My Bestie Stole My Childhood Love, I Married a Billionaire Chapter 05

My Bestie Stole My Childhood Love, I Married a Billionaire Chapter 05

Ethan had been staying at my place a few days. He pulled open the door.

When he saw the guy on the other side, his eyes narrowed. Ice in his stare.

I froze too.

The teacher had said Nate was thirty. I’d pictured… older. Middle-aged.

But this guy looked nothing like that.

Sharp jaw. Crisp suit. Broad shoulders that hinted at serious gym time. Taller than Ethan by half a head. Ethan was six feet.

“Hi. I’m here for Vivian Vance.”

Nate spoke politely, scanning me and Chloe.

The voices from my past came flooding back.

“If Chloe wasn’t around, no one would even know your name.”

“Seriously. You’re always glued to her side—you know that makes you look pathetic, right?”

“She’s just the sidekick. That’s literally her only purpose. Who’d actually want to hang out with her?”

Even with my ears covered, I heard them.

Even Ethan said those things.

Heat crawled up my cheeks. I braced myself to introduce—

Nate smiled. Produced a bouquet of roses from behind his back.

Walked straight at me. Ears pink. Like he was steeling himself.

“I’ve heard a lot about you, Ms. Vance. From my mom.”

“Now that I see you in person… you’re something else.”

Anyone else, I’d think it was sarcasm.

But he was so close I could hear his heartbeat. Thudding.

Something flickered in his eyes. I couldn’t read it.

I took the roses. Our fingers brushed. He yanked his hand back like he’d been burned.

“Let’s go.”

He hadn’t glanced at the other two. Not once.

Then he noticed Ethan blocking the door. His eyebrows dropped.

That look? Intense. The kind that made it hard to breathe.

Ethan didn’t look at him. Kept his eyes locked on me.

“Real classy. You hire a male escort to stage a show? Vivian, you walk out that door, don’t ever beg me to take you back.”

All three stared.

I walked toward Ethan. His smug grin started to form.

I clutched the roses. Turned. Called over my shoulder. “You coming or

what? You promised to walk me through the dark.”

Nate fell in step beside me.

Ethan’s smile froze. He stood there, watching.

The car’s taillights vanished into the night.