Affection Score: Absolute Zero

The comments kept scrolling—

[Did Rowan's whole vibe just change?]

[He should've figured it out sooner. Heidi's always loved Andy.]

[Can't wait for his villain arc.]

Me? Go full villain?

No.

I just finally remembered all the little things.

She never let me meet people alone, always saying she was "worried I'd end up around bad influences."

Any time I brought up work, she'd softly cut me off. "I'll take care of you."

So it was never love.

It was a cage.

***

I walked back to the mansion in a daze, stuffing clothes into a suitcase on autopilot.

When I passed the study, the comments suddenly exploded—

[Check the computer! Heidi forgot to log out of her chat app!]

[Oh crap. If Rowan sees those messages—]

[Warning! Operation Protect Andy is starting!]

A notification dinged from inside the study.

I pushed the door open.

The screen was still lit up.

A chat window sat open between Heidi and the female lead—Grace Kohler.

The latest message was from Heidi—

[He suddenly turned down the proposal. Keep Andy safe for the next few days. Don't let Rowan get near him.]

Grace replied almost instantly—

[Don't worry. You've put up with so much all these years.]

I laughed under my breath.

Seriously?

Because of me, two former rivals had teamed up.

I scrolled higher.

The chat history felt like a dull knife dragging through my flesh.

[Grace: In the original story, Rowan ruined Andy's face and even hired some creep to assault him. You've had to sleep next to that trash every day. That's insane.]

[Heidi: As long as Andy's safe, none of it matters.]

[Grace: He's getting more obsessed with you. If he learns the truth, won't he completely lose it?]

[Heidi: He won't find out. But if he does—and he dares touch Andy—I'll break his arms and legs, dump him in a psych ward, and lock him up forever!]

She even added an exclamation point.

I stared at the screen, my fingertips freezing cold.

The comments exploded again—

["None of that matters." Heidi loves Andy so much.]

[Am I the only one freaked out by this? She manipulated someone for six years just for Andy?]

[Rowan's the villain anyway. Heidi's just protecting her true love. Everybody wins.]

[Look at Rowan's face... Is he about to snap?]

[Rowan, quit screwing around and just run!]

Run?

I looked down at my wrist.

Yeah.

I needed to get out of here.

By the time I dragged my suitcase outside, the night had gone pitch-black.

I stood by the road, not even knowing where to go.

The comments were freaking out for me—

[Is he seriously leaving?]

[Hurry up already! Stop getting in the way of Heidi and Andy's romance.]

[Wait... isn't that Heidi's car?!]

Headlights sliced through the dark.

A familiar black sedan screeched to a stop beside me.

Heidi jumped out and ran over, shirt slightly wrinkled, breathing uneven, panic and hurt all over her face.

"Rowan, I'm sorry. I rushed the proposal... I thought you'd be happy."