Chapter 1

My family went totally bust. My dad was desperate to marry me off to one of my three childhood friends, hoping someone would take me in.

But those three "golden boys"? Each one was more disgusted by the idea than the last.

Alex Carter, the Prince of Esports, rolled his eyes. "Marry her? Hard pass. I like sweet, girly types—not some chick who steals my kills and then trashes my gaming."

Ryan Brooks, the rising star in showbiz, looked pained. "Emily, look... I'm into girls who can help me level up, not someone I've known forever. You're like a sister to me, for crying out loud."

Ethan Quinn, the overachieving brainiac, was the worst. He just wrote me off on the spot. "She's set in her ways, can't wrap her head around my world. There's a huge gap between us—no way to fix it."

Fine. You're all so high and mighty. Good for you.

Right then and there, I dialed a number and hit speaker.

A deep, magnetic male voice came through. "Emily, I just sent the eight-figure final payment for that ancient Twin Blossom Music Box. Oh, and I'm at the alley entrance—traffic's a mess. I'm not budging unless you come down and give me a kiss."

The whole room froze in dead silence.

*****

"Emily, listen... you grew up with Alex, Ryan, and Ethan. Maybe you should—" My dad held his glass, his face flushed beet-red from the booze, but the rest of the words died in his throat.

The atmosphere at the table went cold in a heartbeat. My heart did a somersault. Crap, Dad's old nonsense is acting up again.

The Grant, Carter, Brooks, and Quinn families had lived in this old alley for decades. Our dads grew up together, thick as thieves. I was the only girl in the whole lot.

Back in the day, we were the ones rolling in it, and my dad bailed them out more times than I can count.

But the tables turned. Our business tanked, leaving us drowning in debt. Meanwhile, the other three families were hitting the jackpot—one ran a chain of internet cafes, another built a media empire, and the third came from a long line of elite scholars.

My dad is all about saving face. He thinks I'm a dead weight and has been scheming to marry me off to the highest bidder.

"Hey, you've had one too many," Mr. Carter said awkwardly, trying to smooth things over.

Alex, the Prince of Esports with his loud pink hair, snorted and slammed his chopsticks onto the table, his face twisted in contempt.

"Uncle Grant, quit joking. Marry Emily? As if! I like those cute girls who gush 'You're my hero.' and act sweet. Her? She just steals my pentakills and calls me a scrub. I'm not carrying her." The disdain in his voice cut like a knife.

Mom's face drained of color instantly. I gripped my chopsticks until my knuckles turned white, but I kept my mouth shut.

With Alex leading the charge, Ryan just shrugged. He was decked out in a trendy oversized tee and flawless makeup, desperate to look like the rising star he claimed to be.

"Emily's cool. She's got my back. But I only see her as a big sister," Ryan said, putting on his best 'innocent' act.

"Besides, my career is just taking off, and my fans are watching everything. I need someone who can help me climb the ladder, not someone I've known since kindergarten."

He made it sound like I was dying to ride his coattails.

My dad's face went from flushed red to a deep, fuming purple.

Ethan Quinn? He was the real kicker.

The elite Ph.D. candidate in ancient history adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses slowly. His voice was cold as ice, as if he were delivering a lecture to a failing student.

"In my view, marriage is the union of two independent souls, not a one-sided 'charity project.' Emily and I have completely different worldviews. She can't wrap her head around my academic goals, and I can't stand her lifestyle. There's a chasm between us that simply cannot be bridged." He said.

By "lifestyle," he meant my struggling Etsy-style shop that barely cleared four hundred bucks a month.

Three rejections in a row. A total shutout.

Each one was nastier and more cutting than the last. Right there, in front of all our parents, they treated me like trash—something broken and unwanted. My parents looked like they wanted to vanish into the floorboards, their faces burning with shame.

The other parents either forced awkward smiles or played dumb. Not a single person stood up for me.

I guess that's how it goes. When you're down and out, nobody gives you the time of day.

Looking at their smug faces, whatever childhood bond I had left with them was ground into dust.

I actually laughed. "Dad, Mom," I said. I stood up. My voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the chatter like a knife.

"Stop worrying about me," I said, waving my phone with a bright, defiant smile. "The truth is, I already have a boyfriend."

That set off a bomb in the room.

My parents' heads snapped up, and Alex, Ryan, and Ethan all stared at me, their eyes screaming disbelief.

"You? A boyfriend?" Alex blurted out first. "Who's the blind fool that—"

Before he could finish his insult, my phone started buzzing.

I looked at the caller ID—"Mr. Mason"—and hit the speakerphone.

A deep, velvety voice that demanded attention boomed through the speaker, echoing clearly in the private room.

"Emily, I tracked down those rare manuscripts you were looking for. Also, the client is thrilled with that ancient Twin Begonia Music Box. The final eight-figure payment has been cleared. You should see it in your account now."

Eight figures? Everyone at the table let out a gasp.

Alex's mouth hung open in a perfect "O."

The voice paused, and you could practically hear him smiling. "By the way, I'm at the alley entrance. Traffic is a mess, so I'm stuck. Come down and give me a kiss, or I'm not going anywhere."