The Billionaire's Pretend Wife (Isabella)

The flowers were so many, that by the time the couple finished cleaning them up, it was already midnight.

Isabelle made a comment about how they were so much more than she had initially thought, but she didn't ask how much they had cost again. Which was good, he thought. She would probably have an aneurysm if she knew.

Once they were all packed into bags, he made a call to Kevin to bring a couple of his subordinates to come and get them. It would take a few men to carry them all out of the apartment within the shortest time possible.

By the time they arrived, Isabelle had gone to the bathroom to take a shower. When she had gotten back from work, she wouldn't have guessed that she would spend the evening cleaning up flowers. She wondered whether they had been delivered with a lorry or something.

After taking a shower, she walked back to the kitchen to find food. It was very late, but she was yet to have dinner, and all the flower-gathering activity had left her feeling famished.

She was having a bowl of noodles at the dining table when Jacob appeared and placed a wad of cash next to her. She gave the cash a quizzical look before turning her gaze to him. "That's what I got back from the flower shop," he told her. "Since you won't accept the flowers, at least keep this.”

Isabelle sighed and looked away. Ignoring the fact that she thought him buying a truckload of flowers was not a financially smart move, she did like receiving flowers from him.

Had he bought her flowers before, and not spent so much on them, she would have probably been touched. It was a sweet gesture. But what did a bunch-more than a bunch, actually-of flowers mean when he didn't trust her? That was what made it so hard for her to forget it all and move on.

"You can keep it," she told him. "I told you that I don't want your money."

Jacob frowned at her response, but he took the money away and left her alone. As he walked away, she wondered whether she was being unfair to him. Or perhaps too harsh.

He was obviously determined to get back on her good side, and was doing his best to win her over. Why was it so damned hard to get over the fact that he didn't trust her?

***

When Jason's phone rang past midnight and he saw Jacob's name on the caller ID, he knew right away that the man was calling with news of how his suggestion to get flowers for his wife had turned out. He was so confident that it had worked that when he received the call, he asked right away, "What's my reward?"

When Jacob replied, he didn't sound happy. At all. "Reward?" he growled, and Jason pulled the phone away from his ear, as if afraid Jacob would reach through it and smack him. "Wait," Jason said, losing the excitement in his voice. "It didn't work?"

"Flowers?" Jacob scoffed. "I filled the entire house with them and do you think she even commented on how beautiful they were? You said they would be sentimental. All she could think about was cleaning them up and returning them to the shop because she thought they were a waste of money. Do you have any more suggestions to fuck me up?"

Jason bit down on his bottom lip at the anger in Jacob's voice. He was really angry. The kind of anger that Jason knew that if he showed up at work with, would spell doom on everyone who crossed paths with him.

Work at the Larson Group was never easy when the boss was in a foul mood. And as the vice president, he constantly came directly into contact with that anger. He would rather not.

His eyes fell on a stack of books that lay on his bedside cabin. They were his girlfriend's books, and they were all romance novels. He had read quite a few of them, and looking at them, he knew what Jacob should do to finally get on his wife's good side.

"There are other methods you can try," he suggested, tentatively, because he wasn't sure Jacob was up for more of his suggestions. Not after his first two had failed spectacularly.

"What methods?" Jacob demanded. Then he added, "If they involve money, do not even bother. They will not work."

"They don't," Jason assured him. "I think you should try the methods in my girlfriend's books."

"Books?" Jacob asked, sounding confused.

"The male leads in her books have methods that always work with the heroine," Jason supplied. "No matter how angry the heroine is, she always gives in. Maybe you can discover a few secrets." "You want me to read romance novels to figure out how to deal with my wife?" Jacob asked, his tone suggesting he thought the idea ridiculous.

Jason shrugged. "Women love these kinds of books, and they never get enough of them. Not to mention they always end up thirsting after the male leads. That means the male leads are doing something right don't you think?"

"Fine," Jacob agreed, "you have a point. Bring me the books tomorrow. If this doesn't work-" he trailed off threateningly.

"It will," Jason assured him. It worked for tons of male leads. Why not for his boss?

The next day, he walked into Jacob's office with a stack of books under his arm. He had even asked his girlfriend which ones had the best male lead, so he was confident he was giving his boss the best cheat sheets possible.

One was titled Marry the Devil; He's Too Hot. From the title alone, he could tell it was suitable for Jacob's situation. If the so-called devil was able to charm the heroine, his methods must be quite impressive. Another was called Fake Bride, True Love. That too was promising. If the male lead could find love with a fake bride, Jacob could definitely learn a thing or two about pleasing his wife from him.

A third was titled Mr Tycoon's Lovely Wife. Good. A male lead who was a tycoon just like Jacob. Maybe he had a few tricks up his sleeves that didn't involve money.

After Jason left, Jacob gave the books an hesitant look at first, but eventually picked up one. He found all of the titles to be quite suggestive, and he was shocked to find that the titles were just a tip of the iceberg.

It didn't take long for him to identify a certain pattern whenever the hero and heroine got into a quarrel.

Often, no matter what the argument was about, the couple ended up solving it by making passionate love. After that, all seemed to be forgotten, and the couple went back to their loving, happy ways.

He wondered whether that would really work in real life, or whether the authors were exaggerating. But then he remembered that Jason had said women loved such books, and even fell for the fictional male leads.

In all the books, the passionate love making seemed to be the most common and successful way to make up after a quarrel. Sure, he and Isabelle had never made love before, but what if it was the only thing that would work?

Besides, she had shown before that she was attracted to him. It wouldn't hurt to try...right?