Tis' the Season

All I wanted was a quiet Christmas and a decent paycheck.
What I got was a man with too many rules and a face that should be illegal.

I agreed to the rules.
I agreed to the contract.
I did not agree to wanting the man I was supposed to pretend to love.

Roman Voss is cold, controlled, and allergic to joy. I am none of those things. I am here to play a role, smile on cue, and survive the holidays with my sanity and dignity intact.

Easy. In theory.

Because fake relationships have a funny way of getting real. Especially when every look feels loaded, and the man you are pretending to love looks like he is fighting not to feel anything at all.

I do not believe in chaos.
I believe in structure, order, and rules that exist for a reason.

Noelle was supposed to be temporary. A solution. A means to an end. She laughs too loud, touches too much, and refuses to follow instructions.

She is also warm, disarming, and completely undoing me.

This was supposed to be simple. Two weeks. One arrangement. No feelings. But the closer we get to Christmas, the harder it becomes to remember why I put the rules in place in the first place.

The problem is not wanting her.
The problem is what happens if I do.

When the rules start to crack, and Christmas gets closer, will this stay a fake relationship or turn into something neither of them planned?