One Midnight Kiss: A Billionaire Fake Fiancée Holiday Romance

I stood, unable to sit down. My focus was on the data streaming across the monitors mounted on the wall. This was it—the moment I’d been waiting for. Hanna’s first week available to the public, and the numbers were staggering. Our projections had been conservative, but this? This was something else entirely.

I had worked myself up, stressing myself out about what might happen. I prepared myself to crash and burn. I had my developers standing by, ready to fix the inevitable problems. But they weren’t coming. My eyes drifted to the other monitor with a social media feed pulled up. We were trending.

People were raving. Photos of Hanna were flooding the internet, showing her in use, posted up as displays on store fronts, and featured in the bougie home decor magazines. Our tech was being purchased at a rate that made me dizzy. I had hoped for success, but this was unprecedented.

Lines of data rolled in like waves. I could feel the momentum building. Each line of code was executed perfectly. It was a small victory. The feedback was glowing. Customers loved Hanna’s smart AI features, her seamless integration with their homes. And this was only the first week. We’d need more servers, a bigger team, more engineers and technicians. Hell, I was going to need a bigger office.

I let out a slow, satisfied breath. The culmination of years of work, a hundred all-nighters, a thousand compromises—and it was paying off. Better than I’d imagined. I knew a lot of the success was due to Natalia. Her savvy marketing campaign had been perfect. The woman knew her stuff. It wasn’t just her marketing prowess, but her pretending to be engaged to me certainly helped. It softened my reputation. People saw me as a man and not some megalomaniac intent on conquering the world with my robot army.

I pulled out my phone, smirking. I hadn’t added her number to my contacts yet, even though I had it memorized by now. There was something satisfying about dialing it manually, each press of a button reminding me of the night I had managed to finally get it. The night that changed everything. Technically, it was the second time I got her number. I couldn’t believe I had nearly missed out because I didn’t pay attention to a stupid post-it.

It rang twice before she picked up.

“Hello, stranger,” Natalia’s voice came through.

“Coffee,” I said simply, leaning against the edge of my desk. “Downstairs. You in?”

She laughed softly. “Always so straightforward. You could at least try to woo me.”

“You need wooing now?” I shot back. “Last I checked, you said yes without any of that. But I would be happy to woo you. I will woo you so hard your head will spin.”

She giggled. “Is that innuendo I’m picking up on?”

“Do you want it to be?”

“Are you talking dirty to me?”

I grinned so big it almost hurt. “That is not dirty, but I can do that.”

“Stop it. I’ll get coffee with you, but don’t try to pull me into a closet. I have a ton of work to do.”

“How about if I pull you into the bathroom?” I offered.

“You’re bad.”

I smiled. “Alright, meet me downstairs in ten. And prepare to be wooed.”

“I’ll be counting the minutes,” she said.

There was a new sort of electricity in the air, sparking with anticipation. It wasn’t just about Hanna anymore. It was about the woman who had chosen to be by my side. I couldn’t wait to marry her. I was going to spend every day for the rest of my life showing her how special she was. I was never going to give her a reason to distrust me. What her ex did to her was going to be erased from her memory. I was going to fill every space in her mind with me and happy memories.

I stepped out of my office and nearly ran into Jerrod with a smug look on his face.

“What?” I asked.

“Look at you. Riding high on your New Year’s Eve success.”

I raised an eyebrow. “You mean Hanna?”

“Sure,” he said, his grin widening. “And the fact that you pinned down the only woman in the world who can keep up with you. Congrats on both.”

“Thanks.”

“Seriously, though. You’ve got it all right now. It’s good to see. You deserve a good woman, and Natalia is about as good as they come. Good job. I hope you are going to ride this high for a good long while.”

“I am,” I said. “Speaking of having it all, have you taken her out for dinner yet, or are you still just making excuses?”

Jerrod’s face went red. He sputtered. “W-what? I don’t⁠—”

I clapped him on the back, cutting him off. “Be brave, Jerrod. Ask the girl out already.”

He opened his mouth, then closed it again, looking like a fish out of water. “I—fine,” he muttered, throwing his hands up. “I’m not as smooth as you are.”

“Trust me, I’m far from smooth. I just got lucky and got the right girl to look my way. And Penelope is looking your way. Make it happen.”

“I will,” he said.

“Don’t screw it up.”

I walked to the elevator, anxious to see my lady. The doors slid open just as I arrived. I stepped inside, expecting to head down to meet Natalia in the lobby. But she was already there, leaning casually against the back wall of the elevator, looking up at me with a playful smile.

“You always do like to be early,” I said, stepping closer, the doors sliding shut behind me.

Her gaze flicked up and down my body. “All that flirting on the phone got me fired up.”

“Oh yeah?” I asked.

I reached out and pressed the “Stop” button. The elevator jerked to a halt. We were suspended somewhere between floors, cocooned in our own private space.

“Are we going to do this every time?” she asked, breathless as I caged her in, my hands on either side of her head, trapping her against the wall. Her eyes were bright, her lips parted, like she couldn’t decide if she wanted to scold me or kiss me.

“They have cameras in here, you know,” she added, a little more sternly, but I could see the spark of excitement in her eyes.

I leaned in close, my lips brushing against the soft skin of her neck. “Then I’ll just buy the building and reserve an elevator for just you and me. No one else can use our elevator.”

She laughed, the sound low and husky, wrapping her arms around my waist and pulling me closer. “You’re ridiculous,” she whispered, but there was no real reprimand in her voice. If anything, she sounded a little awed.

“Maybe,” I murmured, pressing a kiss to her jaw, feeling her shiver against me. “But you like it.”

She grabbed my shirt front like she usually did, anchoring herself to me as if I were the only thing keeping her grounded. And maybe I was, but she had no idea how much I needed her, too. I couldn’t get enough of her, and I didn’t think I ever would.

“You know, one of these days we’re going to get busted.”

“I don’t care,” I said.

She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling, too. “You’re impossible.”

“Only with you,” I admitted, pressing my forehead to hers. “And you love it.”

She sighed, leaning into me like she was finally giving in. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “I really do.”

We stayed like that for a moment, just breathing each other in. Finally, she pulled back, smoothing her hands down her blouse, trying to regain her composure. “Alright,” she said, pressing the button to start the elevator again. “Let’s go get that coffee.”

The elevator jolted back into motion. I stepped away, giving her space. But I couldn’t help the smirk on my face as we descended.

“Something funny?” she asked, glancing over at me with a raised eyebrow.

“Just thinking,” I said, sliding my hands into my pockets.

“About what?”

I turned to her, my smirk widening into a full smile. “About how lucky I am.”

She actually blushed. It was the best thing I’d seen all day. “You’re trying to woo me again,” she said.

“I haven’t even started wooing you.”

She looked happy. Content. And that was everything.

The doors opened, and we stepped out into the lobby. The coffee shop in the lobby was busy as usual. I reached for her hand, squeezing it as we walked over to the counter.

The barista, a muscular guy in his mid-thirties with tattoos covering his arms, looked up from his espresso machine, an easy grin on his face. “Hey, Fox. Your usual?”

“Yes please, and whatever the lady likes.”

We took our coffees, but instead of going right back to the elevator, we sat down at one of the small tables.

“How is the launch going?” she asked.

“Amazing,” I said. “Thanks to you.”

“You’re the one who created it.”

“Still, without your ideas, none of this would be happening.”

We sat in silence, nursing our coffees and watching the world go by.

“Thank you,” she said. “I appreciate that.”

“You’re welcome. I love you.”

“I love you.” She laughed. “You’re so cheesy.”

“But you’re stuck with me now.”

“Am I?” she asked, raising an eyebrow as she took a sip of her coffee.

I leaned across the table, lowering my voice. “You said yes, didn’t you?”

She smiled. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “I did.”

“So,” I said, after a while. “What’s next for us?”

She tilted her head, studying me. “You tell me, Mr. CEO. You’re the one with the plan.”

“The plan is simple,” I said. “We build something amazing together. We’re going to have it all. The house. The family. The picket fence. All of it.”

“I like that plan.”

For the first time in a long time, I felt like everything was exactly as it should be. Like I had everything I needed, right here in front of me.

And I wasn’t about to let it go.