Chapter 1

1: 1

My boyfriend, Rex Swanson, wrote in a style all his own, and he had a temper to match, so he could rarely find the right singer to perform his songs.

To keep him writing, most of his songs got recorded by me, and luckily the fans decided my versions weren't bad at all.

With the Fourth of July coming up, I planned to write a piece of my own and sing it at the holiday gala.

I'd barely opened my music app when the little red dot in the top corner lit up. A new private message.

I figured it was some singer he followed posting an update. What actually came up on the screen froze me where I sat.

"Little dummy, I made this song just for you. Do you like it? If you do, take it and sing it. It's perfect for the gala, and it'll definitely land on the Billboard Hot 100 this year!"

"Thank you, Rex~ love you love you. But won't Ann be mad?"

"Her? I'll just toss something together for her, no need to fuss over it. Not like you, my little dummy. Yours I'll obviously put my whole heart into~"

I lifted my head, disbelief all over my face.

He actually had the nerve to sit right in front of me and flirt like that with another woman?

1

"Rex, what are you working on?"

"Tsk. Don't talk, don't break my train of thought. Writing your song, what else?"

The knit brows and that impatient tone made my stomach drop. I got up and walked over to him.

I watched him fumble to close the window, then shove back from the desk to block the screen with his body, shouting at me.

"Ann Pruitt, are you done? You know I hate being interrupted when I'm writing. Now please, get out of here and stop messing with my flow!"

I pressed my lips together, let my eyes drift over the screen, and said in a small, wounded voice.

"Rex, you're scaring me, getting this worked up. I only wanted to see how the writing was going. I thought we could talk through some of the details together."

He drew a long breath, smiled with a stiff face, and softened his voice.

"I'm sorry, Annie. I've been under a lot of pressure lately. I didn't mean to raise my voice. Don't worry, I'll pour myself into this so you take the gala by storm. Once you finish your work, go rest first. I'll be in soon."

I gave an obedient little nod, gathered up my laptop, turned, and went into the bedroom.

The second the door shut, my face dropped. I wanted to see exactly which "little dummy" he was pouring his heart out for.

I opened her profile, went through who she followed and the posts she put up day to day, and finally checked the IP. I had a pretty good guess who it was.

I really hadn't expected it to be my old best friend. The sweet-pop princess now, Lucia Harding.

Back then, the two of us both graduated from the music conservatory, went on the same talent show together, and climbed step by step to where we are now.

Until the year I won a Grammy singing a song Rex wrote, and Lucia won nothing at all. In a fit of rage, she stood up in front of everyone and aired a lot of my private business.

"Ann Pruitt doesn't deserve that award. She leans on men wherever she goes. For all we know she's got someone on the judging panel too!"

Back then I was a newcomer with no one behind me, so all I could do was quietly swallow the abuse and the mockery from outside.

While I was living through those dark, helpless days, Lucia had already become a top-tier singer, endorsements piling up until she was turning them away, appearing at event after event, playing concert after concert.

Only Rex stayed by my side, kept me company, comforted me. That was what slowly pulled me out of the shadows.

And now he was going to write a song, with his own hands, for the very person who had hurt me. You could tell that song fit Lucia perfectly, tailor-made for her.

His betrayal made me feel like the blood had frozen in my veins, but I knew I wasn't the girl who swallowed everything anymore.

Expression blank, I typed a line into the chat box and sent it.

"Rex, Lucia, what are you two chatting about? Count me in!" [smile]