Married At First Glance: I Am Not Ugly

“I hope I’m living up to that expectation.”

“You are,” she said.

“That’s high praise,” he said, smiling at me.

“I’m glad to be making such a good impression. But what makes me so adventurous, I wonder?”

She thought for a moment. “It’s not just one thing,” she said.

“It’s a combination of things: your willingness to try new things, your determination to get what you want even if the means isn’t the best way to achieve your goal. I must say, I’m impressed.”

He was quiet for a moment, considering my words.

“I like that description,” he said, as he took another sip of his tea.

“I know that this whole fake marriage contract thing for three months isn’t the best idea, but I was desperate to get this contract and I didn’t want to lose it to Jaimie Fernado.”

“Who is this guy you’ve been mentioning a lot?” she asked.

“He’s an asshole and I feel he doesn’t deserve to take on this project. He’s the CEO of Markwell’s company. My rival.” he explained.

“Wow… you have a rival huh?” she asked.Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

He nodded.

“Hmm-mmm.”

“I don’t like to think of him as a rival,” he said, “but rather as someone who is always trying to one-up me.

He’s always trying to outdo me, and it’s really frustrating. But I try not to let it get to me. I just focus on doing my best work and trying to make the world a better place.”

“That’s a good attitude to have,” she said. “You can’t control what other people do, but you can control your own actions and how you react to things.”

“Exactly,” he said. “So when I asked Jessie to marry me so I could secure the contract, Jessie told me that she wasn’t ready to get married.

Because of her job and she was pursuing a big promotion.” he explained.

“I understand that you didn’t have a choice, but what if she finds out that you are fake married to someone just to secure a contract. Don’t you think she would be angry?” she asked.

“Hmmm…. she would but I had no choice. If I had to make that decision, I will make it again and honestly… I would choose you over and over again.” he said, and took a sip of his coffee.

Marissa blushed at his words.

“Why did you say that?”

“Because you helped me secure the contract. I mean I thought you would just need to be there to prove to them that we were married even though it’s fake but they don’t know that.

But I never thought they would throw all the questions at you and you answered them so brilliantly.” he said.

“I appreciate your confidence in me,” she said, “but I think you should give yourself more credit.

You were the one who put in all the work, and you were the one who made the winning pitch.

All I did was show up and answer some questions. You did all the hard work.”

“But you were the one who helped me relax and made me less nervous, and that helped me give a better presentation,” he said.

“And your support means the world to me.”

“You’re very sweet,” she said.

“I never believed that you would be this nice.”

“Hmm-mmm… see you judged me.” he said.

“Hahahaha…. I admit I did a lot of times.” she admitted.

He smiled back and sighed looking out the window.

“This country is so beautiful and relaxing…. I guess I needed the break from all the work.” he said.

“I guess you do. You can’t always work and work. You need to rest and relax sometime.” she said.

“You’re absolutely right,” he said. “It’s so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life, but it’s important to take some time to slow down and appreciate the little things.

I think I’ve lost sight of that over the past few years, but being here with you has helped me to remember what’s really important in life.”

She smiled at him and reached out to squeeze his hand. “I’m glad you feel that way. And I’m glad we’re here together.”

He looked at her, his eyes softening. “I am too,” he said.

Just then Marissa snapped back and realized what she did and immediately removed her hand.

“I’m sorry…. I shouldn’t have done that.” she said.

Things were a bit awkward between them, as there was silence as they both sipped their tea in silence.

Marissa wondered if Alexander was beginning to feel what she was feeling as well.

She was falling for her fake husband and wondered if he was already falling for her as well.

“So are you going to tell Jessie about our fake marriage when we get back to New York?”

“That’s a tough question,” he said, “and I haven’t really thought about it. Jessie’s my girlfriend and I don’t want to hurt her, but I also don’t want to lie to her.

It’s a difficult situation, but I’ll have to figure out what to do when we get back.”

Marissa could tell he was conflicted, and she felt sorry for putting him in this position.

“I understand,” she said. “Just know that whatever you decide to do, I’ll support you.”

He looked at her, a grateful smile on his face.

“I don’t want to lie to her anymore…. I know that if she finds out, she will be angry with me…”

“Yeah, I can imagine that would be a difficult conversation,” she said.

“Do you think she’ll be able to understand why you did it? I mean, you didn’t want to lie to her, but you were put in a tough situation.”

He sighed. “I hope so,” he said. “But I know it’s going to be hard for her to hear.

She’s always been a straight-shooter, and I don’t think she’ll appreciate that I’ve been keeping secrets from her.”

“Well, honesty is always the best policy,” she said.