Chapter 1

"Verification failed. Please contact the administrator."

The cold, mechanical female voice echoed through the hallway.

I lifted my finger, wiped it against my clothes, and pressed it to the scanner again.

"Verification failed."

No matter how many times I tried, the door wouldn't open.

Beside me, Ryan Cole, Bastian's childhood friend, finally burst out laughing.

"Give it up, future Mrs. Shaw. Bastian made a bet with us. He wanted to see if you'd completely lose it in front of everyone when you found out Molly Lane's fingerprint was the one registered for your new house.

"He says he's got his clingy girlfriend completely under control now. As long as you don't make a scene today, he'll marry you."

The other friends gathered in the hallway joined in, openly laughing as they watched the spectacle unfold.

Inside the doorway, Molly leaned against the frame, wearing one of Bastian's oversized shirts. A coy little smile played on her lips, though there was no hiding the triumph behind it.

They were all waiting for me to burst into tears or have a meltdown and start pounding on the door. Instead, I looked at Bastian's indifferent expression, withdrew my hand from the scanner, and calmly slipped my bag back over my shoulder.

"Oh, I see. No need to add my fingerprint, then. I wish you two a long, happy marriage."

With that, I turned toward the elevator.

The smile on Bastian's face froze. He strode after me and grabbed my wrist, his voice carrying a clear warning.

"Sydney Lewis, what kind of hard-to-get game are you playing now? I already told you I'd add your fingerprint tomorrow as long as you behaved.

"If you dare get into that elevator today, you can forget about marrying me!"

I lowered my eyes to the hand gripping my wrist and forcibly pried his fingers away.

"Fine. We won't get married."

As the elevator doors slowly closed, I caught a glimpse of Ryan trying to follow me, only for Bastian to stop him with a sneer.

"Leave her alone. She's just playing hard to get. She'll be calling me in tears by midnight, begging me to come back."

He was certain I couldn't live without him.

By the time I returned to the old apartment we'd rented together for five years, it was already dark.

I went straight to the corner, pulled out a large black trash bag, and shook it open. Into it went the matching mugs on the coffee table, the photo albums on the bookshelf, our toothbrushes from the bathroom sink, and the Polaroid pictures of us hanging on the walls.

At the very bottom of the closet was a drawer containing a cheap little teddy bear.

Bastian had won it for me at a street ring-toss stall one winter night five years ago, spending several dollars just to get it.

Back then, he'd had nothing to his name. He'd held my chilblain-covered hands between his own, his eyes red as he made me a promise.

"Sydney, once I start making money, I swear I'll give you a home where you'll never have to live at anyone else's mercy."

Now he had money, and he'd given that home to Molly.

As for me, he'd trampled all over my dignity and turned me into a laughingstock among his friends.

I suppose the saying was true. I'd never doubted that love could be genuine, but even genuine feelings could change in an instant.

I picked up the teddy bear and tossed it into the bottom of the trash bag.

Just then, my phone lit up with a message from Bastian.

[Sydney Lewis, you've taken this far enough. I'm giving you a way out, so take it while you can. Don't push me until I lose my patience.]