From His Fake Wife to Billionaire Heiress (Riley and Lucas) novel Chapter 378

Chapter 378 The Best Accident of My Life

Chapter 378 The Best Accident of My Life

She knew Brandon would never actually make that call.

And sure enough–more silence on his end.

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Riley pressed her advantage and kept going, “Actually, was stressing out about this whole thing earlier. Since I’m stuck here, I didn’t want to just leave Sebastian hanging, you know? I mean, we came all the way to this place–it wouldn’t be right to leave him cooped up in the hotel by himself, right? So I was about to find him a guide, too.”

She paused on purpose for a beat. “But here’s the thing–you know how he is. He’s kind of quiet, doesn’t talk much. I was worried he wouldn’t have a good time with some random guide. Honestly, I was pretty stuck.

“But since you already have a guide with you, and you two already know each other… why don’t you guys just team up? Two people are better than one, don’t you think?”

It was such a perfectly reasonable argument.

Over on Brandon’s end of the line, his face had to be absolutely priceless by now.

He and Sebastian–together–playing tourist like a couple of idiots under some overly cheerful guide?

Just picturing it made his skin crawl, and he’d rather die.

And sure enough, after a good ten seconds of dead silence, Brandon’s voice came back. But this time, it was low and dripping with anger. “Forget it. Who wants to go sightseeing with a human iceberg?”

Then he hung up without another word.

Riley listened to the dial tone for a second, then let the fake innocence drop right off her face. A huge, unstoppable grin spread

across it.

She gave her phone a little triumphant shake.

Finally. Got rid of that clingy piece of gum.

Feeling great, she turned around to share the moment with Sebastian.

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But Sebastian had already sat all the way up at some point. He was just watching her, completely relaxed, like he had all the time in

the world.

The morning light softened his sharp features, but it didn’t dull the sharpness in his eyes one bit.

Riley’s smile froze.

Oh, no… Did he hear all of that?

Under her slightly nervous gaze, Sebastian finally said, “So, in your mind, I’m quiet and boring?”

The tent suddenly felt a little tense under that slightly hurt–sounding question.

Sebastian raised one eyebrow just a little. His eyes reflected Riley’s slightly flustered face.

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5:19 pm

Chapter 378 The Best Accident of My Life

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the didn’t rush to get up. Instead, he pushed himself up on one arm and leaned forward slightly, blocking out that sliver of morning light behind him.

Riley looked at his handsome face so close to hers. The usual sharp, decisive energy was softened by the early morning laziness, replaced by something else–something cozy and domestic that made her heart itch.

“Oh, come on–that was just damage control,” Riley said, reaching out to press her hand against his chest. The warmth under her palm made her face heat up a little. She quickly switched to a pleading, flattering smile. “If I hadn’t said that, would Brandon have run off so fast? See? The second he heard he’d have to tour with you, everything else was fine.”

Sebastian looked into her sly, clever eyes. The little bit of annoyance he’d felt was already long gone, but he wasn’t about to let go of this chance to get something out of it.

He more or less accepted her explanation. But still, he leaned closer to her ear, his breath warm. “But with you… I’m not boring. Am

1?”

The implication was heavy. Riley mumbled under her breath, “Of course, I know what you are really like, Mr. Torres. Just get up already.”

She gave him a little shove, trying to break through the suffocating tension.

“Did you read the guide the campsite gave us last night? There are a few alpine lakes nearby–supposed to be gorgeous. Limited- time–only this season.” She started digging around for her clothes, desperate to change the subject. “The light’s still good right now. Let’s get ready and head over. If we go too late, the lighting will be awful.”

Sebastian could see how flustered she was. He decided not to tease her anymore. With a quiet laugh, he rolled off the bed.

The mountain air hit her face, fresh, with a hint of earth. No scheming, no watching her back–this kind of morning felt rare. Riley felt lighter than she had in a long time.

She looked at her reflection in the mirror, and her cheeks blushed./

Maybe this marriage really is the best accident of my life.

Meanwhile, a few miles away, at the bottom of a five–star hotel, Brandon sat in the very last row of a tour bus, his face dark as a

storm cloud.

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Next to him, Vaughn, the top–tier guide, was holding a megaphone, shouting with endless enthusiasm, “Mr. Edwards! Our first stop is the Ancient Fossil Museum. I’m going to tell you all about trilobites from hundreds of millions of years ago.”

Brandon stared at the text on his phone screen–the one from Riley that said, “Sorry for the trouble.” His teeth ground together audibly.

In stark contrast to the peaceful mountain scene, rain was drizzling down 1,200 miles away in Havenbrook.

As the door of the top–floor conference room swung open at Ashford Group headquarters, Lucas stepped out surrounded by a group of executives.