"

"I said I can explain."

"Then explain!"

For a split second, I saw something almost like panic in his eyes.

Then one of the cameramen stepped closer.

Nic noticed. His expression changed.

The panic suddenly disappeared, and his shoulders straightened.

His face became cold, almost bored even.

And suddenly, that was when it all became clearer to me; he wasn't scared of hurting me, he was just scared of being seen hurting me.

The realization cut deeper than the video ever had.

He only cares about his reputation on cameras and....

Not me.

He looked at me as though he'd never seen me before.

"What exactly are you so upset about, Ava?"

I blinked. "What?"

"You honestly believed there was something serious between us?"

My stomach dropped. "You can't be serious..."

He let out a short laugh. "I never asked you to be my girlfriend."

The arena fell eerily quiet.

"You just... assumed."

His lips curled into a mocking smile.

"I never corrected you because it wasn't worth the effort."

Every word landed like another knife in my chest.

"We had fun," he shrugged. "But let's not pretend it was anything more than that."

My vision blurred.

"Two years..." I whispered.

"You knew what this was."

"No..." My voice cracked. "No, I didn't."

"Then that's on you."

He leaned closer, his voice low enough that only I could hear.

"I have too much to lose right now."

When he pulled back, his expression was once again loud enough for the cameras.

"I think you've embarrassed yourself enough."

The murmurs from the crowd erupted.

I couldn't hear them anymore.

All I could hear was my own heart breaking.

Then,

"Watch your mouth, Sterling."

A deep voice cut cleanly through the noise.

"That's my girlfriend you're talking about."

He smiled as his hand wrapped around my waist.

The arena went quiet.

I blinked, completely unsure of what I had just heard.

Liam Hayes was touching me.

The star hockey player was touching me and had just called me his girlfriend.

Confusion clouded my mind. I had never even spoken to this man before.

We weren't even in the same social circles.

His father was a senator, and his mom was a renowned surgeon.

The only thing we had in common was that we both had parents.

What the hell was he doing?

I should have pushed him away. I should have told him to get his hands off me and demanded an explanation.

But then I glanced past his shoulder.

The cameras were still pointed at us, and the reporters were just everywhere watching us. Nic was standing there with that same cold, dismissive look on his face.

I suddenly understood the situation; Liam wasn't actually claiming me. I knew he was only putting on a show. I wanted to push him away, but then I remembered how Nic had looked at me when the cameras turned toward him.

Like I was a problem he needed to get rid of, like an embarrassing girlfriend who had just ruined his perfect night.

No!

I wasn't going to stand there and let everyone watch me fall apart.

So instead of pushing Liam away, I took a small step closer.

His arm tightened around my waist.

I didn't know if he was surprised that I was playing along, but I felt his body go still for half a second.

"Girlfriend?" Nic asked, disbelief written all over his face.

I lifted my chin and looked straight at him.

"Yes," Liam answered before I could say anything. "Got a problem with that, second place?"

"Girlfriend?" My ex asked with a smug look of disbelief on his face.

"Yes. Got a problem with that, second place?" Hayes mocked.

The smug smile from Nic's face dropped almost immediately. The crowd burst out laughing, and Nic looked like he was about to kill everyone with his eyes.

Nic and Liam had never seen eye to eye, especially since Liam was a gold Olympian medalist and had beaten Nic's record every time he decided to play.

I stood there, stiff as a board and still very confused about what the fuck was going on.

"What's wrong? Don't have anything else to say?" Hayes smirked.

Nic couldn't speak, just stared with a clenched jaw and fist.

I would laugh if I weren't so fucking confused.

"Fuck You, Li," Nic said before turning around and walking off.

Hayes led me out of the arena, his hand still at the small of my back. He didn't let go until we were out a safe distance, away from everyone.

I slapped his hand off.

"Not that I am not grateful for helping me out of a humiliating situation, but um, what the actual fuck was that?"

"Consider it a favor." He smirked. "I'm Liam Hayes."

"I know who you are. Everybody knows who you are."

"Excellent then. My reputation precedes me."

I stared at him open-mouthedly. Up close, he was a fine specimen of man. Dark hair, a beautiful dark piercing gaze, a straight nose, and lips that I knew most women had gotten drunk in.

"Why did you help me?" I finally asked. "I mean you don't even know me. Why would you claim I was your girlfriend... Did someone put you up to this?" I demanded

I was not new to the fake asking-to-prom situation.

He chuckled. "Nobody puts Liam Hayes up to anything. I put people up to things." He said confidently.

"What?"

"Honestly? I've always hated Nic. And I saw a perfect opportunity to make him look like a fool, so I took it."

"That was your entire reason to do that? That makes no sense...like at all."

"Everything doesn't have to make sense, Bennett. Besides, there's a stronger reason standing right in front of me." He winked. I ignored it.

"I strongly disagree. You realize that nobody is going to buy the fact that I am your girlfriend, right?"

"Not if we play our cards right."

"Our cards? What cards? What are you talking about?" I asked.

It felt like I was having one of those bizarre fever dreams where everything was in complete disarray and the succession of events made no sense.

I didn't even have time to process the heartbreak I had just gotten.

"Oh, that's right. I haven't officially asked yet." He cleared his throat.

I blinked as he stood in a mock proposal stance.

What the fuck was he doing?

"Ava, will you be my fake girlfriend?"

I blinked. This was definitely a fever dream.

I stared blankly at him, waiting for his words to make sense, but no matter how much I thought about it, they didn't make any sense.

"I'm sorry, what? Are you insane?"

Liam glanced at the crowd gathering around us. More cameras. More reporters.

His jaw tightened.

"You're overwhelmed," he said quietly. "Go home. Get some rest and call me at six pm." He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a sleek black business card and placed it in my hand.

I stared down at it, and it was written "Liam Hayes." A private number was printed beneath his name.

I frowned.

"What? Call you?" I asked in disbelief. "For what?"

"I'll explain everything to you by then."

"No." I shook my head. "You're explaining it now. You don't get to call me your girlfriend in front of thousands of people and then disappear like some psychopath."

The corner of his mouth lifted.

"Trust me. Right now isn't the right time."

I looked around.

Reporters were already pushing through the crowd.

Cameras were still pointed directly at us.

"Call me at six," he repeated. Before I could stop him, he turned and walked away.

I stood there staring after him.

"He's insane," I muttered.

Absolutely, completely insane.

Clutching the card tightly in my hand, I hurried away before another reporter could stop me.

CHAPTER 2

Ava

6:00 p.m.

I stared at the black business card for what had to be the hundredth time.

I still couldn't believe I was actually doing this, but I had to, because my name is already going viral as his girlfriend.

Taking a deep breath, I dialed the number.

It rang only once.

"Right on time," Liam's deep voice came through the speaker.

"Where are you?" I asked.

"Outside your dorm."

My eyes widened.

I rushed to the window, and there he was.

Leaning casually against his Porsche like he'd been there all along.

I grabbed my bag and headed downstairs.

The moment he saw me, he smiled.

"How about we go somewhere more private? I can see a few campus reporters lurking around. Plus, you must be hungry."

I didn't have time to say no because the next thing he did was grab my wrist and lead me towards the parking lot.

All I could do was follow him.

We got to his famous Porsche car, and he opened it. He went around and opened the passenger seat for me.

I stepped in, still unsure of what the hell was going on.

The entire ride was quiet. It lasted for all of five minutes, but it felt like hours in slow motion.

When we finally arrived at a quaint cafe, he took my hands and left me inside.

It was empty save for a lone older man at the corner.

Heyes pulled out my chair for me and got ready for me to sit. I did as he said.

He waved a waitress over and told her to take my order.

"I don't want anything, thank you." I said in a whisper.

"Pack her an order either way." Hayes said to the waitress who was smiling from ear to ear.

Probably happy to serve Liam Hayes.

As soon as the waitress left, I asked.

"What is going on?"

"It's pretty simple, Ava." The way he said my name felt so personal, like he'd been using that name for years.

*I know it sounds crazy, but I'm in dire need of a girlfriend."

"I find that very hard to believe."

"Why, thank you." He smirked, a teasing wink accompanying the words. "But it's true."

I folded my arms across my chest.

"You're telling me the Liam Hayes needs a girlfriend?"

"I need one everyone believes is my girlfriend."

"There's a difference?"

"A huge one."

I leaned back in my chair, studying him carefully.

Everything about him screamed confidence. The expensive watch on his wrist. The tailored hoodie with his team's logo. Even the way he sat looked effortless.

Nothing about this man suggested desperation.

"So why me?"

His smile faded just enough for me to notice.

"Because my public image is a mess."

I frowned.

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't follow hockey news?"

"I barely follow hockey."

He chuckled softly.

"That explains why you have no idea who I really am."

"I know you're the captain. That's about it."

"And that," he said, pointing at me, "is exactly why you're perfect."

I blinked.

"What?"

"My ex has been making the rounds on every podcast and entertainment show she can find. According to her, I'm arrogant, impossible to date, and completely incapable of commitment."

"So... prove her wrong by dating someone else?"

"Not exactly."

His expression changed, and immediately, the teasing disappeared from his face.

"I don't want people to simply see me with a girlfriend, Ava."

I frowned.

"Then what do you want them to see?"

Liam leaned back in his chair.

"A man who finally found someone worth protecting."

I stared at him.

"What?"

"The cold, untouchable hockey star who finally stands up for someone. I want them to see me as someone loyal, dependable, and who doesn't treat women like disposable accessories."

"Huh? You want to pretend to be a good person?"

His mouth twitched.

"I want people to stop believing I'm the worst version of myself."

I studied him carefully.

"And I'm supposed to help you do that?"

"And not just that."

I stared at him curiously.

"After what happened at the arena, everything changed."

I frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Liam leaned back in his chair.

"My PR team expected people to spend the day talking about your confrontation with Nic. Instead, they started talking about me."

I blinked repeatedly.

"You?"

"Every sports page, every campus blog, every entertainment site. They all picked up the moment I stepped in."

He slid his phone across the table.

The headline read:

OLYMPIC STAR DEFENDS HUMILIATED STUDENT LIVE ON TV.

Another headline read:

LIAM HAYES PRAISED FOR STANDING UP TO CHEATING ATHLETE.

Liam looked back at me eagerly.

"People aren't seeing you as the girl who caused a scene. They're seeing you as the girl who was publicly humiliated. And they're seeing me as the man who stood up for you."

"Someone different from who Brittany painted me to be."

I let out a short, disbelieving laugh.

"So that's what this is? You saw a girl having the worst day of her life and thought, Great. I can use this."

I shook my head bitterly.

"You men really are unbelievable."

To my shock, he responded calmly, "If that were true, I would've walked away after I said that, but instead, I asked you to meet me here because I need your help."

He held my gaze and said, "My father's campaign team loves it, because my father hates it when I show up on scandal scenes...but when he saw how I stood up for you, he believed in me," he admitted.

"To be clear, none of this was planned. When I stepped in yesterday, I wasn't thinking about campaigns or headlines. I was thinking that Sterling was humiliating someone on live television, and someone needed to stop him. "

"My campaign team only realized afterward that people were responding positively to it."

"They think it makes me look loyal, dependable, and protective. Exactly the kind of image they're trying to build before the election."

"You're serious."

"As a heart attack."

"So your father is turning my humiliation into campaign material?" I asked.

"No. They're responding to what already happened. We aren't creating a story. We're trying to manage one that's already everywhere," he responded smoothly.

"And what do I get out of pretending to be your girlfriend?"

Instead of answering, he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a neatly folded document.

A contract.

He slid it across the table toward me.

"Six months," he said. "Attend a few games, charity events, and public appearances with me. Smile for the cameras. Pretend we're disgustingly in love."

I looked at the contract and gave it back to him.

"And in return?"

A slow smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"I'll pay you."

I almost laughed.

"I don't think you can afford the amount it'd take for me to agree to something this insane."

"You'd be surprised."

He uncapped a pen, wrote a figure on the last page, then turned the contract around for me to see.

The moment my eyes landed on the number...

My breath caught.

"You can't be serious." I blurted out.

"Trust me, I am."

"But why? Why not date someone else?"" My brows furrowed, needing to understand.

He was quiet for a moment before speaking.

"Because if I suddenly appeared with some famous influencer or a model, everyone would assume it to be a fake relationship easily."

He pointed at her.

"But if it happened to be you?"

"The whole country already watched me defend you, so even if we start dating now, people won't question it. They'll believe our relationship simply started from there."

"So your solution is to make me part of your public image? After everything that happened today, that's your plan?" I was so pissed off.

"That's only part of it."

"You're decent, and a decent person is what I need to combat my ex's smear campaign."

"Just how bad are these claims?"

"Bad...very bad. Let's just say there is some family friction involved."

"I see." I nodded, still incredibly skeptical...

Liam Hayes could get anyone he wanted. Why, a girl from Queens on a scholarship that could be taken away from me any moment.

"You can sleep on it. I have time. Not much, but I have time."

Something about the way his eyes shone told me an entirely different story.

There was a level of impatience in his eyes. I had seen that look before in my father. It was his; he lost everything.

I let out a sigh. This was not how I thought my day was going to progress. Not even in the slightest.

I didn't know I was going to find out my secret boyfriend was cheating on me, and I certainly didn't think I was going to meet anyone willing to pay six figures for me to fake a relationship with him. It made no sense.

None of it did.

"Don't think about the logistics too much. I got you, I promise. Just help me like I helped you earlier."

"I didn't ask you to help me!"

"Trust me, you need it. The headlines would have been very much different if I hadn't intervened. If anything, you should be thanking me."

"Oh, my God, you're insane!" I glared.

*Believe me, I've been called worse."

"Little fucking wonder. You're an asshole!"

"Telling the truth doesn't make me an asshole."

"Fuck you."

"I could arrange that if that's something you'd be into."

"Oh my God. I'm done. I should have known you couldn't be trusted." I said and stood up from my chair.

What a cocky bastard.

"Wait." He said, but I was already on my way out of the cafe. I wasn't about to let a rich, spoilt brat insult me just because he had saved me from complete embarrassment.

I was already outside when he caught up to me.

He grabbed me by the elbow and spun me around.

"Let go of me!" I jerked my hand away.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. That was stupid of me.

"It was. Jesus, I just went through a major heartbreak; I don't need this right now."

"I know, and I'm sorry for being insensitive."

My glare softened.

"Please, help me. I promise to tune down the assholery."

I stared at him for a long moment before finally letting out a sigh.

"I'll think about it."

I said, and he smiled.

That night I couldn't sleep, couldn't even finish my assignment that was due at midnight.

The events of the day kept playing over and over again in my head like a broken record.

Did I really want to dive into the world of the rich and powerful?

Especially Liam Haye's world?

I didn't know the answer to this, and the worst part was I couldn't even tell anyone about my plight.

I had to make this decision alone. Not because I wanted to, but because it was meant to be confidential.

My phone suddenly rang, and I dived into my bed and picked it up.

It was my mom.

Not Liam.

Of course it wasn't him.

"Hey, Mom. "I tried to make my voice more chirpy than I felt.

It was funny. I hadn't even had time to fully process the betrayal from Nic.

"How's my pumpkin doing?" My mom's voice poured through the phone, easing my stress just a little.

"I'm okay, Mom. How are you doing?" I asked, hoping the answer was good.

"Oh, good."

"No, she isn't. She had another episode today."

I froze at my little sister's voice.

"Oh, my God. Are you okay? Why didn't anyone call me? Did you hit your head?"

I asked in rapid successions, my heart in my throat.

"I'm fine. Ignore Hanna. She is just being dramatic."

"No, she isn't, Mom. I hate when you do that. You know you are not fine. Just tell me. I feel stressed when I find out these things days after."

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I woke up way before Doctor Stanley got here."

"That is not an excuse, God. Do you still have your medications?"

"Yes."

"No, she has barely two left. Don't listen to her. " Hannah was closer this time. She sounded annoyed at Mom. I wasn't surprised. Mom and Hanna never saw eye to eye, especially with Mom's insistence on downplaying everything.

It didn't help that I didn't have any money on me right now.

I let out a tired sigh.

"Okay, three more, right?"

"Yes."

"How's Dad doing?"

"Not well."

I knew, but I had hoped he had miraculously gotten a job.

"Alright then. Don't worry, I'll send the money for the medication soon."

"Sweetie, focus on school; you don't have to worry about me."

But I indeed had to worry.

"Of course." I hung up.

The number Liam had written flashed through my mind.

I hated myself for thinking about it.

But it was enough to pay Mom's medical bills.

And I could just stand there and watch my mother wither away, but I couldn't just dive into something that was bound to put me in a situation that was out of my league.

CHAPTER 3

AVA

I had made exactly zero progress.

Professor Caleb's lecture had ended twenty minutes ago, yet the words on my notebook looked like they belonged to someone else.

My pen hovered over the page.

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing had registered.

Not a single sentence.

Every time I tried to focus, my mind drifted back to the contract sitting inside my backpack.

Six figures.

Mom.

The medication.

Liam Hayes.

I groaned quietly and dropped my forehead onto the desk.

"What died?"

I looked up to find my best friend, Emily, staring at me with narrowed eyes.

"You look like you've been hit by a truck."

"If only it were that simple."

She frowned.

"Are you still thinking about yesterday?"

I forced a smile.

"You saw?"

"The whole university saw. Are you kidding me?

Of course they did.

By now the confrontation had probably spread across every social media platform on campus.

"Forget Nic," Emily said, linking her arm through mine as we walked toward the exit. "He's an idiot."

I laughed weakly. "I'll try."

"Meanwhile, tell me about Liam Hayes. That save was really hot."

I froze. I had forgotten about the fact that Liam Hayes had literally called me his girlfriend on national TV live.

The moment we stepped outside...

Every conversation around us suddenly stopped.

Emily frowned.

"Why is everyone staring?"

I followed their gaze.

Parked directly in front of the arts building was a matte-black Porsche.

A very expensive one. A familiar one.

Leaning casually against it with sunglasses on...

Was Liam Hayes.

The second he spotted me...

He smiled.

Then he pushed himself off the car.

"I was beginning to think you'd stand me up."

Every phone on campus suddenly pointed in our direction.

"I... I was going to call. I just..."

"Needed more time, my love?" He asked, whispering in my ear. A shiver ran down my spine as his breath fanned my ear.

It didn't help that we had an entire audience.

"Something like that."

He nodded and surprisingly didn't seem all that upset.

"How about we talk somewhere more private?" He asked, side-eyeing the audience.

"I would love that." I said a little too fast. Anything to get out of this stage I didn't sign up for.

"Apologies, Emily." He looked up at my friend beside me. "...but I'm going to steal my girlfriend for a second."

"Of course, take her. You don't even have to bring her back." Emily joked.

Liam laughed, and I swear he became even more handsome.

Liam gave me his jacket and made a show of kissing my forehead before opening his car door for me and helping me in. Then immediately drove us somewhere quiet.

"So, what's the verdict?" He asked, finally parking somewhere private on campus.

I stared at him for a long moment, questioning whether saying yes was a good idea.

On one hand, I needed his money; on the other hand, he was asking me to make enemies with his ex-girlfriend, who was equally from an affluent family as he.

It was a tough decision.

"I have a few questions."

"Go ahead."

"If I were to say yes to this, can you guarantee I don't get hurt in the process?"

I hated the fact that I was even considering it...but the truth was, I was tired of feeling like everyone else got to decide what happened to me.

Nic had decided what our relationship meant to him; he had made it clear that I was nothing to him.

My eyes moved swiftly, and I saw the students in that arena; they already decided what I was.

The embarrassed girlfriend, the pathetic girl who had been cheated on in front of thousands of people.

I could already imagine the whispers that would follow me around campus. If I walked away from Liam now, that was all I would be, a laughing stock! I refused to accept that as my reality, and right now, I didn't want to be rescued or to become someone's pity project.

I don't know why Liam Hayes suddenly decided to do this, but if I agreed to this, it had to be because I chose to and not because Liam Hayes had decided to save me.

Not because the world had already turned me into a joke.

But because I wanted to take control of my own life again.

He laughed. "And who would hurt you?"

"Your ex?"

He frowned. "She'll probably try. She is competitive and vindictive, and she hates losing. But if you agree to this, you're under my protection. Nobody touches you without dealing with me first."

He said it with such certainty that it caught me off guard. Not because I believed him. I didn't. But because nobody had ever spoken to me like that before. Not even Nic.

For one stupid second, I almost wanted to believe him, but then I quickly came back to reality and looked away from him, folding my arms.

"Sounds touching."

His eyebrow lifted. "Touching?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Very heroic."

The corner of his mouth twitched.

"I sense sarcasm."

"You should."

A brief silence settled between us.

Then I looked back at him.

"How do I know you're protecting me and not the deal?"

That question alone wiped the smile from his face, and for the first time in that conversation, the Liam I know didn't answer immediately.

He hesitated a little; my stomach tightened.

Interesting!

"So?" I pressed.

His jaw flexed.

"I'm protecting the deal."

The answer came a little too late.

A little too carefully.

Like he'd needed a second to decide what he wanted to say.

I wasn't sure why, but that bothered me.

"We're talking about a contract, Ava," he continued. "Of course I'm protecting the deal."

Of course, it's just the contract backing up the protection...nothing more.

I lowered my gaze and nodded slowly.

That's all this was, and honestly, that was probably for the best.

Trusting Liam Hayes after everything that had happened with Nic would be unbelievably stupid.

At least until I knew who he really was.

Anything else?

"Yes. As tempting as this sounds, I can't afford scandal. One complaint or accusation and I lose my scholarship. If I lose that... I lost everything."

"That's right, you play chess, right?"

"Yeah. It's how I got a full ride. How do you know?"

"I've seen you once or twice. Plus, who could forget the girl that fainted after losing last year?"

I cringed hard. "That was not my best moment."

"I'd say." He smiled. Then suddenly got serious.

"As for your scholarship, it won't be touched. If anyone targets you because of me, my legal team handles it. If campus missions get out of hand, my PR team handles it. You won't be fighting this alone."

"I'm not sure what to say."

"A yes would be a good start." He smiled.

It would, but it was too much. There were so many things that were against my favor. It didn't help that Liam was a known player.

"Come on, say yes; you know you want to. You're not only getting paid for this; you also get to hang out with the most eligible bachelor there is."

"Cocky much?"

"Oh, it's definitely much," he winked.

I blushed, looking away quickly.

His charisma was infectious and annoying at the same time.

"Look, I don't want to force you into anything but...you know what, fuck it? Your mom is sick, right? How much does your mother's medication cost every month?"

I stiffened.

"Excuse me? How the hell do you know about my mother?"

"Because before I asked you to trust me, I made sure I knew who you were."

Then...

"I can pay for every treatment she needs."

"Stop, stop. Just stop. Why do you think it's okay to do that?" I demanded, gripping either side of the chair.

"What?"

"Spying on my life."

"Well, I needed to know your background."

"And you couldn't ask me?"

"Why are you so upset about this?"

"Why am I so upset? You violated my privacy!"

"I don't see it that way. I needed the information, so I got it."

"Oh my God, you're insane, and thank you for making my answer so much easier. No, I won't be doing this insanity with you!"

With that, I tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Open the door." I said in a cold voice.

"Are you serious?" He asked, his brows furrowed.

I didn't say anything; I just gave him a cold stare.

"Wait. I am sorry. I don't know what I did."

"And that's just the point. You don't get it. We are so worlds apart that you don't even realize how insane it is to run a background check on someone. It's invasive."

"Okay. I understand, and I'm sorry."

"You know what the worst part is? You genuinely don't see anything wrong with it."

He scratched his head.

"Look, Bennett, I'm not asking you to marry me; I just need your help. It's more like a job, and I promise I won't do any more of this invasive stuff again. I didn't realize it would make you so uncomfortable."

I stared at him for so long, searching his eyes before sighing.

I knew I should say no, but my mom... I couldn't say no to an opportunity like this.

*I don't know what to say," I admitted.

"Yes."

"No, this is too much. I don't know..."

"I think you do, Ava. You just need to trust me. I promise I won't be weird."

I searched his eyes, unsure of what I was looking for. Reassurance?

He seemed genuine enough, but that's probably how he played so many women. Not that he would play me since we weren't really together.

Gah! This was tough.

I let out a long sigh.

Here goes nothing.

I looked down at the contract.

Only six months of pretending, cameras, scandals, and being with Liam Hayes.

Six months of pretending.

It was insane.

But for the first time since I had walked into that arena, I wasn't reacting to something someone else had done to me.

I was making my own decision.

"Okay, then. I will be your fake girlfriend, Liam Hayes."

A huge grin appeared on his face, and my heart skipped several beats at how much more handsome he became from it.

I stretched out my hands for a handshake, and he took it, and instead of shaking it, he kissed the back of my hand.

"I am honored to be your fake boyfriend," he said, his eyes locked with mine.

My breath caught and my face heated up at the intimate moment.

What had I got myself into?