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<\/p>\nJake\u2019s words hit me harder than I expected. I felt tears welling up as I clinked glasses with him. My parents beamed, thinking that this was an authentic relationship.<\/p>\n
Even my sister looked taken aback.<\/p>\n
After the toast, I pulled Jake aside.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you,\u201d I said softly. \u201cYou\u2019re an amazing actor, but I don\u2019t know how I can ever repay you for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jake took my hand, his eyes softening.<\/p>\n
\u201cLara,\u201d he said, matching my tone. \u201cI wasn\u2019t acting, you know. Everything I said was true. I\u2019ve been falling for you since the moment we met.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at him, my heart pounding.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we only met because I hired you for this night,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
He shrugged, a small smile playing on his lips.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, life is funny like that, isn\u2019t it?\u201d he said. \u201cSometimes these things happen when we\u2019re not looking for them. I\u2019d like to try things officially. With you, I mean.\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded, smiling.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d like that too.\u201d<\/p>\n
We joined the family and sat down to eat large slices of cake.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A birthday cake on a table | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n
Even now, months later, Jake and I are still together and happy. We never quite told the family that I hired Jake. To them, he was the boyfriend who showed up and swept me off my feet. And in a way, that was true.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re telling me that only I know the truth?\u201d Kate asked as we sat in my living room with face masks.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes!\u201d I replied. \u201cJake and I didn\u2019t want to tell my family the truth because you know how Emily is. She\u2019ll have a field day about this. Her pathetic younger sister who couldn\u2019t find herself a boyfriend, so she hired him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you did find a boyfriend,\u201d Kate pointed out.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did,\u201d I admitted. \u201cAnd he has also left the agency as well. So, he\u2019s serious about this. That\u2019s new for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
A few weeks later, I went home to my parents\u2019 house for tea. For once, I wasn\u2019t dreading being there, because they knew about Jake.<\/p>\n
But it was there that Emily revealed something to me. We were in the kitchen, doing the dishes when my sister turned to me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry I\u2019ve been so nasty,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I didn\u2019t mean to be so harsh with Jake when he came over for Dad\u2019s birthday. It brought up some stuff for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t tell you this, but I broke up with Paul. He wasn\u2019t away for work during Dad\u2019s birthday. Our engagement has been broken off for months. I\u2019ve been bitter about your happiness.\u201d<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t understand why my sister carried the burden by herself, but at least she was open to talking to me now.<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t know how long this new, vulnerable version of my sister will last, but let\u2019s see what happens next.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jake\u2019s words hit me harder than I expected. I felt tears welling up as I clinked glasses with him. My parents beamed, thinking that this was an… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5348,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5346","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n