Chapter 1

I had agreed with my online love interest to exchange photos. He sent me a picture of an interview featuring a billionaire tycoon.

I couldn't help but laugh out loud and replied with a glamorous shot of a famous actress.

[Trying to fool me with a web photo? At least try searching it first.] I texted.

Then, I promptly blocked him.

That night, this very tycoon himself posted on Twitter.

[My girlfriend blocked me. Can someone help explain why?]

Attached was the screenshot indicating he had been blocked by me.

I was left staring in disbelief, utterly shocked.

*****

After breakfast, I carefully did my makeup, making sure every detail was perfect.

I settled by the window, waiting for that gentle morning sunlight to stream in.

Today was the day my online crush and I had promised to exchange photos. It was finally happening.

His message popped up. [Babe, are you ready?]

I shot back right away. [A little nervous, babe.]

Even though we really hit it off, I never mentioned that I was actually a pretty well-known designer.

I was worried he'd think I was messing with him, so I figured I'd just hop on a video call later to prove I was for real.

He replied right away. [I'm a little nervous too. I'm worried you might not find me attractive.

[I picked the photo I like best. You won't mind, will you?]

He'd told me more than once that he was nothing special and always thought he wasn't in my league.

But after being around so many celebrities and models, looks just weren't a big deal to me anymore.

I replied: [As long as you're not catfishing me, it doesn't matter what you look like. I'll still like you.]

He texted: [That makes me feel better.]

He was a little needy, so I just indulged him and kept the sweet talk going.

He went quiet for a moment, probably lost in thought.

A few minutes later, he sent me a photo.

The guy in the photo was dressed to the nines in a sharp suit, surrounded by a sea of microphones. His gaze was piercing, and he radiated an undeniable aura of power.

I recognized him instantly. It was the legendary Christopher Grant.

This photo had gone viral online countless times; it was basically iconic.

Then his message popped up again. [Babe, I'm the guy in that picture. What do you think?

[I was nervously biting my nails.]

I just froze.

I always thought my online crush had his head screwed on right, was really well-read, and we totally hit it off whenever we chatted.

I stared at the photo Christopher had posted, utterly baffled by his intentions.

With his billionaire status, there was no way he'd be playing some online dating game. The whole situation was so bizarre that I couldn't tell if it was him who was indulging in wild fantasies or if I was the one having unrealistic delusions.

I literally told him, no fake pics.

I started to wonder if, in his eyes, I came off as easily deceived and not too bright.

My temper just snapped.

I grabbed one of my more obscure promo shots and fired it right back at him.

[Come on, at least pick a photo that isn't plastered all over the internet, will you?] I texted.

Didn't even wait for his reply. I just hit block, no hesitation.

*****

We met through an online game.

After I deleted him, my in-game friend with a crazy high friendship score had no way to reach me anymore.

Then I chucked my phone aside, scrubbed off the makeup I'd spent all morning perfecting, and just curled up on the couch, sulking by myself.

Thinking back, all those abs and Adonis belt pics he sent me. Bet he just grabbed them off Google like it was nothing.

I actually fell for it and hyped him up for his amazing body.

What a scammer.

The more I thought about it, the more pissed I got, so I just flopped down and tried to sleep it off.

That night, Samara's call jolted me awake from a deep sleep.

Her voice sounded off. Something was definitely wrong.

"Sabrina Warren, have you seen the trending topics today?" she asked.

"What's trending?" I said.

I squinted at my phone and opened up Twitter.

And just like that, I saw something blowing up online. A topic was going absolutely viral.

It was [So Christopher's into online dating too.]

Any trace of sleepiness disappeared instantly.

Don't tell me this is about me.

My heart was pounding as I nervously clicked into the trending topic.

After ages of radio silence on Twitter, Christopher suddenly posted an update.

[My girlfriend blocked me. Can someone explain what happened?]

The post included a screenshot of our final conversation, with the unmistakable red exclamation mark front and center. The message he sent was rejected.

[Wait, what?

[Babe, I promise, that's really me. No fake pics, seriously.

[Babe?

[Why did you block me? Can you at least let me explain?

[Babe.]

The internet was absolutely losing it.

[Wait, Christopher is into online dating too?]

[Who's his online crush? Man, she must've saved the whole universe in her previous life to land Christopher.]

[She actually thought it was fake. This is just too funny.]

[Honestly, I get it. If I were her, I'd totally think it was just some random internet photo too.]

[Looks like Mr. Grant is on the hunt for someone. Does anyone know who this lucky lady is?]

[If you do, let him know ASAP. He's even gone public on Twitter about it.]

I scrolled through the comments, my heart pounding like crazy.

My online crush wasn't catfishing me after all.

Holy crap, he really was Christopher.

I was still in shock, barely able to process what was happening, when out of nowhere, a brand new trending topic exploded online.

[Everyone's loving the online romance between an actress and Christopher.]

I nearly jumped out of my skin.

They find me so fast.

I frantically tapped on the topic to see what was going on.

Rosie Quinn, the hottest young actress right now, had just dropped a tweet.

[No need for everyone to explain, I already know it was all just a misunderstanding.]

Her post was so pointed that she was basically calling out Christopher by name.

Everyone online was freaking out.

[Wow, the internet really is magic, found her in minutes.]

[So his online crush is Rosie? OMG, a celebrity and Christopher. This is like a total dream come true.]

[Rosie is just too cute. She's a celeb herself, and even she didn't buy that Christopher would go for online dating.]

[OMG, these two are such a perfect ship. Rosie's about to marry into a billionaire family.]