Situationship with my Billionaire Friend

A Complex and Intense Romance You Won’t Want to Miss!

As Leanne says right at the beginning: “Sex ruins everything.” Yet, she still agrees to a friends with benefits relationship with her best friend—what could possibly go wrong?

This is exactly the kind of story I love. You know how it will end, but the real thrill is discovering how long it will take for them to realize their love for each other and what kind of drama will unfold along the way. And trust me, the drama is brilliantly portrayed by Leona (Beth). You’ll love to hate her—or maybe she’ll just scare you. Possibly both!

As for Mariah (Leanne) and Leif (Asher), they were meant to share the screen together. This could easily become one of my favorite on-screen couples. If you haven’t watched this yet, you need to!

The Friends to Lovers Trope Done Right

Let’s start with the leads:

• Leanne (Mariah) is funny, smart, and… completely unlucky in love. Or at least, that’s what she tells herself. The truth? She’s terrified of love. Maybe she’s been through painful breakups, maybe she’s just afraid of getting hurt. Either way, she’s the one holding herself back from happiness.
• Asher (Leif), on the other hand, claims he’s only ever met shallow women. But from the start, he seems ready for something real—he just needs to find the right person.

The Friends with Benefits Contract

When Asher suggests their arrangement, Leanne initially refuses, afraid of losing him as a friend. (Which, once again, proves she’s terrified of love.) If she had just trusted herself more, she might have realized from the beginning that he wasn’t just another guy.

And then comes the funniest part: the actual written contract! Who even writes a contract for a friends with benefits arrangement? Asher’s reaction was priceless—completely confused but still playing along. But the best part? Every single clause in the contract is something you’d find in a real relationship. Especially the exclusivity rule—seriously, Leanne? She wants a relationship but also doesn’t want one at the same time. Someone definitely broke her heart before.

Asher, on the other hand, is way more relaxed about it. But let’s be real—he was probably into her from the start. If he wasn’t interested, I doubt he would have agreed to it. And let’s be honest, their casual but not really casual dating was one of the highlights of the show. The chemistry was just perfect.

The Turning Point: When Everything Goes Wrong

Asher eventually takes the leap and asks Leanne out for real. No more contracts, no more excuses—just a real relationship. (Even though they were basically dating already.) But then… Leanne shuts him down.

And ouch—Asher’s face after getting rejected? Heartbreaking. But his way of handling it? Infuriating!

Instead of trying to understand why Leanne pushed him away, instead of fighting for what they had, he immediately turns to another woman.

Enter Beth (Leona)

At first, Beth seems intense but mostly harmless. She’s openly attracted to Asher and wants a serious relationship.

But let’s talk about Asher’s biggest mistake: he used Beth to make Leanne jealous.

There’s no doubt about it—this was his only reason for pursuing her. If Asher had been genuinely interested in Beth, he could have dated her long before Leanne even started working at the same company. But he never did.

Now that things with Leanne are uncertain, he suddenly decides to give Beth a chance? He definitely hoped it would make Leanne realize her feelings. But using someone else as leverage in a love game? Not cool at all.

And Beth? She falls for him hard. She’s all in—completely invested in a relationship that was doomed from the start. The moment Leanne agreed to be with Asher, Beth would have been crushed. How did he not see that coming?

From Intense to Absolutely Unhinged

At first, I thought Beth was just a little too much, but soon, it became clear she was more than just intense. The way her personality shift was handled was brilliant—it felt natural, and it built up gradually, making it feel even more real.

Beth is manipulative, brilliantly so. Asher always wanted marriage, and she knew exactly how to trap him. That proposal? A total mistake. We know that ring was meant for Leanne. But Beth played her cards perfectly and left Asher feeling like he had no way out.

The Explosive Finale

The ending felt slightly rushed, but honestly, it made sense. Beth had everything planned—when she snapped, she went all in.

Now, the kidnapping and attempted murder? Maybe a little over the top. Usually, I don’t mind these kinds of twists in Verticals, but this story felt more realistic than your typical Vertical drama. That’s probably why it felt a bit out of place here.

But my biggest regret?

Leanne and Asher getting together immediately at the failed wedding.

Yes, finally admitting their feelings was great, but I wish we got more time for them to rebuild their relationship. They had gone through so much, and it would have been amazing to see them reconnect before jumping straight into an engagement. I get it—there wasn’t time to add 15-20 more episodes just for development. But still, I would have loved more.

And let’s be real—they were never truly friends with benefits. They were always something more. It just took them a long time—and one crazy girl—to realize it.

Final Thoughts

This Vertical is far from the usual tropes. It feels more realistic, the drama feels more raw, and the relationships are deeper. And while I still love wildly unrealistic romances (secret billionaires, fake marriages, and all that good stuff), I love getting a story like this every once in a while.

A huge shoutout to Mariah and Leif—their chemistry took this story to another level. I really hope we see them together in another Vertical soon!