Chapter 3

Guys like him—always yearning for love that never came their way—tended to end up a little twisted inside.

I lowered my gaze, acting all heartbroken—just enough to make Dexter feel a bit better about himself.

Dexter grabbed my chin, looking pretty satisfied. "Know your place. Save your cheap love—I don't need it."

I thought that was it, but Dexter wasn't done—he always liked to shove me down and then toss me a crumb.

"But if you're really so crazy about me, maybe I'll actually give you a chance to date me for real," he added.

That stunned me into silence.

This wasn't in the stand-in playbook. I was just supposed to play Olivia, not actually start dating him for real.

Just as I was racking my brain for a way to dodge Dexter, his phone rang.

Dexter always kept his phone on silent, except for one person—she could reach him anytime, no matter what.

There was no doubt about it—it was Olivia.

Just a moment before, Dexter was slouched against me, all casual and almost careless. But the instant he answered his phone, he straightened up, his expression suddenly turning sharp and serious.

"Olivia, is everything okay? Why are you calling this late?" Dexter's tone softened a bit.

"Oh, that's right—I completely forgot it's evening over there for you," he responded.

"Yeah, work's been kind of hectic lately," Dexter admitted.

As Dexter chatted with Olivia on their long-distance call, his face gradually relaxed, all the tension fading away.

"You need me to swing by my place and grab a file?" Dexter repeated, a touch of surprise in his voice.

He glanced at me, hesitating for a split second.

Olivia probably said something like, "If it's a bad time, don't worry about it," because Dexter immediately cut in.

"Of course, for you, it's always convenient—anytime at all," he replied.

After hanging up, Dexter turned to me. "Olivia needs an urgent file, so you're gonna have to hop out and find your own way home."

He hesitated for a moment, sounding almost embarrassed. "Just pretend I never said any of that earlier, alright?"

It was two in the morning, and he was literally about to dump me on the curb.

Honestly, this guy had a drop of conscience—just not enough to actually matter.

I put on my most tragic, heartbroken face and just stood there, watching as Dexter's car pulled away.

By the time his taillights vanished into the night, those two pitiful tears I squeezed out had already been blown away by the wind.

I rubbed my arms against the chill and slipped right into the ride I'd ordered ages ago, waiting patiently at the curb.

Honestly, I'd seen this coming the moment Dexter answered the phone, so I'd already called my car before he could even ditch me.

I was so dead tired—seriously. Who in their right mind would want to get sucked into their crazy lovebirds' mess?

Playing the perfect stand-in? Way harder than anyone thinks.

I'd rather just go to sleep.

Maybe I was just too good at it that night—I absolutely perfected that shattered, heartbroken vibe I got from being tossed aside by a jerk.

For the first time ever, Dexter actually felt a flicker of guilt toward me.

Dexter was on top of the world these days, so whenever his friends threw a party, he'd drag me along with him, no questions asked.

The place would be packed—with a dozen people or more, calling it a 'casual hangout' just didn't cut it.

The Phillips family practically ran Akata City, and Dexter was at the center of it all; just a word from him, and everyone would jump in just to hype him up.

Some folks even tried so hard to win Dexter's favor that they'd already done their homework on me, down to the very last detail, before I even showed up.

Someone tried to be smart and brought it up. "Miss Wilkinson's birthday is coming up soon, right? Dexter, I bet you've already got a ton of surprises planned for her, haven't you?"

Dexter had his arm around me and, hearing that, looked over at me, a thoughtful expression in his eyes.

I knew he was probably seeing my sister through me again. Olivia and I were twins, just one day apart in our birthdays.

Two years ago, Dexter actually chose Olivia's birthday to propose to her.

This morning, Olivia texted me, saying she was coming back to the country this month—and that she'd heard about what was going on between me and Dexter.

She sounded a bit hurt, saying I shouldn't be "falling so low" and that there must be some kind of misunderstanding.

My dear sister was always so "beautiful and kind-hearted." I didn't even bother replying—I just deleted the message and blocked her.

Honestly, that just made me even more set on quitting as soon as possible.

This whole stand-in gig might pay easy money, but for me, it was all about the paycheck, not the feelings. Lately, though, Dexter had been acting stranger and stranger—like I was supposed to care. Not my problem.

No way did I want to get dragged into some messy relationship drama when my sister showed up.

More importantly, I had to ditch Dexter fast—there was someone out there actually waiting for me, someone who mattered.

Right now, I was set on changing the subject before things got awkward.

"Oh, of course I've got surprises lined up..." Dexter started to say.

"I don't like birthdays, and I don't need any surprises," I said, cutting him off flatly.

We both spoke at once, but my answer drowned his out. When Dexter finally processed what I'd said, he was caught off guard for a second, then broke into a laugh.

"I've already reserved the whole amusement park. On your birthday, it'll be all yours—just you and nobody else," Dexter replied.

While he said that, he stroked my hair—his voice was softer than usual, almost gentle and doting.