Semua Bab Dear Ex, I'm More Than Your Plan B: Bab 11 - Bab 20

The soft click of her apartment door echoed louder than it should have.Vera stepped inside, toeing off her heels without bothering to turn on the lights. Moonlight spilled through the floor to ceiling windows, casting long silver streaks across the wooden floors. The silence that met her was familiar, comforting even, but tonight, it didn’t bring the usual relief.She dropped her clutch on the console table by the door and shrugged off her coat, letting it fall haphazardly over the back of the couch. The damp patch from the champagne stain clung to her skin, cold and unpleasant.She peeled the dress off and traded it for one of Asher’s oversized button down shirt, left behind during their first meeting.She stood still for a moment in the quiet, staring at her reflection in the window. Her eyes were tired. Not from the party. Not even from Sarah’s confrontation. But from the weight she carried. The one she didn’t show anyone.Her fingers itched to text someone, Talia maybe. But her b

The morning sun crept through the slits of Vera’s blinds, casting golden lines across her bed.She sat curled up against the headboard, a blanket draped around her shoulders and her phone clutched tightly in her hand. She hadn’t slept much, not after last night.Not after everything.She thought she had braced herself for what this fake relationship would bring.The stares.The whispers.The subtle jabs from socialites like Sarah Langford. But nothing had prepared her for the headlines that greeted her the moment she opened her eyes."Asher Donovan's Date Shocks High Society: Mystery Girl Steals the Spotlight.""Who is Vera Sinclair? Inside the Scandalous Date of the Donovan Heir.""From Nobody to Noteworthy: The Woman Turning Asher Donovan’s Head."Each headline was worse than the last. Photos from the night before were already making the rounds online, her walking beside Asher in that sleek gown, his hand resting protectively on her back, the moment they’d walked out of the banquet

Vera hit send before she could overthink it.But then, her gaze narrowed.Because she realized something.She was alright.Sarah’s message had stung, sure, but it also brought something unexpected. Closure. Not just for the twisted game she and Sarah were locked in, but for the past that had kept Vera trapped for far too long.Lucas was over. He belonged in the ashes. And she was done sifting through them.Sarah wanted to rattle her? Wanted to play dirty?Fine.Let the games begin.Because Vera was done sulking. She was done reacting.It was time she started acting.Sarah had made one thing clear, she thought Asher was still hers. That Vera was just some decoration, a pawn in the game, something to be discarded when it no longer served its purpose.But what if the pawn became a queen?What if Asher fell for her?Vera smiled to herself, the expression slow and curling, a little wicked around the edges. Not because she wanted to fall in love. Not because she believed in fairy tales anym

Vera sat in the quiet of her apartment, wrapped in an oversized hoodie. The soft fabric swaddled her, but it didn’t warm the chill racing down her spine.There was no more pretending.Not if she said yes.No more telling herself this was just about revenge.No more lying that her heart didn’t ache when Asher looked at her the way he did.She bit her lip, forcing herself to breathe.This wasn’t about love. She wasn’t that stupid. She had been in love before, madly, blindingly, with Lucas, and look how that ended.He had chosen Camilla and the safe, polished life that came with her. The betrayal still echoed in the corners of her mind, but it didn’t hurt as much now.Because Asher had shown up.In ways Lucas never had.And even when she’d doubted herself, when she felt like she didn’t belong in this glittering, savage world, Asher had looked at her like she did. Like she owned it.That look… That was what Nicholas had meant. And Sarah saw it too.God, Sarah.Vera gritted her teeth, the

Vera sat on the edge of her bed, her knees drawn up to her chest, the glow from her phone screen casting a faint light across her face.She hadn’t moved much since replying to Asher, still lost in the haze of everything that had unfolded, Lucas, Sarah, the banquet… and now this.Her phone buzzed softly again. A message from Asher.No more pretending, then. But know this, Vera, whatever this becomes… I don’t play fair.Her breath hitched.She read it once. Then twice. Her heart did that annoying thing, skipping, then thudding harder in her chest, like it didn’t know whether to panic or dive headfirst into the thrill that message promised.What did that even mean?What did he mean?Vera exhaled slowly and set the phone down beside her. Her room was quiet, too quiet.Outside her window, the city kept humming. Life kept moving.But she couldn’t. Not yet.She hugged her knees tighter, resting her chin on top of them.Sarah’s message had come like a slap to the face hours ago., sharp and sm