Chapter 3 Lies

I asked, "Are those the roses we ordered?"

"Yes," he said coolly.

I thought this was absurd. Even though the wedding was set aside after Rainie's divorce, the flowers were already ordered beforehand. He promised the samples would be sent to our place, and I would check them myself.

Now they were in Rainie's house. "If I hadn't asked," I said, "you were never going to tell me, were you?"

Impatience flickered on his face. "They're just roses. Rainie likes them, so I gave them to her."

"But I like them too, and those are the samples we picked for the wedding."

"You like them just because Rainie does." He fastened his seat belt and looked at my stunned face. "You have to understand that Rainie's the only female lead in this world, Diana. That won't change no matter how much you try to copy her."

My ears buzzed.

I came to this world six years ago. Not long after that, a certain man began watching me. The loyal and devoted second male lead who was destined to give everything he had to the female protagonist.

He said I kept downplaying myself, but to him, I was unique and one of a kind. He brought me breakfast and declined meetings just to see the stars with me.

No matter how many times I refused him and told him this was only the world of a novel, that falling in love with me would lead to his removal from the plot, he still gave me my favorite roses.

It was raining that day too.

His gestures moved me, and I fell hopelessly in love with him. After the car crash killed him, I gave up everything just to bring him back to life. I thought I could live out my happily ever after even when I was just a supporting character.

And now he was telling me that Rainie was the one and only female lead. Now, he was calling me a copycat when he used to tell me I was one of a kind.

The air turned heavier than anything I had ever felt before. Zach realized he had said the wrong thing.

He leaned over and tried to pat my shoulder, his voice softening. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I was drunk. She's really upset after the divorce. The roses were just a way to cheer her up, nothing else."

I leaned forward, avoiding his fingers. "Are you having second thoughts? Because if you are, I can let you go. You can be together with her."

Zach frowned, and his face showed displeasure. "She just got a divorce. If someone heard that, they're going to make up stories about her in their heads."

Even when I was demanding an answer, all he cared about was her reputation. He certainly thought nothing about that when he gave that answer to the reporter yesterday.

The trip home was silent.

A bouquet of wilted baby's breath sat before the entrance. Zach picked it up and handed it to me. "Rainie ordered a new bouquet since you love those flowers."

I did not take it. Instead, I walked around him and opened the door. He wanted to say something, but his phone rang, and he made his way to the balcony, smiling. The bouquet was thrown away like an afterthought.

"Diana loves it. She says thank you. Oh, the interview's out already? Don't mind it. You don't have to do anything. I'll run the company."

The interview. I scrolled my phone only to be hit by waves of news talking about the same thing.

"Mr. Lawson Says There Would Be No Success Without Rainie."

"Zach Cries During Interview, Thanks Rainie for Staying During Hardest Years."

"Mr. Lawson Claims the Shares Are Not Even a Tenth of What He Owes Her."

My brain felt like it would shut down. I stared at the smiling Zach. His call had ended. "Explain."

He saw my screen, and his smile slowly went away. "I had to give Rainie a reason for her sudden appointment as shareholder, or the employees would question it."

I clenched my fists. "I'm the one who stayed with you during those years." I was not being petty, especially not after I had decided to leave, but I would not stand for someone else taking the fruit of my labor.

Zach suddenly stepped back. The look in his eyes turned dangerously cold. "Don't try to guilt trip me with that, Diana. It's a stale trick at this point."