Chapter 3

I tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep.

When I finally woke up very late the next day, the moment I checked my phone, a headline about James coming back home popped up.

For five years, James had always been rumored to be single. This time he was unusually seen with a girl by his side.

The girl had a mask on, so her face was hidden.

But something about her eyes and brows looked familiar to me.

For the past five years, the internet had been buzzing with rumors. They said that James had stayed single all this time because he never moved on from that enigmatic violinist.

But now, he passed on the VIP lane at the airport and chose to walk with the girl through the regular passage instead.

Fans at the airport, thrilled to finally see their idol up close, went absolutely wild.

Security couldn't contain them, and the crowd kept pushing toward James.

James, without thinking, pulled the girl in protectively.

The fans screamed like they'd struck gold or uncovered some huge secret.

No question about it. After five years, James's new gossip was about to shoot straight to the top of the trending list.

I stared at that familiar, long-lost face in the news, and for a second, my mind went blank. A sudden, sharp pain hit me in the chest, out of nowhere and for no reason at all.

I thought that last phone call was the final thread connecting James and me.

After five years without seeing him, I never thought I'd ever run into him again.

But the very next day, my mentor called me to the set. And I saw him there.

After winning the Violin Laureate and finally stepping into the spotlight, my name was trending nonstop. The internet couldn't stop talking about me.

Director Mason personally called me, offering me a guest spot as a violinist in his latest film.

My mentor said it was a great opportunity and told me I shouldn't miss it.

I didn't want to go.

She tried to talk me into it. "Emily, you can't keep hiding in the shadows forever. That whole mess was ages ago. Nobody cares anymore.

"Look, when you stepped into the spotlight after winning the Violin Laureate, nobody recognized you, right?"

She'd been guiding me for over ten years, always treating me like her star pupil. Naturally, she wanted me to shine.

I agonized over it all night, but in the end, I went anyway.

But I never expected to see James there.

When I spotted him, he was lounging on a director's chair, soaking up the sun.

The guy who'd once been blacklisted by his agency was now back on top in the entertainment world.

It seemed as if he sensed my gaze. He turned his head and glanced at me, a fleeting, nonchalant look, his face completely expressionless.

To be honest, it didn't feel like we were exes who hadn't seen each other in five years. It was more like we were strangers, as if we'd never crossed paths at all.

But at that moment, my attention wasn't on him at all. It was on the girl right by his side, the same one I'd seen with him at the airport.

Now that she'd taken off her mask, I realized who she was. It was Olivia Foster, my dad's stepdaughter.

I couldn't remember the last time I saw Olivia. It felt like ages.

Her face appeared out of nowhere, stabbing into my mind like a needle. My stomach lurched.

The bright sunlight hit me, and I swayed, almost collapsing right there in front of everyone.

In the instant of dizziness before my eyes, I vaguely saw James looking in my direction. His expression seemed to change.

His hand, which had been resting casually on the arm of the chair, suddenly tightened, like he was about to jump up.

But as quickly, he loosened his grip. The surge of emotion on his face faded as fast as it had never been there at all.

Before I could collapse, my mentor was quick to catch me, steadying me in time.

She knew all about my family drama.

She recognized Olivia too, and couldn't help but mutter a curse under her breath. Her tone was quite unpleasant. "What's Olivia doing here?"

I barely managed to pull myself together, forcing myself to stay calm. Then I answered, "Looks like she's with James now."

My mentor caught on right away. "So that was her in the airport photos yesterday?"

I nodded.

My mentor looked more annoyed. "What are the odds? Is James doing this to mess with you?"

I kept my voice low. "He's not like that."

James and I broke up ages ago. There was no way he'd waste his time messing with me now.

Besides, he didn't know anything about my family. He'd never met them.

I had a feeling Olivia was going to make things difficult for me.