FAKE DATE WITH THE HOCKEY CHAMPION

ANNA’S POV

The room suddenly went quiet, all attention fixed on him as he made his way up the stairs towards me.

My hands suddenly went cold.How was it possible Connor was helping me? He hated me; he wouldn't even look at me whenever we met for our project assignments.

Besides that, he was Conner Edison, my stepbrother's rival, the hockey team star, every girl's dream guy. He had girls flocking around him incessantly, so I panicked.

He stretched out his hands towards me, a gesture to help me up. I looked around; I felt stared on me, My eyes lit up, not from joy but from doubt.

"She wrote those letters to me. It wasn't for Elijah, so you can back down now," he said in my defense.

"Come on, Conn, you know that's a lie. How do you explain those letters on my boyfriend's car?"

"That's a dumb question to ask, Cathy. You know how much your boy loves to copy me.

He even got the exact color and model of car as I." He paused and looked at me, a smirk escaping the corner of his mouth, then continued.

"She must have left those letters on his car, thinking it was mine. You know how she is; my baby is very clumsy." He said it pulling me closer to himself, my shoulder against his, in a fit to present more convincing.

"Come off it, Conn. You know she's not your type. I know what you like; remember, I'm your friend. I know you like the palm of my hands. She's way beneath you. Look at her," Cathy replied.

Elijah stood by, watching the whole drama. I couldn't read his face anymore; I couldn't figure if it was disgust or pity, but he sure wasn't believing this story. I panicked.

"And I'm sure no one is aware of this, but we're together. We've been seeing each other for quite some time, and I love this little nerd," Conner said, making it even worse than it was. I felt completely lost in a story that clearly included me in it. My glasses had gone foggy again from the heat blowing off my breath; I wiped them once more to get a clearer view.

"So why don't you kiss her, if she's really your girlfriend?" Elijah said provokingly, seeking a reaction from Connor. They had been in competition for so long, I couldn't figure out if he said that to mock him or because he meant well for me as his stepsister.

Connor looked at me, fretting under him. He knew I was naïve and inexperienced; it was also too soon for such. His eyes looked like he was rethinking his decision, but before I could conclude a conversation in my head, he kissed me.

His hands firmly placed around my waist and on my chin, he pulled me in, his lips placed on mine. I could feel the softness and warmth of his lower lip; my heart stopped.

I came here to confess my feelings to my stepbrother, and now I'm caught in a kiss with the school's most wanted playboy. It felt like a dream, but I couldn't do anything about it. I had to play along for my own sanity.

"Convinced enough, loser?" Conner said, pulling away from me gently, leaving my stepbrother, his girlfriend, and the entire party in total silence.

"Let it be known henceforth that Anna Lyncyth is my girlfriend, and anyone who dares bully her will have to face me," Conner declared publicly, his voice loud as it echoed across the entire room. Now no one could bully me anymore, including Cathy, I hoped. She was his friend, and I doubted if she would follow through with his warning.

"Let's get out of here, Anna," he said, holding my hands, leading me out of the party. All eyes were fixed on us as we walked out side by side. Murmurs resounded across the room; I could tell it was about me, but there was nothing I could do about it.

He looked unbothered and calm, like it was all planned out in his head, but for me it was like a volcano erupting.

When we came out of the house to the front yard, I expected he would let go of my hands, since the drama was over and there was no need for the pretense anymore, but he held onto my hands still.

"The first one is mine. Get in," he said bluntly, finally letting go of my hands, pointing towards his car parked at the corner.

I got into the car, sitting right beside him, my eyes focused in front of me. I tried to avoid eye contact; I needed him to say something first. I was dying to get an explanation for the drama.

"So, your place or mine?" he asked me firmly. My mouth swung open in shock.