Chapter 1

For eight years, I held onto a single, drunken promise.

A joke he probably forgot the moment he woke up the next morning.

But for me, it was everything.

It started when I was fourteen.

A stupid, lovestruck kid who had spent her entire childhood trailing after her older brother, Mark, and his best friend, Liam.

Liam was six years older, a god in my teenage eyes.

He was handsome, smart, and had this easy charm that made everyone gravitate toward him.

I was just Mark's annoying little sister, a shadow he barely noticed.

That night, the air in our backyard was thick with summer heat and cheap beer.

Music pulsed from a speaker, and the dim party lights made everyone look like a stranger.

I saw Liam leaning against the old oak tree, his head tipped back, a bottle loose in his hand.

He was drunk.

It was the first time I'd ever seen him so unguarded.

My heart hammered against my ribs.

It felt like now or never.

I walked over, my steps shaky.

Before I could lose my nerve, I stood on my toes and pressed my lips against his.

It was a clumsy, desperate kiss that lasted only a second.

Liam's eyes fluttered open.

They were hazy, unfocused.

He looked down at me, a slow, lazy smile spreading across his face.

He didn't push me away.

He didn't get angry.

He just chuckled, a low, rumbling sound.

"Ava," he slurred, his voice amused. "What's this?"

He reached out and patted my head like I was a puppy.

"I'm not into little girls."

The words were casual, dismissive, but they hit me with the force of a physical blow.

Humiliation burned my cheeks.

I wanted the ground to swallow me whole.

But then, he seemed to reconsider, a playful glint in his eyes.

He saw the tears welling up, the way my world was crumbling.

"Fine," he said, the corner of his mouth twitching. "When you're 22, if you still like me, I'll consider it."

He thought it was a game.

A funny way to get rid of the kid with a crush.

I took it as a promise.

For the next eight years, I dedicated myself.

I became the perfect candidate.

I studied architecture with a ferocity that surprised my professors, racking up awards and securing a prestigious internship.

I learned to dress, to talk, to carry myself with a confidence I didn't always feel.

I did everything to close that six-year gap, to become a woman he couldn't dismiss.

All while subtly orbiting his world, making sure he saw my transformation.

And now, tonight, I was 22.

The promise was due.

I stood outside the private VIP room of an upscale club, my hands clammy.

I had spent hours getting ready, my red dress a beacon of my confidence.

Mark had told me Liam was here with some friends, celebrating a new tech deal.

It was the perfect moment.

The door was slightly ajar.

I could hear his voice, that familiar, confident sound that still made my stomach flip.

I leaned closer, a smile already on my lips, ready to walk in and claim my prize.

"I'm telling you, this is the only way," Liam was saying, his voice laced with smug satisfaction. "Ava is… persistent. The girl's been obsessed with me since she was a kid."

Laughter from his friends.

"So you're really going through with it? The fake fiancée? The rented baby?" someone asked.

My smile froze.

My blood turned to ice.

"It's a masterpiece of a plan," Liam boasted. "Sienna is perfect for the part. She needs the money, I need a deterrent. We announce our engagement, maybe even parade a kid around for a few months. It's the only way to get Ava to finally back off for good. She's my best friend's sister, I can't just be a complete asshole to her."

He paused, and I could almost picture his self-satisfied smirk.

"Once Ava is out of the picture, I can finally tell Sienna how I really feel. I've been in love with her for years. This whole charade... it's just to clear the path for my true love."

The words echoed in the hallway, each one a hammer blow against my heart.

Fake fiancée.

Rented baby.

A deterrent.

To get me to back off.

His true love was Sienna.

It was never me.

The eight-year promise was a lie he used to keep me at a distance, a game he never intended to finish.

My entire future, meticulously planned around him, crumbled into dust.

I stumbled back from the door, my chest tight, unable to draw a breath.

The noise of the club faded into a dull roar.

I couldn't feel my legs, but somehow, they carried me away.

I ran past the crowds, past the bouncers, out into the cold night air.

A sudden downpour started, the rain hitting me like tiny, sharp needles, plastering my expensive dress to my skin.

I didn't care.

I just ran, blindly, tears mixing with the rain on my face.

Every hope, every dream, every carefully constructed piece of my life was a joke.

I was a joke.

An obstacle to be removed.

I finally stopped in an empty alley, leaning against a cold brick wall, and sobbed.

The sound was raw, torn from the depths of my soul.

I had wasted eight years of my life chasing a ghost, a fantasy.

My phone buzzed in my clutch.

A message from him.

Liam: "Hey, sorry I missed you tonight. Things got a little crazy. By the way, there's something you should know. Sienna and I are together now. It's serious."

Another blow.

He didn't even have the decency to let me find out on my own.

He had to rub it in my face, making sure the message was clear.

I was out.

I looked at the message, at his name on my screen.

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

I scrolled through my contacts and found the email from the university.

An overseas scholarship to study in New York.

I had been holding off on accepting it, waiting for him.

Waiting for my 22nd birthday.

I pressed "Accept."

Then, I went home, my clothes dripping water all over the floor.