Arvil was tempted to tell her she was not a prostitute, but he bit his tongue. Instead, he chuckled into the speaker.
“Because they’ve got nothing better to do, and this is like entertainment to them,” he answered, a little bitterness to his voice. “The video’s up, darling. I called you to let you know.”
“They shouldn’t be entertained by the real lives of real people,” Daisy muttered, knowing full and well that she sometimes was amused by the lives of celebrities. This was different from what she liked, though. These were nasty rumors, not funny stories. “Could you send me the link?”
“Of course,” Arvil said, opening YouTube to find the video so he could send it to her. He didn’t comment on her first remark, though. He let it slide by. “There we go; tell me if you received it.”
Daisy clucked on the link when it showed up, sending it to her laptop. “I got it. Thank you. Was that all, then?”
“Yes, that was all,” Arvil responded as he started his car, setting his phone away. “They uploaded it pretty quickly.”
“Yeah, I’m surprised they did. That means they didn’t edit anything, too, which means that all your answers are correct and not altered,” Daisy mused. “That’s good.”
“It wasn’t a rehearsed interview,” Arvil said to her as he drove out of the parking lot. “Anyway, you should get back to whatever you were doing. I need to catch something to eat, and then I have a meeting with my team in fifteen.”
“All right. I’m going to watch this first, and then I was working on an article. Enjoy your lunch, and good luck in your meeting,” Daisy said, glancing toward be kitchen as she realized she should probably eat something as well.
“Okay,” Arvil nodded even though she couldn’t see him. “Good luck, darling. I’ll see you later.”
Daisy hummed, her article already up again. She noticed every time he called her darling, but she refused to acknowledge it. Or admit how warm it made her feel.
“Talk to you later. Maybe I’ll bring lunch again sometime this week,” she murmured, somewhat distracted.
“Do give me a call this time. You already know my number,” he replied nonchalantly, turning on the indicator for the left turn. “Take care.”
“To let you know ahead of time? Sure,” Daisy agreed, sitting back on her heels and peering at the screen again. “Later, Arvil.”
A few hours after the interview had been released, Daisy’s phone rang as she was making herself dinner. She quickly grabbed it without taking her eyes off of the pan of spaghetti sauce she was cooking and answered it.
“Hello, this is Daisy Riley.”
”Daisy Elizabeth Riley, why didn’t you tell me that you were with Arvil Davis?” Her mother’s voice came through the phone loudly, and she held it away from her face to sigh. ”You would have saved your father and I the trouble of having to find a man for you.”
“Nice to talk to you, too, mom…”
Arvil didn't always get out of work early, but this time, he decided to leave with the rest of his employees. It was about eight in the evening, and to say that he was tired would be an understatement. So when he got home, the first thing he did was take a long, relaxing shower.
A while later, Arvil emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and a smaller one on his head. He was rubbing his hair dry when his phone began to ring. Upon seeing the ID as his fake girlfriend, he sighed.
"Hello, darling," he said, pressing the phone to his ear. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"
Daisy hadn’t wanted to have to call Arvil, seeing as they’d spoken only hours ago. However, she figured she should tell him about the call from her mother.
“My mother. She saw the interview and called me,” she began, her thumb and forefinger pressed to her forehead. “She wants to meet you.”
Arvil took a seat on the edge of his bed and began to rub his hair with one hand while the other kept his phone near his ear.
"Fantastic," he said, though what he was thinking was the exact opposite. It wouldn't be long before his family grilled him, too. "When?"
“As soon as possible…” Daisy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I’m sorry to drag you into this further.”
"I know what I agreed to, darling," Arvil said as he put his phone on speaker and tossed it to the bed. He proceeded to dry himself off to dress. "Especially after what I'd said on television. So, no apologies necessary."
Daisy hummed, bringing her legs up to curl then underneath herself. “All right. If you’re sure… When are you free, then? Not today, but within this next week or so.”
"I'm not sure," Arvil sighed, sliding on his sweatpants. "I'll have to check in my schedule with Noah first."
“Okay. Well, let me know. The sooner we get this over with, the better. She won’t be calling me constantly to make sure we’re still together,” Daisy muttered, shaking her head.
"And when are we going to drop this charade?" he questioned, picking up his phone again and pressing it to his ear. "Two months? Six?"
Daisy froze. They hadn’t actually discussed the time limit… That would be the hardest part. “Maybe six months? Or sooner, if need be. Two months doesn’t seem like enough.”
“I’d have to agree with that,” he mused. “I’ll have to tolerate you for six more months.”
Daisy hummed, rolling her eyes even though she knew he couldn’t see her. “Oh, I suppose you will. I’ll just have to put up with you for that long, too.”