Just pretend to be my dateBe here at 8, Chrollo texted Annie earlier. Goddammit. Glancing at the clock, she realized that was 30 minutes from now. Next time, he needed to tell her this information sooner. She had a life that was separate from his and she was honestly tired of his schemes.

She didn’t have much time to dress up, so she snatched the first dress she saw in her closet. A bit of mascara and lipstick later, she was good to go and out the door.

Luckily, the place Chrollo wanted to meet her at was only a few blocks away. Within ten minutes, she was right in front of the restaurant. The Red Grape. Why the hell would Chrollo be here of all places

When Annie walked through the front entrance, all eyes were on her. Nervously, she went to the host podium where she was greeted by a small woman.

“Hello, uh. Have you seen a pale, muscular man with black shoulder-length hair here” She asked with a polite smile.

The hostess narrowed her eyes at Annie.

“I’ve seen plenty of men matching that description here, ma’am.”

Wow, that sure doesn’t help at all. Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, she looked at her phone. She didn’t even know what Chrollo’s fake name was now. Jonathan Long Caleb Newell

Annie attempted to peek over at the reservation info on the computer, but the host shielded the screen with her arm and glared.

“Ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” She huffed while pressing buttons on the machine.

Fine by me. Chrollo’ll have to deal with this shit on his own. However, as she walked toward the exit, she heard his familiar voice call out her name. He said a few words to the hostess, who then nodded and went back to her business.

Stepping past the other people, Annie managed to get back to him without any trouble from the hostess. Before heading to wherever Chrollo took her, Annie mischievously smirked at her.

“So what’s the plan” She felt hot at the way Chrollo held her hands.

“I’m Vincent Luft and you’re my girlfriend, Iva Langdon. Charm the pants off of them, so they’ll become more trusting of us.”

Annie’s heart beat faster at the word girlfriend.

“G-girlfriend…Chrollo, I…” She stuttered.

“Sssh,” He pressed a finger to her lips. “Just pretend to be my date.”