A crowd of reporters, blinding lights, and flashing cameras greet us when I pull up to Seydoux Trends. The muffled, demanding clamor from outside drowns me like boiling liquid tar.  Taking a deep breath, I turn off the engine and, closing my eyes, lean back against the seat. My heart pounds against my ribcage, threatening to leap out and get trampled by the predators stomping outside.

Another shaky breath jerks from my mouth as I swallow down my rising panic. My fingers grasp at the smooth fabric of the skirt that I will never afford in my lifetime, trying to find comfort in between the folds.

I can do this. I’m strong. I’m brave. I’m… I—

A warm, soft pressure appears on my leg. My eyes fly open in alarm. Glancing down, it's my boss' hand. On my thigh.  And strangely enough, comfort gradually flows over my trepidation in gentle waves as I look at her.

“It will be fine, Alaina,” she says, her sexy French accent soothing the avalanche in my mind. No… not sexy! Normal! “I’ll make the announcement, and they'll ask some questions, but I’ll answer all of them just like we practiced on the way here. All you have to do is stand by my side and show them that pretty smile of yours. Can you do that for me?”

That’s actually not my main worry, even though I do tend to ramble a lot and say things without thinking them over before they escape my mouth. The numerous times when I blurted out something ridiculous, embarrassing, or plain stupid is more than I can count.

No, my main concern is… what if they ask us to kiss? As proof of our relationship? Or to satisfy their hunger for juicy photos to spread all over the internet? Do I actually want that? Is the money, career worth all that attention? Also, what will the people I know think of me being a... lesbian and dating my boss?

“Alaina?”

My breath trembles as I inhale and exhale. “What if they… ask us to… you know…”

“Kiss?” She raises an eyebrow. “Hopefully they won't, because I'm trying to avoid it as much as you are. But if they do ask for it, we'll just quickly peck each other like two birds. Does that sound good?”

It shouldn't hit me in the heart like a poisonous arrow spreading slithers of ice through my veins when she said she wants to avoid it. Isn't that exactly what I want? For it to never happen?

Yes, I should be avoiding it at all costs. I'm only agreeing to this whole fake dating deal so I can earn more money and save my grandmother's house, even if she is traveling the world like there's no tomorrow and left me to maintain the property. Not only do I have so many fond memories of spending the holidays with my grandmother as a little girl, but it's been my home in LA since I graduated high school.

I will not back down. I better get myself together and get through this conference like it's life or death. Even if my boss is looking at me right now, twitching the corner of her mouth in that way which makes my heart feel as if a swarm of butterflies have been released inside all at once.

“Earth to Alaina."

I blink. Wait… didn't she ask me a question? What was it? Something about… kissing… does it sound… oh…

I nod once. “Yes, ma’am.”

She squeezes my thigh reassuringly before pulling away, sending a thousand volts of electricity to my core. A very naked feeling replaces the former warmth, almost making me yearn for her to touch me again. Just… Alaina!! For God's sake!!

“Good. Now open the door for me so I can deal with these bastards.”

My hand flies up to my head in a salute. “Right away, ma'am!” I jump out the door, eager to escape the unbearable heat of embarrassment already snaking its way up my neck.

Did I just salute my boss? What the hell was that? While I'm reprimanding myself, I collide with a hard, smushy object. Two familiar, tattooed, muscular arms hold me up by my waist, saving me from crashing to the ground again this morning.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” I glance up at Andrew's amused yet serious face. Humiliation spreads across my face like a forest fire, making me wish I could hide behind a wall of black smoke.

He gives me a grin. “No, no, it’s fine. Are you okay, Miss Alaina?”

I nod, trying to mentally brush off the remains of his hold on me. “Yep. Yes! I uh... I have to go uh..." I point to the sidewalk while I stammer like an idiot.

“Of course. I'm actually here to escort you both. You can hand the keys to Miguel.” He gestures for a brown-skinned young man, who immediately jogs over in his black suit with a white dress shirt and vest. He grabs the keys from me.

I thank him, receiving a look of bafflement from him before he smiles and bows his head a little. Why did he react like that? Dread covers me in chills. Maybe Ms. Seydoux’s reputation as the Devil's Mistress is even bigger than I thought.

Then why is she treating me so differently? Why is she… why is she… so… good to me? Is it possible she… likes me, even a little? Or is she just that good at acting that she will do anything, even be kind to her assistant, to get what she wants?

Shaking away those thoughts, I reach my hand out to grab the handle and open the door. And it takes every ounce of power in me to swallow down the loud gasp that crawls up my throat when she starts to climb out of the passenger seat. Every sound around me fades into a dim blur until the only sound in my ears is the hammering of my heart.

It's not just the way her red hair shimmers a bright copper under the morning sun, or the way her blue eyes scan the crowd of reporters with that cold glare that threatens to turn everyone into blocks of ice. And not even the way a jolt of burning heat flashes through my arm and bursts my heart into a thousand flaming sparks when her slender fingers wrap around mine as I help her out of the car.

It's how every movement of hers is calculated and performed with grace. The hard but gentle clink of her Louis Vuitton heel hitting the cement. Her head held high with pride and confidence that a thousand powerful businessman combined cannot compete with. The smooth, silky way she stands as a hundred camera lights flash on her.

She... She looks like a superstar. One whose autograph I'd get signed on my heart.

All I want to do right now is to take my own picture of her, frame it, and carry it with me everywhere I go. To look at her beauty and sophisticated expression all day, and all night. To... to...

“Alaina, I got you baby,” Ms. Seydoux's husky voice cuts through my thoughts as smooth as butter. She tightens her grip on my hand. I suddenly feel uncomfortably naked, with the mini skirt barely covering my thighs and the thin blouse blowing against my bare skin as reporters continue to swarm us.

But that feeling dissipates when Ms. Seydoux slides her hand along the small of my back until her arm wraps around my waist. The single gesture makes my heart beat faster as if it's in a race against time.

She shields me from the reporters and paparazzi shoving their cameras in our faces as we walk toward the building entrance. Andrew keeps everyone a small distance away from us, and when his hand ends up on Ms. Seydoux's shoulder, I’m almost tempted to swat it away like an annoying fly. Omg, what's wrong with me…

We finally reach the end of the lobby and stand behind the ready podium with Andrew flanking her side a few feet away. The swarm of piranhas keep a decent space from us as they extend their microphones toward us. I swallow down the bile of nervousness as cameramen (and women) form a circle behind them, hiding their faces with the huge equipment while photographers spread out through the crowd.

My boss doesn’t remove her hand from my back. Instead, she slowly glides it along my thin blouse until she stops. Her thumb gently traces tiny circles on the small of my back, each movement enough to send comfort to my mind. That might be why I'm not completely freaking out right now. Silence spreads through the large lobby as everyone waits for Ms. Seydoux to speak.

“Hello, everyone,” she finally says, her voice ringing out loud and clear from the microphone. “As you are aware, I’ve arranged for a press conference because I have a very important announcement to make. It seems that there have been some very distasteful… rumors circling the internet which I would like to settle.”

She glances at me with a smile that sends my heart fluttering before she faces the crowd again.

“Yes, I am dating my assistant.” Collective gasps ensue as a hundred more clicks flash out white lights. “When she walked in for her interview, I knew from the first second I laid eyes on her that she's something unique. Someone who was deserving of my very limited attention.”

I take a deep breath as she continues the story. I know it's all lies, all fake, yet the way she injects each word with genuineness… even I begin to believe that it's all real, that she really does see me as someone deserving of her time and energy.

The pressure on the small of my back increases every so slightly, yet enough for me to swallow down a betraying moan that crawls up my throat. Oh god, the surge of heat from her hand that is just a thin silk fabric away from touching my bare skin.

“Mylène!” one reporter calls out, slicing through my inappropriate thoughts. “Are you planning on keeping her on as your assistant now that the two of you are dating?”

Ms. Seydoux turns to me with an amused smile. “Well, that depends. Would you like to continue working under me, amour?”

I raise my eyebrows at her question, unsure if I can answer this or not since we haven't rehearsed this sort of question. At my hesitation, she mouths “just answer”.

Or at least, I think that’s what she said.

Okay, I got this. I definitely got this. Just answer like a normal person, Alaina. Think of this as practice for the future, okay? Your career.

I swallow before licking my dry lips and putting on a smirk. “I’d definitely love to continue working under  you, Mylène. If you know what I mean.”

A flash of surprise appears in her electric blue eyes for a second as the reporters murmur. I don't even catch what they say as more cameras flash at us.

Oh my god, I fucked up, didn’t I?

“Oh, I know I'll enjoy every second.” She winks at me, sending my heart fluttering before turning to the front. “Any more questions?”

Okay, so far we're actually pulling this off...  Maybe we’ll get through this without any hiccups. Maybe–

“Can we see you two kiss?” someone shouts from the crowd. The words stab my heart like a dull blade. Everyone else starts clamoring in agreement.

Ms. Seydoux waves a dismissive hand. “Oh no, I don't think we–”

“Come on, give us a show!”

I look at her, my eyebrows raised in alarm. “What are we going to do?” I whisper.

“It’s fine. A quick peck,” Ms. Seydoux says. I suck in a shaky breath before nodding. It's just a peck, as she says. No biggie.

We lean in, our lips barely touching, yet the charge of electricity that implodes almost causes me to gasp out loud as she pulls back. Her eyes search mine in an almost foreign way. Did she feel that too?

“Aww, come on. Kiss like you actually like each other!” the reporters continue complaining.

Those greedy bastards.

“Mylène, I– I can’t–”

She tucks my hair behind my ear. “Shh, Alaina. It's just one time, okay? It will be fine.”

“I–”

Her hand cups my cheek. My breath trembles as her touch scorches my skin. “May I kiss you?”

I furrow my brows in confusion. “I already gave you my–”

“And I'm asking you again.” She fixes me with a stern gaze, one that penetrates my soul. I gulp and exhale slowly.

“Yes,” I whisper as her thumb brushes my jaw. “You may.”

She smiles, and I realize that this is the first time I've actually seen a real smile from her. And it's so… so… so breathtaking, hitting me like rays of sweltering hot sunlight.

But then panic overtakes every bone in my body as Ms. Seydoux… Mylène… my freaking boss glides her thumb along the corner of my mouth as her eyes slowly move down… then up, unlocking something deep within my soul.

It's happening… it's actually happening… my first time kissing a woman. I've envisioned the moment a few times, like in my mind when I would fantasize about kissing Britney Spears or Madonna when I was younger.

But I never thought I would actually do it in real life. After all, that's what they were. Fantasies. Illusions. An alternate reality.

Ms. Seydoux tilts my chin up with her fingers. My breath shudders as her eyes lock into mine, drowning my soul in her roaring waves before she leans in, her lips tentatively brushing against mine. The earthy, sweet smell of her perfume is almost dizzying, consuming my body with scorching heat as I hesitantly lean into the kiss.

Whatever I had fantasized or concocted in my experience-less mind, I know for sure that it wasn’t this.

Every vein in my body explodes like volcanoes as her warm, soft lips move against mine. Slow. Deep. I suddenly forget why we're doing this. The world around us dims, until nothing else but my heart hammers in my ears. Until it's just the two of us, her and I, alone. Her hand gently grabs the back of my neck, pulling me in closer as the tips of my fingers lightly brush against her hip.

She parts my lips as she slips her tongue into me. A small moan escapes me, one followed by her breath exhaling into my mouth. A thousand tingles travel down my throat, melting into a pool of lava in my stomach.

Oh. My. Fucking. God. She tastes so... incredible, so unlike anything I'd ever imagined.

She smiles against my mouth. “You're doing so good, angel.”

Those words are what I need to jolt me back to reality when she breaks off the kiss. Taking quiet, short gasps of deprived air, I look into her eyes, hoping to catch a trace of the emotions that I just felt a second ago between our shared breaths. A brief moment of alarm flickers in them before disappearing like smoke in the wind.

If it wasn’t for her flushed cheeks and slightly swollen lips, along with the warm tingles on my own, I'd think I just daydreamed about the kiss. Was anything about it real? Could she actually be such an actor that she… just… faked it all the way like a pro?

Her hand softly grazes my cheek before letting go of me. Then she turns toward the crowd, grasps the microphone, and, in a cold voice that sends chills down my spine, announces:

“And if anyone ever calls her a slut again, that will be the day you’ll regret.”

A/N

I'd love to hear how everyone is finding the story so far.
Are you enjoying it? XD