The Decoy Fiancée Who Found A Better Husband

Synopsis

Alex Carter and I had been purely friends for twenty-six years. Men and women were different, after all. Plus, he was the kind of restless soul who could never sleep alone. So every time he started dating someone, I'd cut him off. On my twenty-seventh birthday, Alex, probably worn down by his family's pressure to settle down, showed up at my door early in the morning. Alex said, "Emma, how about we just make do with each other?" I was about to curse him out. "I'm serious," he said. For the first time ever, Alex broke the rules and offered his hand to me. I stared at him, taking a few seconds to think. "Alex, if we get together and then break up, I won't be your friend anymore," I said. He flashed me a playful grin. "No way we're breaking up. I could never let you go," Alex said. So I took his hand. That making do lasted three years. At the engagement party, Alex and his buddy, Ryan Jennings, were out on the balcony, sneaking a smoke. Ryan asked, "Alex, back then, you were worried your dad might mess with Caroline, so you asked Emma to run interference for her. But honestly, Emma looks like she's genuinely into you now. "You didn't, like, forget to tell Emma this was all just pretend, did you?"