Fake dating my enemy, The playboy billionaire

"Dude, stop staring at her. Or else—"

"Or else what?" Xion interrupts, his smirk as sharp as the edge of a blade. "Throw that cute little punch you use on Zian in the boxing ring? Oh, please."

Infuriating. That’s what he is. With his real-life Clark Kent Superman body, broad shoulders, and years of brutal training, I’m no match for him physically. And let’s not forget—he’s the king of the underworld. I’ll be squished with a single punch. Did that mistake once, and the memory of the punch still haunts my jaw. Nope. Not repeating.

Zian clinks his glass against Xion’s, leaning into the conversation with his usual mischief. "Safe to say, Yiren is Xion’s new target. And judging by the way she’s looking at him, Jun is officially where Shishi and Jianyu were once—completely screwed and jealous."

"Ow—what the hell!" Zian yelps when I kick him under the table. That’s what he gets for taking sides. Lucky bastard, Xion never does anything to tease him with Vivian.

"Did you get the information?" I ask, bringing the topic back to the reason he is here, and also to keep Xion’s gaze off Yiren. I know he’s not actually interested in her. He’s just doing this to rile me up—and yes, it’s working. The guy is insanely handsome and charming and is a women magnet.

Xion twirls a pendrive around his fingers like it’s a damn trophy. "Easy task. Your suspicion was spot on. Every contract you lost in the past two years? All are linked to this person. Heavy bribes were involved. All the evidence are in this."

I reach for the pendrive, but he pulls it back just as my fingers graze it.

"I want what you offered your brothers," Xion says, his tone casual but firm. "I’ll match the price."

"What the—" My brothers burst into laughter. Of course, they’d find this amusing.

"Bloody businessmen," I mutter under my breath. Everyone wants a piece of my new business venture, even before I’ve launched it. Still, I can’t deny the flicker of pride in my chest. These are my people—cutthroat, brilliant, and absolutely relentless. They wouldn’t spend a dime if they didn’t think it was worth it.

"I’ll charge you a 20% premium," I say, crossing my arms. "You--"

"Done," Xion interrupts again, tossing the pendrive at me like it’s nothing.

What? I catch it mid-air, stunned. I should’ve asked for a 100% premium. Of course, this guy can afford it—he’s the wealthiest of all of us.

"What about Bruce—or whatever his name is?" Jianyu asks, shifting the conversation.

"My men are keeping an eye on him," I reply, leaning back in my chair. "He tried to get medical attention for the stab wound, but only we have the antidote to the poison. Right now, he’s desperate."

"Safe to assume he hasn’t passed on the information yet?" Shishi asks, his tone calculated.

"No," I confirm. "He’s ex-navy. He wouldn’t be dumb enough to pass anything along until he’s certain he’s safe."

"You guys did him dirty," Xion comments, shaking his head.

All eyes land on me. I raise my glass, unfazed. "Fruit of the same tree. Touch my girl, you die."

"Damn," Xion whistles, clearly amused. "And here I thought Jun was the soft one."

"That’s how people make the mistake of underestimating him," Shishi chimes in, raising his glass in solidarity.

I nod at him, tipping my drink. "By the way, thanks for not telling Yiren that you all know about the fake relationship."

"Does she like you?" Xion asks, cutting through the banter with a directness that makes me pause.

"Sometimes I think she does," I admit, swirling the amber liquid in my glass. "Other times, her words confuse me."

"Explain," Jianyu prompts, leaning forward.

I sigh, setting my glass down. "One moment, she’s looking at me like I’m the only person in the room. Like last night, she was feeling low and I was a mess after my—so-called love conversation—and needed time to process. So I went to the study. And she came to me in the middle of the night, distressed, vulnerable, and looking for comfort. But the next morning, she was allocating funds for her future—a future where she never talks about family, kids, or getting settled. A future where she doesn’t see me or anyone as a matter of fact." I tell them what I heard of her conversation with Ning, that she doesn’t have any marriage plans.

"Maybe she has some reasons—try talking to her," Zian says.

"Or it’s called being scared. If she does like you, admitting it means facing the possibility of heartbreak as you have a certain reputation. Have you given her any reason to believe you’re serious about her?" Xion says.

"I..." I trail off, caught off guard.

"Exactly. Women don’t just want grand gestures, Jun. They want reassurance," Xion says.

The truth of his words stings, but it’s a sting I needed.

"No, no... it’s something else. Dig deeper," Zian interjects. "There may be something bothering her for taking this huge step... If you’ll—"

"Z, do you know something?" Shishi, the ever-observant, asks, his experienced eyes narrowing at Zian, who fumbles in his seat.

I wait for his answer...

Zian shakes his head.

"You sure?" I look between Shishi and Zian as if they have a different communication going on.

Jianyu claps me on the shoulder. "You’re already halfway there. Just stop being a coward about the other half. Continue to show her how you are the best."

"Coming from the guy who almost blew it with Meimei," I retort, earning laughter from the table.

"Excuse me, I need to check on Vivian." Zian leaves abruptly, and I see Shishi’s eyes are still locked on him.

"I’ll show you a quick demo—" Xion stands, unbuttons his suit jacket, locks his target—my woman, Yiren—and walks in her direction, putting on that smile that always has women swooning. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

I put a foot forward to trip him, but the asshole steps on it. "OUCH!"

4o