CH 1

A black car pulled up to the side of the street in front of a posh condominium building in a high-class neighborhood.

The car's back window rolled down, revealing a woman wearing dark sunglasses. She looked at the building's front driveway, which was currently being blocked by countless numbers of paparazzi, her lips forming a hard line.

She rolled her window back up. “Take the back entrance,” she instructed the driver.

The car moved once again, turning right at the corner.

When the car reached the building's back gate, the driver flashed his ID and the security guard immediately opened the gate. He had seen them enough times to recognize the car without the driver having to show his identification, but he had protocols to follow. He was glad that these people understood since he had his fair share of entitled guests who demand to be let in even without showing an ID.

The car stopped at the back driveway and three people alighted, one of which was the woman with sunglasses. She quickly walked into the building, followed by a man and a younger woman who were both wearing corporate outfits.

But it was the woman herself who, despite her simpler attire, possessed an aura that elicits reverence. She was an image of respectability; casual yet poised, simple yet dignified. Her striking red hair was coiled into a loose bun at the back of her head. She was wearing a white blazer on top of a plain black blouse, a dark blue pair of slacks that rest just above her ankles, and black loafers.

“Kent,” she said as they stopped in front of the elevator. “Take Alexa with you and go out front. I trust you can handle the crowd outside the lobby.”

“Of course,” the man replied.

She turned to the girl beside him. “Watch him closely and learn. Meet me upstairs when you are done.”

“Yes ma'am,” the girl replied, bowing her head nervously.

The elevator door opened, and the woman quickly stepped inside. “Get going, then,” she said as she turned to face the two who were still standing outside.

Quickly, they left as the elevator door closed.

She crossed her arms against her chest as she stood waiting. She glanced thoughtfully at her wristwatch. The two would probably be upstairs after thirty minutes. She took off her sunglasses to reveal a pair of bright blue eyes.

She got off at the 15th floor and walked through the hallway to find door number 1503. After giving the door three sharp knocks, a grim-faced middle-aged woman emerged to greet her.

“Oh, thank goodness you're here, Miss Ryan!” she said, relief evident on her face.

“Hello Miss Grace. Where is she?” The woman asked as she stepped inside the apartment unit.

Before Grace could open her mouth to reply, another sound came from inside.

“Big Sis!” A beautiful girl emerged and threw herself in the woman's arms.

“Are you alright?” she asked the girl with a look of concern.

The girl nodded meekly, but a quick look at her face told quite a different story. Her face looked haggard and her eyes were swollen. She probably hadn't gotten much sleep.

Gently, the woman ushered the girl to sit on the living room couch.

“Tell me everything that happened.”

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The crowd outside the building was a sight that made Alexa's knees wobble. She wanted to turn on her heels and leave the way they came in, but she knew she needed to stay if she wanted to keep her job.

“I'm going to talk to the reporters. Stay behind me.”

“Yes, sir,” she nodded.

The man walking briskly in front of her was her senior, Kent Knowles, and also her boss' assistant. He was known in the company as someone highly competent for his age, and the only one who was able to work under the boss for over three months.

The moment Kent stepped outside the front door, the horde of reporters gathered around him like vultures who had caught a whiff of fresh carcass.

“Mr. Knowles, are you here to represent Crystal James?”

“Mr. Knowles, what is the agency's stand on this issue?”

“Is it true that Crystal has left the country?

“Is Crystal denying this scandal?”

“What is her relationship with Andrew Bennett?”

“Is it true that these photos were done by many different men?”

“Mr. Knowles, why hasn't she released any statement regarding these photos?”

The rapid succession of questions made Alexa feel dizzy. She watched in admiration as Kent stood calmly in front of the seemingly rabid crowd while they vie to get a microphone — even a cellphone — closer to his face.

Kent patiently held up one hand and everyone became silent.

“Thank you, everyone, for coming here today. Miss Crystal James will answer all of your questions at the press conference tomorrow. Our representatives will send the pertinent details later, so please leave your contact details to one of our staff.”

At the hint of a pause, the reporters once again began their barrage of questions, which Kent sternly refused.

“I'm sorry, but I must ask that you reserve your questions until tomorrow. For the meantime, I would like to invite you all inside the lobby for some refreshments.”

With that, the crowd of reporters quietly dispersed; some entered the building to take Kent on his offer, while others packed up their equipment and left.

Alexa watched in amazement at how quickly and efficiently Kent was able to break up the mob. No wonder the boss trusted him a lot. Is this what the boss wanted her to learn?

She shook her head. No way can she do this kind of thing. The simple thought of facing that mob felt as if they were out for her blood. She shuddered upon recalling the scene when Kent faced them.

“Hey.”

The sound of his voice jolted her from her thoughts.

“This is not the time to be daydreaming. We better go upstairs.” He looked at his watch. “Thirty minutes is almost up.”

“Huh?”

“We're going to be late if you don't keep up.” He was already walking to the elevator.

“But she said nothing about the time...” She felt confused, but chased him nonetheless.

“Miss Ryan is the type of boss that demands efficiency and quick action from her staff. Knowing her, she probably gave us just 30 minutes to finish this task.”

When Kent and Alexa arrived at the suite, they found their boss, Lia Ryan, sitting on the living room couch. She was patiently consoling a distraught young woman who was crying her eyes out on her shoulder.

The young woman in question was Crystal James, a young actress who is currently hailed as a rising star in the entertainment industry — the very same person who the horde of reporters were asking about.

A lot of people have been predicting her future rise to fame and success, but the recent scandal is bound to bring the young actress' ascent to an abrupt halt.

“Well?” Lia prompted upon seeing the two come in.

“The reporters have all been taken care of,” Kent informed her. “The details of the presscon will be disseminated to all who were present.”

“Are you sure this will work?” Crystal asked Lia.

“Trust me,” was her only reply.

She patted the younger woman's head and proceeded to stand up. “We better get going. Just remember what I told you and let me handle the rest. Get some sleep. I want to see life in those eyes tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Big Sis!” Crystal said, a smile finally breaking on her face.

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Lia's cellphone rang the moment she arrived in her office.

“Hello Grandma,” she greeted in a neutral voice.

“You don't seem to be so happy to hear me, Lia,” came the stern reply.

“Are you bringing me good news?” she retorted half seriously. The only time her grandmother calls is when she wants her to go on a date with Alejandro, a son of one of her father's friends.

“Of course! Alejandro said he is coming to the city in a few days…”

“Grandma…” 

Alejandro Contreras, her childhood best friend. Even now, as adults, they still retained that closeness. They would sometimes chat over the phone or have dinner together just to catch up on what's happening with the other. Alejandro has always been open with Lia, so she knows exactly what he thinks about this arrangement.

“Why don't you like Alejandro? He's a nice young man.”

“He's in love with someone else, Grandma. You're putting him in a tight spot.”

“Nonsense! His father was just telling your father how he would love to have you as his daughter-in-law.”

“That's because Uncle Eduardo doesn't like Alejandro's girlfriend because she comes from a middle-class family. Alejandro loves Misha very much and wants to marry her.”

“Fine. But Magnolia, you are almost thirty and still unmarried.” 

“First of all, I am only 27, and second, there are plenty of women my age who have yet to get married, Grandma.”

“I don't care about all those women. What I care about is why my beautiful little granddaughter still has no man by her side.”

“But...”

“Magnolia, I am already very old. My only remaining wish is to be able to see that you have a good man beside you before I meet my maker.”

“Then I won't find a man so you won't have to go.”

“You unfilial girl. You want your grandmother to die with regrets and let my soul roam instead of going straight to heaven?”

Lia sighed. She felt tired after having attended meetings the entire day and handling Crystal's crisis on top of that. It might have been her exhaustion. Or her frustration. But the next words that went out of her mouth was something that she herself did not expect to hear.

“Will a boyfriend do?”

“What?”

“Will you feel better if I got a boyfriend?”

“O-of course,” the voice on the other line became unsure. “Are you saying you have a boyfriend?”

The dice has been cast. No going back now. She can only just go with it. If anything, she only needs to send her grandmother a few photos of her having fun with a guy. She figured she would do anything just to get her grandmother to stop sending her off to blind dates.

“Well, I've kinda been seeing someone lately…” she began. “It's nothing serious yet so I didn't want to introduce him to the family so soon…”

“Tell me about him.”

“How about I send you some photos…”

“No. Nevermind. I need to meet the man you've chosen. I'm coming over tomorrow. Let's have dinner with your boyfriend.”

“But tomorrow is…”

“No buts, Magnolia. I need to meet this boyfriend you are talking about. You better bring him or I'll have your father bring you back home and marry you off.”

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“What the hell, Lia?”

Marissa Donovan giggled as she crossed her flawless legs. She was sitting on the couch in her office at Donovan-Newport Media.

“Stop laughing, Mari,” Lia said, pouting. “This is serious. Are you helping or not?”

“Who would have thought that the famous Lia Ryan would have days like these too?” Marissa said, clearly amused.

“You know what, forget I asked.” Lia moved towards the door, annoyance clear on her face.

“Jeez. Why so serious?” Marissa looked at her best friend’s face and saw one of Lia's eyebrows shoot up. “Yes, yes, I will help you so could you please just sit down for a moment?”

Lia sat on the couch directly across from her.

“So lemme get this straight,” Marissa began. “You told Grandma Rose that you have a boyfriend even though you didn't, and now she’s coming here tomorrow to meet that non-existent boyfriend?!”

“That pretty much sums it up,” she shrugged.

“What the hell were you thinking?”

Lia sighed, pretending to be nonchalant. “I was just tired. Not just from my workload but from her trying to marry me off to my childhood friend who obviously has no interest in me.”

“Your grandma is soooo going to kill you if she finds out.”

“She won't. Besides, I just needed her off my back for a few months.”

“And you expect me to hook you up with someone?”

“I expect you to hook me up with someone I can hire. There's a difference. You're friends with the owner of that host cafe, right? Tell her I need someone to pretend to be my boyfriend for a while.”