Hired a Gigolo, Got a Billionaire

Chapter 222 Monday morning hit like a slap of reality. The second I stepped into the office, I felt the looks. Not direct ones, but those quick glances followed by whispers and half-hidden smiles that twisted my stomach. The story of my disastrous night had spread through the office like wildfire. "Good morning, Annie," Margaret said as I passed reception, but there was something in her tone that hadn't been there on Friday. A mix of pity and thinly veiled amusement. "Morning," I answered, trying to hold on to whatever dignity I had left as I walked the halls to my desk.

James was talking with two guys from finance near the water cooler, and when they saw me, they switched topics fast. But not before I caught something about "fake professors" and "never seen anyone run out of a party that fast." "How was your weekend?" Gwen asked once I sat down, her voice carefully neutral. "I survived," I muttered, turning on my computer a little harder than necessary. "Do you want to talk about...?" "No." Gwen nodded softly and went back to her work, though I could feel her worry. Around ten, when I went to grab coffee, I found a small crowd gathered around the machine.

James, Margaret, two people from marketing, and Sarah from HR. The conversation died the moment they saw me. "Hi, Annie," Sarah said with a smile that was way too sweet to be real. "How are you feeling after... well, the party?" "I'm great, thanks," I said, grabbing a cup and pouring coffee like it was the most normal thing in the world. "Must have been... interesting," Nick said, clearly fishing. "I heard there was some kind of incident." I felt every pair of eyes in the room on me, waiting. For a second, I considered running. Hiding. Letting the shame swallow me until people got bored.

But then something in me snapped. Why should I be the only one embarrassed? Why should I carry the weight of one terrible date alone? "Oh, yeah," I said lightly, stirring sugar into the coffee. "It was a spectacular disaster. The guy made up an entire academic career. Said he was a medieval history professor but didn't even know when the Middle Ages happened." "Wow," Sarah murmured, fully invested now. "And that wasn't even the worst part," I went on, realizing I had their full attention.

history book from a restaurant menu." "And here I thought my dates were bad." Margaret looked genuinely offended on my behalf. "Speaking of bad dates," James jumped in, "do you guys remember when I went out with that woman who brought her mother? Without warning?" 1/3 Chapter 222 +25 Bonus "That's nothing," Sarah laughed. "I once met a guy who spent forty-five minutes explaining why he still lived with his

double bacon burger on the first date," Margaret added, making everyone laugh. The conversation turned into a full-blown competition of terrible date stories. Each person tried to top the last with something even more ridiculous. James talked about a woman who collected fingernails. Sarah

an Excel spreadsheet," he said gravely. "A spreadsheet with evaluation criteria for potential partners. She literally graded me during dinner." "No way," Margaret burst out laughing. "I got a six out of ten. Lost points because I wear glasses and because 'my posture could be better."" Everyone cracked up, and for the first time since Friday, I felt

if there were a filter to weed out compulsive liars," James added. "If there were, the apps would be empty," Michael said dryly, earning another round of laughter. I

fake professor" anymore. I was just one more person trying to navigate the minefield of modern dating. "Looks like the group therapy session worked," Gwen said when I sat down. "It