Chapter 1

I sat in my bedroom, phone to my ear, my voice barely a whisper. "Hannah, I'm ready to accept the family's arrangements. I'll enter into a marriage alliance."

On the other end, my sister Hannah's tone brightened, clearly thrilled. "Really? You've finally come around?"

"Yeah, Hannah. I'll be home in a week."

"Haha, good, good, good. Then let Liam drive you back. He has to attend your wedding anyway."

"He... won't have time," I said, biting my lip.

Suddenly, I heard the lock turn at the door.

Liam Donovan pushed the door open, pulling me into his embrace. His warm breath brushed against my neck. "No time? What no time? Me?"

I froze for a second, then shook my head. "No, it's just I haven't been home in a while. Hannah said she misses me a bit and wants me to stay with her for a few days. You definitely won't have time."

"Hmm... work's been pretty hectic. Can't really get away." With that, Liam's lips slowly moved from my neck to my mouth.

I pushed him away, testing the waters. "Are you going to come back with me? To meet my sister?"

Liam kissed my eyelashes. "Chloe, if your sister found out about us, she'd kill me."

My body tensed. My voice couldn't help but sound disappointed. "But when we get married, won't you two have to meet anyway?"

He fell silent. A moment later, he said, "I'm going to take a shower first."

I instantly understood what he meant. I closed my eyes in agony.

Sure enough, a stand-in is just a stand-in. They never get a happy ending.

The first time I met Liam Donovan was when I was thirteen. My family sent me to a top-tier high school in a major city for better college prospects, so I ended up living with his family.

Liam was already twenty-three then. He leaned down, his eyes fixed on me, a faint smile playing on his lips. "What a cute little girl. Don't worry, you're safe with me."

Back then, he was a relative of my sister's boyfriend. Now that Hannah was married, our family was even closer to Liam.

From that day on, the handsome and considerate Liam slowly found his way into my heart.

I thought my secret crush on him would last forever, but I never expected that when I was fifteen, he'd bring home a girl named Skylar Hayes.

He'd never allowed outsiders to disrupt my studies or life at home before, yet he let Skylar come and go as she pleased.

Around the time I was prepping for my high school finals, Skylar would sometimes come over and stay with Liam.

Each time, I'd grip my pen so tightly, listening to the intimate laughter from the next room, so lost in my pain that I didn't even feel the tip digging into my palm.

Skylar often smiled brightly, patting my cheek. "Sweetheart Chloe, would you be happy if Liam and I got married?"

My fists clenched inside my sleeves, my lips pressed shut. It was Liam who eventually intervened. "She's still so young. Why ask her something like that? How's she supposed to answer?"

Skylar's smile was radiant. "She's not that young anymore. She should understand these kinds of feelings."

My body trembled then.

I thought I'd hidden my feelings perfectly, but Skylar's expression and tone made me wonder if they'd been discovered.

I looked at Liam, a flicker of panic in my eyes. I was terrified he'd find out about the feelings I'd kept locked away, yet I also feared he wouldn't, because a part of me longed for them to be returned.

But when his eyes met mine, there was no flicker of emotion. He turned away and chuckled. "What are you thinking, baby? She's not even an adult yet." Then he ruffled Skylar's hair. "How about we go back to my room?"

Skylar leaned into his embrace. "You'd better treat me right tonight."

From that day on, I tried my best to avoid Liam.

I wanted to avoid any awkwardness, and honestly, I just couldn't stand seeing him anymore. It drove me crazy.

After high school, I successfully got into college.

I wanted to move out of Liam's house, but he wouldn't agree.

He insisted, "Your university is right downtown, and I've seen your class schedule. You don't have classes every day. You could easily commute. It's more convenient to keep living here."

His attitude gave me the mistaken impression that he liked me too. But that very night, he brought Skylar home again, and their intimate sounds pierced my eardrums, tearing through my heart.

I gave up.

But on the night of my college acceptance party, everything changed.

That night, despite Liam's objections, I drank a lot.

Fueled by alcohol, I summoned the courage to hug the man I'd loved for years.

He pushed me away and fled in a panic.

Yet, just a few days later, he and Skylar broke up.

On the night they split, Liam, reeking of alcohol, pinned me beneath him. One hand cupped the back of my head, the other encircled my slender waist.

His kiss left me breathless, and the intense rush of hormones made it impossible to resist.

Liam's kiss was possessive, as if he wanted to meld me into his very being.

My hands were forced against his chest, but gradually, the intensity of years of unspoken love made me stop struggling. I couldn't help but close my eyes and return his deep kiss.

I had never been in a relationship, never kissed anyone before.

The clumsier I was, the more Liam seemed to want to conquer me.

His large hand deftly slipped beneath my top. "Be with me."

Tears streamed down my cheeks. "Okay."

With that, Liam deepened the kiss.

I could no longer control the profound love in my heart, wanting to take another step with him. "I love you, Liam Donovan."

"I love you too." He paused for a long moment. "Skylar."

A single tear rolled from my eye.

After that night, Liam and I officially started dating.

But deep down, I knew perfectly well that I was just Skylar's stand-in.

A sudden pang in my chest pulled me out of my thoughts.

Every time I thought about it, the pain would choke me.

The bathroom door suddenly opened.

Water droplets clung to Liam's hair. "Baby, why is my toothbrush cup different?"

I replied distractedly, "Oh... I accidentally knocked it over today, and it fell on the floor. I thought it was dirty, so I bought a new one." I paused for two seconds, then added, "They didn't have the matching couple's one."

"Okay." Having gotten his answer, he disappeared back into the bathroom.

My heart felt even heavier.

After we got together, I bought so many matching couple items: couple's clothes, couple's towels, couple's cups, couple's toothbrushes, and so on.

Almost everything visible in the house was a couple's item.

But just the day before yesterday, while Liam was cooking, I accidentally saw his phone.

It was one of the rare times he cooked himself.

I saw how happy he seemed, so I sat on his lap, wrapped my arms around his neck, and asked him why he was so cheerful. He just smiled and said he was simply happy, no reason.