There it was again. Number twelve.
If it weren't for our one-year agreement, I would've slapped him across the face.
"Giles, what about you, then?"
He looked confused.
I stared at him, a cold smile on my lips.
"You've dated twelve women and that doesn't make you dirty?"
"You used every single one of us as a stand-in and that doesn't make you dirty?"
His face turned an even deeper shade of red, his voice climbing.
"That was loyalty to love! Loyalty to my heart! Lissa is the only woman I've ever loved. Everyone else was just passing through!"
Loyalty to love.
He made playing with people's feelings sound so poetic, I almost wanted to give him a standing ovation.
I'd dated my share of boyfriends. Giles was number fifty.
The reason I cycled through them every two or three months was simple: every single one of them, without exception, asked to borrow money.
My rule was clear.
Ask for money, and we're done.
I loved dating, but I wasn't anyone's fool.
I could look any of them in the eye with a clean conscience.
But Giles? He waved the banner of "loyalty to love" while doing the most despicable things imaginable.
He was clearly furious. He yanked out his phone, hands shaking with emotion.
"Lissa's the only one I love. I'm posting it right now. Announcing our engagement on social media!"
My heart clenched.
"No!"
The word flew out of me before I could stop it.
"Just give me four more days!"
Giles shot me a bewildered look.
I forced myself to calm down, keeping my voice as casual as I could manage.
"I'm in the middle of signing a contract with the Gilbert Group. Four days is all I need, and it'll be done. After that, I'll move out. We agreed on this. A clean break."
Giles stared at me, his eyes brimming with contempt.
"You'd use a relationship for profit? You're disgusting."
I didn't care what he thought of me.
I just needed to get what I wanted.
I lowered myself even further.
"Giles, I've been good to you this past year, haven't I? I paid the rent. I covered every meal. I even bought your guitar. I'm not asking you to do anything. Just four days. You don't have to lift a finger."
I brought up everything I'd done, thinking he might feel some shred of gratitude.
Instead, it only deepened his disgust.
"Number twelve! How long are you going to keep hounding me?"
That was when Lissa came out of the bedroom.
She'd obviously heard every word. She leaned against the doorframe, watching me with open amusement.
"What contract? How much is it worth?"
I made up a number on the spot.
"Twenty million for the contract. A million-dollar bonus on top."
Lissa's eyes lit up instantly.
"So if we play along, what's in it for us?"
It hit me then.
She wanted money. Again.
I gritted my teeth.
"I'll split the bonus with you. Half. Is that enough?"
I paused.
"You two are getting married. That's not going to be cheap."
Giles was about to refuse, but the word "married" gave him pause.
It was true.
He hadn't made it big yet. Where was the money for a wedding going to come from?
He was on the verge of nodding when Lissa suddenly cried out.
"No! I want the full million!"
Both Giles and I froze.
Lissa's eyes reddened as she turned to him.
"Giles, my mom has heart disease. The doctor said we need to have half a million ready. And after the surgery, there's recovery, home care nurses... I didn't know how to tell you..."
Her voice cracked, and the tears spilled over.
"I was going to sell a kidney on the black market if I couldn't come up with the money."
She wept, tears rolling down her cheeks like rain on pear blossoms.
Her acting was terrible.
But Giles bought every word.
He pulled her into his arms, his voice aching with tenderness.
"Lissa, why didn't you tell me sooner?"
"I didn't want you to worry..."
