---

Chapter Seven – The Jealous Billionaire

Tina Rowe was not used to being jealous.

She didn’t get jealous. She got promoted. She got richer. She got even.

But that image of Malik — sitting with his ex, both smiling like they were in a toothpaste commercial — had been branded into her brain like a glitch she couldn’t debug.

It wasn’t about ownership. It wasn’t even about public perception anymore.

It was about him.

And that was the problem.

Her Monday morning started with Dani walking into her office holding a giant iced coffee and a concerned look.

“Okay,” Dani said carefully, “before I give you your schedule for the day, I just want to let you know that you’re trending.”

Tina didn’t look up from her laptop. “Still?”

“It’s been three days since the coffee sighting. People are speculating. Some are calling Malik a clout-chaser. Others think you’re getting cheated on.”

Tina’s fingers stopped typing.

“Cheated on? In a fake relationship?” she asked, glancing up. “That’s rich.”

“Yeah, well, the internet doesn’t care what’s real. They care what’s juicy.”

Tina shut her laptop. “Reschedule my first meeting. I need to handle something.”

---

Meanwhile – Malik’s Apartment

Malik had just finished microwaving last night’s rice when a knock sounded at his door.

He wasn’t expecting anyone. That was never a good sign.

He peeked through the peephole and froze.

It was Tina.

In all her power-blazer, sharp-heel, high-bun glory. Looking like a hostile takeover in human form.

He opened the door slowly. “Uh… hey?”

Tina marched in without waiting for an invitation.

“You have ten minutes. Put on pants.”

Malik blinked. “What—”

“Pants, Malik. Now.”

---

In the Car – Five Minutes Later

He sat in the passenger seat of her sleek black Tesla, still confused, still tugging at the hem of the shirt he barely had time to iron.

“Where are we going?” he asked.

“We’re being seen,” she replied, eyes fixed on the road.

Malik frowned. “As in… damage control?”

She didn’t answer.

Instead, she handed him her sunglasses.

“Put those on. And smile like you’ve never heard of heartbreak.”

---

Central Park – The Photo Op

A paparazzi trap.

Tina hated stooping this low, but she needed to take back the narrative. The headlines were starting to mutate.

They walked through Central Park like a perfectly curated couple. She wore a pastel trench coat and a soft smile; he wore borrowed confidence and sunglasses too big for his face.

She slid her arm into his. Cameras clicked.

“You could’ve warned me,” he muttered through clenched teeth.

“You could’ve not gotten cozy with your ex,” she shot back, smiling for the cameras.

“I wasn’t cozy. I was drinking overpriced coffee and explaining how I ended up dating my billionaire boss.”

Tina stopped walking. Her hand dropped from his arm.

He turned to her, serious now.

“I didn’t mean to embarrass you,” Malik said quietly. “But I’m not going to lie to people I used to know just to keep up appearances.”

Tina looked at him, then at the nearby cameras.

“Then stop making this harder than it needs to be,” she replied. But her voice lacked the usual edge.

---

The Truth Beneath

Later, they sat on a park bench — their backs to the press now, but the tension still thick.

Malik looked at her.

“Can I ask you something?”

Tina raised an eyebrow.

“Why me?” he asked. “Of all the people you could’ve fake-dated. Models. Actors. CEOs. Why the broke dude who lives three subway stops past civilization?”

She didn’t answer immediately.

Then she said, “Because you made me laugh. In that elevator.”

“That’s it?”

She turned to him fully. “Because you didn’t care who I was. And because you looked at me like I was… human.”

Malik paused, not expecting that.

“And now?” he asked.

Tina looked away.

“Now it’s complicated.”

---

Back at RoweTech – Later That Day

Tina returned to the office with her hair slightly out of place and her usually perfect lipstick smudged at one corner.

“Dani,” she said as she walked in. “Let the PR team know we’re back in control.”

Dani smirked. “The photos are already up. You guys look disgustingly happy. There’s even a slow-motion TikTok edit of him adjusting your coat.”

Tina blinked. “He did that?”

“Girl. You didn’t even notice?”

She didn’t reply.

Because no — she hadn’t.

And for a split second, she wondered if the rest of the world could see what she was only just starting to feel.

---

Malik’s Side – That Evening

Malik was back on his air mattress, scrolling through the headlines.

Tina and Malik: Back Stronger Than Ever.

RoweTech Queen and Her Prince of Broke.

Fake or Fate? The Chemistry Says Real.

He stared at the screen.

He couldn’t stop thinking about what she said.

"You looked at me like I was human."

And for the first time since this whole fake dating madness started, he let the thought fully settle in:

He didn’t want it to be fake anymore.

---

End of Chapter Seven.