Chapter 1

“Even though you’re my girlfriend, Yvette Quinn will always be the most important person in my heart. If you want to be with me, you have to respect her and look after her.”

After Landon Chase said something so outrageous, my roommates nearly jumped up and cursed him out.

I quickly covered their mouths and nodded with a sweet smile.

“Of course. Your friends are my friends. I’m sure Yvette and I will become great friends.”

My roommates were furious that I was being such a pushover.

“You’re the prettiest girl on campus, yet you insist on throwing yourself at someone in that little clique. You’ll regret it one day!”

My roommates left, frustrated that I wouldn’t listen. I didn’t take it to heart and linked my arm with Landon’s.

“Come on. Let’s not keep your friends waiting.”

The moment I opened the private room door, I saw a girl sitting in the middle.

She wore a white dress and had a sweet, pretty face—the kind of pure, innocent beauty boys adored.

Two fairly handsome guys sat on either side of her.

They looked very close.

I’d assumed the legendary group princess would be spoiled and demanding.

But the moment she saw me, she warmly took my hand.

“You must be Landon’s new girlfriend. You’re so pretty.

“These are Wesley Brooks and Simon Wells. Why are you two just standing there? Come on, welcome our new member!”

She took the initiative to introduce me to the group’s other two guys.

For some reason, I sensed a strange hostility from both of them.

The guy with glasses was Simon. He forced a smile and briefly shook my hand.

The other guy, Wesley, had a buzz cut. He crossed his arms and made no effort to hide his hostility toward me.

I licked my lips, and my smile grew even wider.

Yvette kept holding my hand and chattering away. “You’re such a gorgeous girl. How could you be blind enough to fall for that jerk Landon?”

Landon helplessly ruffled Yvette’s hair.

Then he took off his jacket and laid it on the chair for her to sit on. “You’re on your period. This will keep you warm.”

Yvette instinctively turned to look at me. “June will get mad if you do that. Are you trying to drive a wedge between us?”

The room fell silent for a moment, and Landon frowned.

I raised an eyebrow and said, completely unbothered, “Of course I won’t get mad. Landon already told me you’re the group’s princess.

“Now that I’ve met you, I can see why everyone adores you so much. You’re so pretty and sweet.”

Only then did the three guys relax.

Yvette’s expression stiffened almost imperceptibly, but she quickly spoke again, sounding delighted.

“You’re so different from other girls. Landon and the others’ girlfriends always seemed to get jealous and treat me like a rival. I really wanted to be friends with them, but they always hated me.”

She gave a shy little smile. “The three of them stopped dating so no one would bully me.”

She paused, then glanced at Landon with a hint of reproach.

“I can’t believe you managed to win Landon over. You must be pretty good at getting what you want.”

I smiled without confirming or denying it, pretending I didn’t understand the meaning behind her words.

Soon, the servers began bringing out the food.

I could tell Yvette was about to pull something.

I held my tongue and waited, looking forward to our first real clash.

I hoped she’d be good at this and wouldn’t disappoint me.

Yvette let out a scream, and a bowl of soup that wasn’t even that hot spilled onto her.

Her face twisted in pain.

I was about to go check her injury when Landon angrily shoved me to the floor.

Wesley was even more furious. “I knew women like you were all the same. You acted so generous just now, but now you’re showing your true colors!”

Simon adjusted his glasses and spoke without expression. “We promised to protect Yvette for the rest of our lives. No one gets to bully her.”

“You just met her, and your girlfriend hurt Yvette because she was jealous. Landon, you owe us an explanation.”

Landon’s face darkened. “June Sutton, apologize to Yvette. Now!”

Yvette huddled against the three guys and gave me a faintly taunting look.

Most girls would have flipped the table and walked out if their boyfriend and his clique treated them like that.

But I wasn’t like most girls.

My eyes welled up at once, and I let the tears linger without falling.

My voice even caught in my throat.

“I’m sorry, Yvette. I didn’t realize you were trying to serve me some soup.”

I tilted my head, putting on my most vulnerable expression. “I really love Landon, and I really want to be your friend. You’re so kind. You’ll forgive me, won’t you?”

Yvette’s expression and body both stiffened.

She forced a smile. “Of course. Don’t blame June. She didn’t do it on purpose.”

With tears streaming down my face, I threw myself into Landon’s arms and looked at him with hurt, reproachful eyes.

For the first time, Landon looked a little guilty.

He put his arms around me and was about to say something when Yvette eagerly cut in.

“Let’s finish eating and go swimming. Landon, didn’t you say you’d teach me how to swim? I even brought my swimsuit.”

Once Yvette spoke, no one cared whether I’d finished eating. The others simply put down their utensils.

“Let’s go.”

The three guys clustered around Yvette as if she were the center of their universe.

I was left trailing behind them all alone.

Landon glanced back at me, and Yvette immediately leaned toward him as if by chance to ask about swimming.

Wesley said irritably, “I’m a better swimmer than Landon. Let me teach you.”

Yvette gave him a sweet smile. “One at a time. You’re next.”

The five of us soon arrived at the swimming pool.

Yvette had changed into a simple floral one-piece swimsuit. She clung to Landon’s arm as if personal space didn’t exist.

The moment her toes touched the water, she shrieked and jumped into Landon’s arms.

I came out in my swimsuit and saw them.

“Landon, I can’t swim either. Could you teach me?”

Landon, Wesley, and Simon turned at the sound of my voice. Their eyes filled with admiration.

To pull off the perfect sweet-and-innocent act, one needed the right looks.

The other guys at the pool kept sneaking glances at me, and Landon’s expression darkened.

He instinctively let go of Yvette and started toward me.

But Yvette grabbed his hand and smiled at me. “Sorry, June. Landon’s mine today.”

Landon stopped and rubbed his nose.

“I promised to teach Yvette first. You’ll have to wait.”

The two of them got into the pool, and Yvette kept splashing around and burrowing into Landon’s arms.

As I watched them quietly, a stranger came over and struck up a conversation.

“Hey, gorgeous. Want me to teach you how to swim?”

Landon saw us from the pool, and his expression suddenly darkened.

“She’s my girlfriend. You don’t need to worry about her.”

The stranger looked from Landon to Yvette, who was pressed close to him, and gave him a scornful look.

“You’ve got a girlfriend and still want another woman. Ever heard of staying faithful?”

Landon snapped, “What are you talking about? I only see Yvette as a little sister.”

“So, you’re openly flirting with your sister.”

The stranger’s sarcastic remark nearly made me laugh out loud.

When I saw how angry Landon had gotten, I worried things might escalate. I quickly said to the stranger, “Thanks, but I’ll just hang out on my own for a while.”

The stranger reluctantly left, but he made sure to plant a seed of doubt before he went.

“Here’s my number, gorgeous. If you ever decide to break up with him, give me a call.”

As soon as he left, Landon turned to me with a sour look.

“Those guys were obviously trying to take advantage of you. Be more careful, will you?”

I stammered, “But it’s pretty boring sitting here alone. Since you’re teaching Yvette to swim, could Wesley or Simon teach me?

“You’re all such close friends. I’m sure they wouldn’t try anything with me.”

Wesley was sitting nearby.

He scoffed, “Take advantage of you? You really think you’re that irresistible?”

I wasn’t offended. “Then it’s settled. You two can teach me how to swim.”

Wesley and Simon found themselves roped into it, so they had no choice but to carefully help me into the pool.

Yvette’s annoyed voice came from nearby. “Landon, can you focus, please?”

I looked over and met Landon’s eyes.

From the moment I got into the pool, Landon was distracted. He kept glancing my way, and Yvette was starting to get annoyed.

I blinked, and then my foot suddenly cramped. My strength gave out, and I fell into Wesley’s arms.

Wesley froze, too stunned to move.

“My foot really hurts. Could you massage it for me? I forgot to stretch before getting in the water.”

I leaned close to Wesley’s ear and looked at Simon across from us with a wounded expression.

Simon hesitated, then ducked underwater to massage my calf.

“Wesley!” Yvette’s voice rang out, so shrill it made everyone jump.

Wesley’s hand jerked. He flung me away and swam toward Yvette.

The sudden movement sent me under, and I choked on water.

Terrified I would drown, I clung tightly to Simon and pressed my lips to his, gasping for air.

Simon’s eyes widened.

Once the cramp in my calf eased, I climbed out of the pool, looking thoroughly disheveled.

Simon looked away, too embarrassed to meet my eyes.

As soon as I got out, Yvette came over, looking indignant. “June, you’re Landon’s girlfriend. How can you act so intimately with Wesley? Kissing and hugging in front of everyone? How do you think that makes Landon look?”

I looked hurt and was about to explain when Simon and Wesley spoke at the same time.

“June’s leg cramped. She didn’t do it on purpose, Yvette. Don’t talk to her like that.”

“Some physical contact is normal when you’re teaching someone to swim. You’re always hugging Landon, and June’s never said a thing.”

The moment they spoke, the pool deck fell silent.

Yvette stared at them in disbelief, her eyes reddening. “You’re yelling at me because of June?”

Wesley and Simon both looked startled by what they’d said, as if they couldn’t understand why they had defended me.

Yvette’s tearful words made them regret it even more.

Wesley hurried to apologize. He took Yvette’s hand and tried to slap himself with it.

“I’m sorry, Yvette. I wasn’t yelling at you. Go ahead and hit me if it’ll make you feel better.”

Simon gently wiped the tears from Yvette’s face.

“Yvette, don’t cry.”

Landon looked livid the whole time.

He couldn’t help making a sarcastic remark. “Anyone would think June was your girlfriend, not mine. Even I’m not making this much of a fuss, and I’m her actual boyfriend.”

Simon guiltily fell silent.

Wesley raised his voice to protest. “Girlfriend? I only want Yvette. I don’t want some girlfriend.”

The two of them kept comforting Yvette until she finally smiled through her tears.

Just when I thought Yvette would finally settle down, she suddenly turned to look at me.

The moment our eyes met, my well-honed instincts as a sweet-faced manipulator kicked in.

“June, I thought we could be friends. I didn’t realize you were just like the others. The first thing you did after joining our group was try to drive a wedge between the four of us.

“But you’re even more devious than they were. This is the first time they’ve ever gotten so angry with me over someone outside our group.”

Yvette’s voice was full of sadness.

“Why? We’re both girls. Why can’t we get along? Why do you have to compete with me for their attention?”

As Yvette spoke, I could feel Simon’s gaze turn cold and distant again.

Wesley’s baseless hostility toward me returned, just like when we first met.

Landon’s expression darkened.

“June, were you really doing it on purpose?”

I thought, “Wow.”

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. Wasn’t Yvette the one who’d been desperately competing with me all along?

No wonder this little group had such a notorious reputation.

Landon, Wesley, and Simon were all pretty handsome, yet girls kept their distance from them.

Their ex-girlfriends must have had a miserable time dealing with Yvette.

But since Yvette had crossed paths with me today, I’d teach her a proper lesson.

I blinked, my eyes filling with tears. “I’m sorry, Yvette. Landon went to teach you how to swim, and I was so bored that I asked Wesley and Simon to keep me company.

“I just thought we were already friends. I didn’t realize you never considered me part of the group. I guess I was fooling myself.”

I lowered my head slightly, tears glimmering in my eyes.

I bit my lips until they turned pale and tried to hold back a sob as I said to Landon, “Let’s break up.”

Landon’s eyes widened, and a trace of irritation crossed his face.

“You weren’t doing it on purpose, so it’s fine. It’s no big deal. When did I ever say I wanted to break up with you?

“Don’t overthink it. Yvette’s always encouraged us to get girlfriends. She definitely considers you a friend.”

Wesley and Simon also awkwardly tried to reassure me. “Exactly. Yvette was just saying whatever came to mind. She really wants to hang out with other girls.”

Put on the spot, Yvette could only force a smile.

She took my hand and shook it, looking sweet and innocent. “June, what are you saying? Of course I sincerely consider you a friend. That’s why I was so upset.

“As long as you weren’t trying to drive a wedge between the four of us, that’s all that matters.”

Landon frowned slightly, sensing something strange in Yvette’s words.

But he soon pushed that feeling aside and reached out to put an arm around my shoulders.

“Didn’t you want to learn how to swim? I’ll teach you myself. For now, Wesley and Simon can teach Yvette.”

I sidestepped Landon.

My voice was choked with tears, but my tone was firm. “No. I want to break up with you.”