I Refuse to Be Your Second Choice novel Chapter 261

Arianna tipped her head back, eyes instantly sharp and guarded.

“What are you trying to say?”

She already knew about the long-standing feud between Samuel Thompson and Alexander Ramirez. Bruce was Alexander’s friend, so it made sense if he didn’t like Samuel. But she and Bruce barely knew each other. Just because he’d helped her once didn’t mean he had any right to get involved in her business.

Bruce noticed how tense she’d gotten, her whole posture tight like a rabbit ready to bolt. He gave a half-smile, shaking his head. “What, do you think I’m here to kidnap you or something?”

Arianna didn’t reply.

He let out a sigh. “Is my reputation really that terrible?”

Everyone knew Bruce had a wild streak. He was always out with someone new, girlfriends coming and going so often people joked he changed them like clothes. No wonder Isabella never believed he was actually dating Arianna.

“So, what do you actually want?” Arianna shot back, ignoring his question.

Bruce lost the teasing edge to his voice, looking a little exasperated. “My grandma wants to meet you. She’s insisting I bring you home for dinner.”

Arianna blinked at him, stunned. “Wait, what?”

He ran a hand through his hair, looking a little overwhelmed. “Isabella must’ve told her about me introducing you as my girlfriend. Probably just wanted to mess with me. Now my grandma won’t let it go. I even tried hiding out here, but she’s relentless. This morning she gave me an ultimatum. I have three days to bring you home.”

He laid it all out in one breath, not even trying to sugarcoat it.

“But I’m not your girlfriend. You know that,” Arianna said quickly. “How am I supposed to go to your house and pretend for your grandma?”

The whole idea sounded insane. There was no way she could agree to something like this.

Mrs. Ward wanted to meet her future granddaughter-in-law. Arianna and Bruce were barely acquaintances. There was no world in which she could pull off pretending to be his girlfriend.

Arianna frowned harder, frustrated and conflicted. Was she really supposed to go along with this?

Bruce seemed to read her mind. “Look, forget it. This is my mess, not yours. I shouldn’t have dragged you in. Go ahead. I’ll figure something out.”

He turned away and started walking off.

“Wait.”

He’d gotten pretty far before Arianna finally called out. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, taking a deep breath. This was all because Bruce had tried to help her. Now his grandmother was forcing his hand, and it felt wrong to just walk away.

Arianna hurried after him, finally catching up.

“When do we have to go to your family’s house?”