Chapter 1

When I received the message from my mom about the arranged marriage, Christian Foster naturally lowered his head to kiss me, entangling me in his embrace.

After a passionate and confusing encounter, he carried me into the bathroom, warm water cascading over my body. But his words made me feel like I had fallen into an icy abyss.

"Go home. Don't come looking for me anymore," he said.

Thinking he was jealous after seeing the message, I quickly pulled him close and swore, "I won't marry anyone else."

His smile remained unchanged, but the lustful look in his eyes turned distant.

"But I am getting married," he whispered.

He gently smoothed out my disheveled hair, ignoring my trembling body.

He said, "Estrella is kind and gentle, unlike you. She would never do something as disgraceful as climbing into her adoptive brother's bed.

"We've already decided to get married. If you keep clinging to me, she'll get upset with me.

*****

Christian grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, then scooped me up and carried me into the guest room.

Watching his back as he strode away, I felt my blood run cold.

I just stood there, staring at the door in a daze, when, out of nowhere, he came back.

Christian sat down on the edge of the bed, and the familiar comfort of his presence surrounded me.

Instinctively, I reached out my hands.

He placed his cold phone into my palm.

"Since Mom's looking for you, you should go home. It's not something you should keep putting off," he said.

I grabbed his hand in a panic, my voice trembling as I pleaded, "Christian, I won't go through with the arranged marriage."

"Estrella's back," he said.

Those words left me speechless. I couldn't say a word; I just let the tears fall.

Estrella Lane was Christian's first love.

Back when she left the country on a whim, Christian fell apart for a while.

That was the reason I finally worked up the courage to confess my feelings to him.

After that, we played the part of devoted siblings during the day, but at night, we ended up tangled in the sheets together, night after night.

More than once, I couldn't help but feel relieved that Estrella was gone.

But I never expected someone who left so coldly would ever come back.

Christian stood up, looking down at me.

"From now on, try not to show up around her. I don't want her to see you and get upset," he said.

His eyes were cold when he looked at me, but when he brought up Estrella, there was a softness in his voice I'd never heard before.

Tears streamed down my face as I grabbed my dress and threw it on, desperate to get out of there.

I was just about to reach the door when Christian's voice stopped me.

"Finley Foster, congratulations on our marriage," he said.

My heart gave a painful jolt.

There was a time when I would have killed to hear him say those words.

But I never thought it'd be him marrying someone else, and me ending up with another.

After I replied to Mom's message, I started gathering my stuff, feeling numb.

Looking at the photos of Christian and m, I couldn't hold back my tears. Every moment we'd spent together hit me all at once.

*****

Christian was five years older than I was.

I watched him date Estrella, fight with her, and then break up.

He was miserable, drank himself numb every day.

Seeing him like that broke my heart.

That was when I realized I'd stopped seeing him as just my brother a long time ago.

Every day, I did everything I could to cheer him up, but there was never a trace of a smile on his face. Even though he was hurting, he still tried to comfort me.

"I'm fine, Finley. Don't worry," he'd say.

I loved his gentleness, but just being like this wasn't enough for me.

One night, after he got drunk again, I finally found the courage to press my lips to his.

That night, I was in pain, yet also incredibly happy.

But the next morning, I woke up to find him getting down on his knees on the floor, his eyes bloodshot from anger and exhaustion.

When he saw me wake up, his expression looked conflicted, but his voice dripped with disgust.

"Finley, how could you be so shameless?" He spat.

He lashed out at me with the harshest words, swearing he'd never see me again.

I ran out of the house and got wasted out on the streets.

When my friend helped me home, I found Christian getting down on his knees in front of my father's memorial, just slapping himself again and again.

I threw myself at him, stopping him before he could hit himself anymore.

He looked up at me, tears of regret glistening in his eyes.

I pulled him into the room, still tipsy, and reached for his belt.

"Christian, you didn't do anything wrong. It's all my fault. I'll repent for it," I said.

Christian pulled me into his arms, and this time, he didn't turn me away.

From then on, we put on the sibling act for everyone else, but once the doors were shut, we were like a married couple.

I always thought that one day, our secret would finally see the light of day.

It wasn't until today that I finally saw the truth.

All of it was just me fooling myself.

I dumped every last photo into the trash, grabbed my suitcase, and stepped out of the house.

I was reaching for my phone to call a cab when Christian's voice stopped me.