Chapter 14 Stopped Faking
“No,” Silas interrupted me as he stared at his mother, “We aren’t going.”
Rose pouted, “Why are you like this, Silas? Don’t you care about me and your wife’s happiness? It’s just three days.”
Silas stared at his mother like she’d just cursed him.
“Three days?” he repeated slowly.
Rose nodded. “In the mountains. Fresh air, hiking, bonding… You’ll thank me later.”
I faked a smile. “Sounds… peaceful.”
Inside, I was panicking. Three days? Alone with Silas? With no work, no distractions?
I could barely survive three minutes without overthinking everything between us.
“I didn’t agree to this,” Silas muttered.
Rose kissed his cheek. “Too bad. I already paid. Pack warm clothes. You leave in the morning.”
Morning came sooner than expected and soon we were on our way.
The car ride was quiet. I kept stealing glances at Silas, but he was staring out the window.
Arms crossed. Jaw tight. Same brooding expression.
“You okay?” I finally asked.
“No,” he replied. “I feel ambushed.”
“Same.”
A pause.
“But… maybe it won’t be that bad,” I added.
He gave me a look. “We’re going to be stuck in some love cabin, pretending to be newlyweds. What part of that doesn’t sound bad?”
“The hot tub?” I offered weakly.
He huffed a laugh. “You’re weird.”
“And you’re grumpy.”
He didn’t reply, but I saw a small smile twitch at the corner of his lips.
The retreat center was perched on a mountain, all wood and stone and cold air.
Everything smelled like pine and cinnamon. Romantic. Cozy. Trapped.
A perky woman named Bonnie handed us our keys. “You’ll be in Cabin Nine! It’s got a fireplace, a king bed, and a stunning view.”
‘King bed?” I echoed.
‘Just one?” Silas added.
5:18 pm RRD
Bonnie beamed. “Of course! It’s a couples retreat!”
We dragged our suitcases through the snow to the cabin. Inside, it was beautiful.
Warm, dimly lit, too intimate. The bed sat in the center like a giant, fluffy mistake.
Silas tossed his bag on the floor. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”
I glanced at the tiny loveseat. “That couch won’t fit your ego, much less your body.”
“Then you take the couch.”
“It’s our honeymoon, remember?” I said with a smirk. “We’re supposed to sleep together.”
Silas ran a hand through his hair. “We can build a wall with pillows.”
“Let’s get ready for the activities first. We can sort this out later,” I said.
The first activity was a trust hike. Blindfolded.
“You’re supposed to guide him,” Bonnie said, tying a blindfold over Silas’s eyes. “Hold his hand. Use your voice. Let him trust you.”
“This is ridiculous,” Silas muttered.
“Shut up and walk,” I said, tugging his hand.
We stumbled through snow, me laughing, him swearing.
“Stop pulling!”
“Stop resisting!”
“You nearly dragged me into a tree.”
“You need to trust me!”
“I trust no one!”
“You married me, didn’t you?”
He stopped. “Yeah ‘cause of my mom.”
After the hike, we had cocoa by the fire with the other couples.
One pair shared how the retreat saved their marriage.
“Do you two fight often?” the woman asked us.
Silas looked at me. “Every day.”
“Every hour,” I added.
“But we’re working on it,” he said, softer this time.
That surprised me.
Later that night, back in our cabin, we sat on opposite sides of the bed fortress.
I stared at the ceiling. “This is weird.”
“What?”
“This whole fake marriage thing. I don’t know how long I can keep pretending.”
He turned to me. “You want out?”
1/4 44.23,
5:18 pm
TIC LUCU
TVU WOHL JUL:
“No,” I said quickly. “I just… It’s getting hard to tell what’s real and what’s not.”
Jasmine’s Pov
Chapter 14 Stopped Faking
“No.” Silas interrupted me as he stared at his mother. “We aren’t going.”
Rose pouted. “Why are you like this, Silas? Don’t you care about me and your wife’s happiness? It’s just three days.”
Silas stared at his mother like she’d just cursed him.
“Three days?” he repeated slowly.
Rose nodde In the mountains. Fresh air, hiking, bonding… You’ll thank me later.”
Ifaked a smile. “Sounds… peaceful.”
Inside. I was panicking. Three days? Alone with Silas? With no work, no distractions?
I could barely survive three minutes without overthinking everything between us.
“I didn’t agree to this” Silas muttered.
Rose kissed his cheek. “Too bad. I already paid. Pack warm clothes. You leave in the morning.
Moming came sooner than expected and soon we were on our way.
The car ride was quiet. I kept stealing glances at Silas, but he was staring out the window. Arms crossed. Jaw tight. Same brooding expression.
“You okay?” I finally asked.
“No,” he replied. “I feel ambushed.”
“Same.”
A pause.
“But maybe it won’t be that bad,” I added.
He gave me a look. “We’re going to be stuck in some love cabin, pretending to be newlyweds. What part of that doesn’t sound bad?”
“The hot tub?” I offered weakly.
He huffed a laugh. “You’re weird.”
“And you’re grumpy.”
awa
He didn’t reply, but I saw a small smile twitch at the corner of his lips.
The retreat center was perched on a mountain, all wood and stone and cold air.
Everything smelled like pine and cinnamon. Romantic. Cozy. Trapped.
A perky woman named Bonnie handed us our keys. “You’ll be in Cabin Nine! It’s got a fireplace, a king bed, and a stunning view.”
“King bed?” I echoed.
“Just one?” Silas added.
Bonnie beamed. “Of course! It’s a couples retreat!”
We dragged our suitcases through the snow to the cabin. Inside, it was beautiful.
Warm, dimly lit, too intimate. The bed sat in the center like a giant, fluffy mistake.
Silas tossed his bag on the floor. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”
I glanced at the tiny loveseat. “That couch won’t fit your ego, much less your body.”
“Then you take the couch.”
“It’s our honeymoon, remember?” I said with a smirk. “We’re supposed to sleep together.”
Silas ran a hand through his hair. “We can build a wall with pillows.”
“Let’s get ready for the activities first. We can sort this out later,” I said.
The first activity was a trust hike. Blindfolded.
“You’re supposed to guide him,” Bonnie said, tying a blindfold over Silas’s eyes. “Hold his hand. Use your voice. Let him trust you.”
“This is ridiculous,” Silas muttered.
“Shut up and walk,” I said, tugging his hand.
We stumbled through snow, me laughing, him swearing.
“Stop pulling!”
“Stop resisting!”
“You nearly dragged me into a tree.”
“You need to trust me!”
“I trust no one!”
“You married me, didn’t you?”
He stopped. “Yeah ‘cause of
my mom.”
After the hike, we had cocoa by the fire with the other couples.
One pair shared how the retreat saved their marriage.
“Do you two fight often?” the woman asked us.
Silas looked at me. “Every day.”
“Every hour,” I added.
“But we’re working on it,” he said, softer this time.
That surprised me.
Later that night, back in our cabin, we sat on opposite sides of the bed fortress.
I stared at the ceiling. “This is weird.”
“What?”
“This whole fake marriage thing. I don’t know how long I can keep pretending.”
He turned to me. “You want out?”
“No.” I said quickly. “I lust… It’s getting hard to tell what’s real and what’s not.”
Chapter 14 – Stoned Cabine
5:18 pm
Silas was quiet for a long moment. Then he sat up and looked at me.
“That kiss… in the challenge room. That felt real.”
My heart thudded.
“I wasn’t acting,” he added.
I didn’t know what to say. So I said nothing.
He sighed. “Goodnight, Jasmine.”
“Night.”
Day two was worse–or better. Depending on how you looked at it.
We had to do couple yoga. His hand on my waist. My back against his chest.
His breath tickled my neck. I couldn’t focus. I kept wobbling.
“Breathe,” he whispered.
“I am breathing,” I hissed.
“Then why’s your heart racing?”
“I hate you.”
“No, you don’t.”
We made eye contact. Too long. Too deep.
The instructor clapped. “Beautiful chemistry!”
I wanted to run.
That night, the snowstorm hit. Hard.
The power went out. The heater died. I huddled under the blankets, teeth chattering.
Silas walked over, rubbing his arms. “It’s freezing.”
“Duh.”
He hesitated. “Do you want to… share the bed?”
My brain short–circuited. “For warmth?”
“Strictly survival,” he added. “No funny business.”
“Right. No funny business.”
We slipped under the covers. I felt his body heat immediately. Too much. Too close.
“Your foot just touched mine,” I whispered.
“Not on purpose.”
We lay in silence.
‘Do you think we would’ve worked… if this marriage were real?” I asked softly.
Silas turned on his side. “Maybe.”
“You don’t sound convinced.”
He shrugged. “You’re not the easiest person.”
“Neither are you.”
3/4
5:18 pm DDR.
“I don’t like easy.”
“I don’t like liars.”
He looked at me. “I’m not lying now.”
I
I didn’t reply. But I didn’t move away either.
Eventually, I fell asleep listening to the sound of his breathing.
***
Day three. Final challenge.
Bonnie clapped her hands. “Each couple will write a letter to each other. Something real. Then
read it out loud.”
I froze. “What?”
“It’s about vulnerability,” she said. “Opening your heart.”
I glanced at Silas. He looked as panicked as I felt.
We sat in silence in the cabin, paper in hand.
“What the hell do I even say?” Silas muttered.
“Be honest,” I said. “Pretend I’m not here.”
He frowned at the paper, then started writing. I did the same.
At the evening circle, we took turns reading. My hands trembled as I stood up.
I cleared my throat. “Dear Silas… When we got married, I never imagined we’d end up here. Faking smiles. Sharing beds. Building pillow walls. But somewhere along the way, you stopped feeling like a stranger, I don’t know when it happened. Maybe during that stupid blindfold hike. Or maybe when you held me during the storm. But I think… I think I stopped pretending.”
I looked up. Silas’s eyes didn’t leave mine.
Then he stood up, letter in hand.
“Dear Jasmine… You drive me insane. You talk too much. You’re stubborn. You kick in your sleep. But you make me laugh. You challenge me. And somewhere in this mess, I started caring. I don’t know what that means yet. But I’m not faking anymore either.”
Everyone clapped. Bonnie wiped a tear.
I sat back down slowly, heart pounding.
Silas leaned in. “You okay?”
I nodded. “Are you?”
“No.”
That made me laugh quietly.
On the drive home, I looked out the window. Everything felt different.
“I had a good time,” I said suddenly.
Silas nodded. “Me too.”
He reached for my hand. I let him take it.
5:19 pm
Silas’s Pov
I thought we were done.
