I Hired a Single Dad to Pretend We Were a Family for My New Boss, but I Never Imagined How It Would End — Story of the Day

All I wanted was to keep my job. Pretending to have a family seemed like an easy solution, until I realized the man I hired wasn’t who I thought he was. By the time I found out the truth, it was already too late to walk away.

I’ve always put my career first. I don’t know if that’s good or bad, but it’s who I am. While my friends were getting married and posting pictures of their babies, I was building a name for myself, staying late at the office, chasing deadlines.

I’ve always put my career first

I told myself I liked my life. It was stable, predictable, safe. But sometimes, late at night, the silence in my apartment felt heavier than success.

That evening, after another long day, I ended up sitting on a park bench, crying quietly. I’d just found out that my promotion might never happen.

Our company was getting a new boss, and the rumor was, he only trusted “family-oriented” people.

It was stable, predictable, safe

Apparently, in his last company, he’d fired a woman for having no family life. I had nothing even close.

“Excuse me,” a small voice said. “Do you know where to get ice cream?”

I looked up and saw a little girl, maybe five. When she noticed my tears, she gasped. “Are you sad?”

I had nothing even close

I laughed softly. “A little.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t have a husband or kids.”

Before she could say anything, a man walked up. Tall, in a gray hoodie, holding a gentle smile. “You’re young. You’ll meet someone, have kids. It’ll happen.”

“Why?”

“Not in a week,” I said.

He frowned. “Why a week?”

“Because in a week, our new boss arrives,” I explained. “He’s apparently the kind of man who only promotes people with families. I’m the opposite of that.”

“Not in a week”

“Maybe it’s not true,” he said.

“I wish.” I sighed. “But I can already see where it’s going.”

Lily tugged on his sleeve. “Can she come for ice cream with us?”

“Maybe it’s not true”

He gave me a questioning look, and for some reason, I nodded. “Sure. I can use something sweet today.”

We walked to a small stand nearby. He told me he was a single dad. His wife left when Lily was a baby.

There was warmth in the way Ryan talked about his daughter. Watching them together made something inside me ache.

He told me he was a single dad

When it was time to leave, he handed me his number. “If you ever need help, call.”

“Thank you,” I said quietly.

The next morning, I tried to forget about it, burying myself in work. But as soon as I sat down, Jessica, my least favorite coworker, leaned on my desk.

“If you ever need help, call”

“Big day,” she said. “The new boss is coming soon. Lucky for me, I’ve got a husband and two kids. I heard he loves family-oriented people.”

“Good for you,” I muttered.

She smirked. “Guess that means I’m getting the promotion. Too bad you can’t hire someone to play your family.”

“The new boss is coming soon”

She laughed and walked away, heels clicking against the floor.

I watched her go, her words echoing in my head.

Hire someone to play my family.

Ridiculous. Impossible. But maybe… not entirely.

Hire someone to play my family

A few minutes later, I stepped outside the office, clutching my phone before I lost the courage to do what I was about to do.

I scrolled through my contacts and stopped on the number Ryan gave me. My heart pounded as I hit “call.”

“Hello?”

I scrolled through my contacts and stopped on the number Ryan gave me

“Hi,” I said quickly. “It’s me. Emily. The woman you met at the park yesterday.”

There was a short pause, then a warm laugh. “Nice to hear from you. Everything okay?”

“You told me to call if I ever needed help.”

“I did,” he said. “What’s going on?”

“You told me to call if I ever needed help”

I took a deep breath. “Okay, so this will sound... really strange. But I have a proposal. I’ll just say it straight. I need you and Lily to pretend to be my family for a few days. I’ll pay you, of course.”

There was a silence long enough to make me wish I’d never opened my mouth. Then he said, amused, “You’re right. That is strange. But maybe we should talk about it in person.”

“I need you and Lily to pretend to be my family for a few days”

“Over lunch?” I asked, trying not to sound desperate.

“Sure. Text me a place,” he said.

At noon, we met at a small café near downtown. I could tell he was trying not to smile as I awkwardly explained everything again — the rumors about my new boss, the promotion on the line, the family image problem.

“Over lunch?”

“I know it sounds ridiculous,” I said. “But I just need to make a good impression. It’s not forever, just for a short while.”

He leaned back in his chair, watching me carefully. “And what happens after that? When your boss finds out it was all fake?”

“He won’t,” I said quickly. “It’s not like he’ll come to my house. It’s just to get through the first week.”

“But I just need to make a good impression”

He chuckled. “You sound very confident in your acting abilities.”

“I’m not,” I admitted. “That’s why I need help.”

He nodded slowly. “All right. I’ll do it. But on one condition.”

“Anything,” I said.

“’l'll do it. But on one condition”

“We actually spend time together before then. If I’m going to lie, I at least need to sound convincing. And Lily’s even worse at pretending than I am.”

“Fair enough,” I said. “The boss arrives next week, so we have about seven days to get to know each other.”

That week turned out nothing like I expected. Every evening after work, I met Ryan and Lily.

“We actually spend time together before then”

We went for walks, shared snacks, and one night they dragged me to a small amusement park.

I laughed so hard that my face hurt. It felt natural, too natural.

Ryan was easy to talk to, always teasing but never unkind. He made me feel like I’d known him for years.

It felt natural, too natural

And Lily... she was exactly the kind of child I’d always imagined I’d have someday — bright, funny, endlessly curious.

By Friday, the thought of them not being in my life anymore made my chest tighten.

That evening, I stayed late at the office to prepare my reports for the new boss. I texted Ryan that I’d be late. Minutes later, I heard two familiar voices behind me.

By Friday, the thought of them not being in my life anymore made my chest tighten

I turned, and there they were. Ryan and Lily, smiling.

“What are you two doing here?” I asked, surprised.

“You said you’d be working late,” Ryan said. “We thought we’d keep you company.”

Before I could reply, Jessica appeared out of nowhere, her expression dripping with fake sweetness. “Emily, who are these adorable guests?”

“What are you two doing here?”

I froze, but Ryan didn’t miss a beat. “Her family,” he said smoothly, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.

Jessica laughed. “Her family? Please. Emily doesn’t even have a boyfriend, let alone a husband this handsome.”

“Not everyone likes showing off their private life. But at least my wife doesn’t flirt with married men.” He glanced pointedly at the ring on Jessica’s finger.

"Her family”

Her smile vanished. She muttered something under her breath and walked away.

When she was gone, I turned to him. “You said you were bad at lying.”

He grinned. “I didn’t lie. I said my wife doesn’t flirt with anyone else, and she doesn’t.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “You’re impossible.”

“You said you were bad at lying”

He smirked. “Unless you want to apply for the position?”

My face grew hot. I told myself it was just a joke. But something in his eyes made my heart skip a beat.

When I finally finished my work, we went for a walk together. Lily fell asleep in Ryan’s arms, and I caught myself wishing the night wouldn’t end.

“Unless you want to apply for the position?”

I wanted that walk to last forever. I wanted to freeze time right there, before Monday, before the new boss, before reality came rushing back.

If only I’d known what Monday would bring.

Monday morning came faster than I wanted it to. My stomach was in knots the entire drive to work.

I wanted that walk to last forever

I placed a framed photo of me, Ryan, and Lily on my desk, something to make the illusion look more believable. For a second, I forgot it was fake.

The office buzzed with nervous energy. Everyone was whispering about the new boss. Jessica hovered nearby, pretending to straighten papers on my desk.

“He’s supposed to be here any minute,” she said. “They say he’s meeting with everyone one-on-one.”

For a second, I forgot it was fake

“Good for him,” I muttered.

Jessica smirked. “Maybe he’ll like me enough to give me that promotion.”

I didn’t answer. My mind was too full of everything that could go wrong. A few minutes later, an assistant arrived and announced that the boss had been delayed by half an hour.

“Good for him”

That should’ve been good news, but instead, it made my heart race even faster. Thirty more minutes to panic.

Then my phone rang. Ryan’s name flashed across the screen.

“Hey,” I whispered. “What’s wrong?”

His voice was tense. “It’s Lily. She’s burning up. I think she’s got a fever. My car won’t start, and I can’t get a cab. Could you maybe—”

“What’s wrong?”

I looked around the office. “The new boss is arriving in thirty minutes. I can’t just leave now.”

He was quiet for a moment, then said, “Right. Of course. Good luck today, Emily.”

The call ended, and guilt hit me like a punch. I stared at the photo on my desk — Lily’s little smile, Ryan’s hand resting on my shoulder.

“The new boss is arriving in thirty minutes. I can’t just leave now”

I grabbed my keys. “To hell with it,” I whispered and stormed out.

The drive felt endless, though I barely noticed the traffic. When I reached Ryan’s address, I froze. His house wasn’t small or modest like I’d imagined; it was huge.

For someone who agreed to “pretend” for money, he clearly didn’t need the cash.

I rang the bell. Ryan opened the door, his face pale with worry. When he saw me, his expression softened. “You came,” he said quietly.

“You came”

“You called,” I replied.

He smiled faintly, then disappeared inside and came back carrying Lily, wrapped in a blanket. “Thank you,” he murmured as we hurried to my car.

At the hospital, we stayed by her side as the doctors treated her fever. Hours passed before she finally drifted off to sleep, her small hand clutching mine.

“You called”

Ryan cleared his throat. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

I looked up, expecting another joke to ease the tension. But his face was serious.

“I’m your new boss,” he said.

For a moment, I thought I’d misheard him. “What?”

“I’m your new boss”

He nodded slowly. “I started today.”

My mouth fell open. Then I covered my face with my hands. “Oh my God. I tried to trick my own boss. I’m fired, aren’t I?”

He laughed softly. “No. I don’t fire people just because they don’t have families, Emily. The rumors aren’t true.”

“I’m fired, aren’t I?”

I peeked through my fingers. “Still, I lied to you. I asked you to pretend—”

“It’s not exactly something you put on a résumé,” he said with a grin.

“But honestly, I think I got to know the real you this week. And that’s worth more than any first impression.”

“Still, I lied to you”

I sighed. “You should still be mad.”

“Oh, I am,” he teased. “But it’s hard to stay mad at someone who managed to crawl under my skin.”

He looked down at Lily, who was still asleep, her hand wrapped tightly around mine. “Not just mine, apparently,” he added.

“But it’s hard to stay mad at someone who managed to crawl under my skin”

For a moment, everything was still. The fluorescent lights hummed, and I could hear my heartbeat. Then Ryan reached for my hand.

And before I could answer, he leaned in and kissed me.

And for the first time in years, I didn’t feel alone or fake.

I felt like I was home.

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If you enjoyed this story, read this one: After my wife passed, I thought I’d learned to live with silence, until my son and his pregnant wife moved in. Then my money began vanishing from the safe. I set up a hidden camera to catch the thief, but what I discovered tore apart everything I thought I knew about my own family. Read the full story here.

This story is a work of fiction inspired by real events. Names, characters, and details have been altered. Any resemblance is coincidental. The author and publisher disclaim accuracy, liability, and responsibility for interpretations or reliance. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.