Page 190 of The Fake Date Agreement

“It was a mistake.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“You must love me too. If you didn’t, you would have told your dad we’d broken up, but you didn’t. Because you knew we’d get back together again.”

I stare at him. “You spoke to my dad?”

“He called me asking about spring break.”

“Look, the only reason I didn’t tell him was because he would punch you in the face. Which you probably deserve, but I didn’t want him to get arrested for assaulting a student if he did it on campus.”

More hockey players distract me when they walk into the lobby. They linger for a bit, their gazes lingering for a second too long at Marc’s hand on my arm before they walk into the ballroom.

I slip my arm free in case they get the wrong idea about what’s happening here. “Please leave, Marc. I have to go.”

I hadn’t wanted to enter the party alone, but dealing with my social anxiety alone has to be better than this.

“I’ll prove it,” Marc suddenly says.

“Prove what?”

He fishes his cell phone from his pocket, taps a few buttons, and thrusts it at me.

It’s a picture taken at night. Outside a familiar dorm building, Reynolds Hall. Javier is in boxers, nothing else. And there’s a beautiful woman standing inches away from him. Close. As if they were about to kiss or just had.

“I saw him showing her out of his room at night. Look at them, Tobie. Tell me again they give a damn about you?”

I shake my head as I retreat from a picture that hurts my heart. “That could have been anyone, and it doesn’t mean they slept together.”

“Stop being so naïve. He was fucking some other girl behind your back, and if he was doing it, they all were.”

We hadn’t talked about being exclusive. I thought we were.

The back of my eyelids burn. “I have to go.”

“They don’t care about you, Tobie.” He closes the distance between us as I back away. “If they did, they wouldn’t have left you outside this party. Are they even coming? Have you considered this might be some joke?”

No, I hadn’t considered that. Now all the doubt I’d silenced before floods my mind.

Caleb told me that his coach said they all had to show up for this party, but none of them are here.

"Something might be wrong," I say softly, desperately hoping they have a flat tire and forgot their phones. Something minor that would explain the reason none of them are here.Anythingthat doesn’t involve them breaking my heart.

“They don’t care about you the way I do, Tobie,” Marc replies, stepping closer to me. “The only thing wrong is that they ditched you after they got what they wanted, just like I warned you they would.”

I shake my head as my eyes continue to burn. “You don’t care about me.”

“Let me prove it.”

My smile is bitter. “And how would you do that?”

My stomach drops as he pulls a small black velvet box from his pocket and does something I never,everexpected he would do.

He goes to his knees in front of me, flipping open the velvet lid to reveal a large diamond ring in a bed of dark blue silk.

“Marry me, Tobie. Be my wife, and I will spend the rest of our lives proving no one can love you the way I can.”

Chapter 45

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