I Faked Love, He Spoiled Me Rotten

Chapter 3

At 3:30 in the morning, Dominic finally got back.

He opened the door quietly, planning to do a quick clean-up like he usually did before crashing, but the second he stepped inside, he froze.

The place was totally spotless. The coffee table was cleared off, the floor was so clean it was practically shining, even the stove was scrubbed bright, and there was a new trash bag in the bin.

Standing at the doorway, Dominic stared at the apartment that felt both familiar and totally different. Louisa, who never lifted a finger around the house, had actually cleaned the whole place.

He quietly washed up in the dark, pulled back the blanket, and got into bed.

Sleeping on her side, a groggy Louisa rolled over to give him some space.

Suddenly, something freezing cold brushed against her wrist. Louisa snapped her eyes open and bolted straight up—

It felt exactly like that moment right before she drowned in her past life, the feeling of handcuffs locking around her wrists. Cold, hard, and gripping her so tight that no matter how much she thrashed, she couldn't break free.

"What's up?" Dominic asked, his voice heavy with sleep.

She looked down and, using the dim light coming through the window, finally saw what it was. It wasn't handcuffs. It was a gold bracelet with a tiny four-leaf clover charm.

"Where'd you get this?"

"The store."

Louisa stared at the bracelet, her heart still racing. "We're trying to save up money right now. You really shouldn't have wasted it on stuff like this."

Dominic didn't reply. He just stared at her wrist. Her skin was pale, and her frame was delicate, making the bracelet look incredibly dainty on her.

"It wasn't that expensive," he said casually.

She wanted to bring up the idea of moving to a cheaper place, but before she could speak, Dominic cut in, "No need to pinch pennies."

His voice was soft, but left no room for argument, "I can support you."

Louisa stared at the bracelet, feeling a bit complicated. She didn't care about material things anymore. There was really no point.

Early the next morning, Louisa washed up and changed into her going-out clothes. Dominic had already left for work, but he'd bought a sandwich for her, and the milk was still warm.

She took a couple of bites, her mind still set on moving to the suburbs to save cash.

Wiping her mouth, she called the real estate agent to set up a viewing. After a grueling two-hour commute switching from the subway to a bus, she finally arrived.

The buildings were packed so tightly they were practically touching, with wires tangled like spiderwebs.

The greasy smoke from breakfast stalls mixed with a sour stench, and there were dead roaches on the ground.

The hallways were pitch black, the walls damp and peeling, and she had to squeeze sideways past corners stacked with cardboard boxes and old tires.

On the third floor, a musty odor hit her the second the door opened. The room was less than fifteen square meters, the window faced a blank wall, and the stove was right next to the toilet, separated by only a plastic curtain.

Standing in this tiny room where turning around was a struggle, she suddenly saw flashbacks of her past life.

After Dominic kicked her back to the small town, she stayed in a place just like this. Her savings were gone, but she couldn't break her expensive spending habits, so she had no choice. The landlord was a guy in his fifties who always looked at her with creepy, lecherous eyes.

She tried finding a job, but the town hospital rejected her. Only one restaurant wanted her to wash dishes. She thought it was beneath her, so she didn't take it.

As her money dwindled, she ran back to Newville to look for Dominic, hoping he'd give her some more cash. But Dominic's gaze back then was cold as ice. "I already gave you money."

Refusing to give up, she went back a few more times and even tried to extort some money from that rich heiress—Dominic's wife. But before she could even see her face, the heiress's suitors tracked her down. They dragged her onto a boat, threw her into the water, and she vanished for good.

Louisa snapped out of it, her palms soaked in sweat. She gritted her teeth and told the agent, "I'll think about it."

At 9:00 PM, Dominic got back.

"The agent told me you went to look at an apartment?"

Guilt-tripped, Louisa mumbled, "Just looking around."

Dominic looked at her with a smirk. "Let me guess—the furniture was old, the kitchen grease was thick enough to scrape off with a shovel, the window faced a brick wall with zero sunlight, and it was a walk-up that smelled like trash and was loud as hell?"

Louisa stared at him, totally blank. "How did you even know?"

"The agent sent me the details too." Dominic glanced at her. "Too sketchy? Couldn't bring yourself to live there?"

"No, I never said that!"

"Then why didn't you take it?"

Louisa blushed all the way to her ears, completely tongue-tied.

Dominic let out a low chuckle. His usual straight face softened, his eyes full of playful teasing.

Louisa's face burned even hotter. Feeling totally embarrassed and annoyed, she gave him a shove. "What's so funny?"

Dominic didn't even try to dodge. He just let her push him, his grin only getting wider.

Then, he caught her hands. "Nothing."

Super frustrated, Louisa tried to yank her hands back, but Dominic held on tight.

She pulled hard, and Dominic used her momentum to lean back, dragging her down onto the bed right with him.

Caught completely off guard, she tumbled straight onto his chest.

Her nose bumped right into him, and she caught the scent of fresh laundry detergent mixed with a faint hint of sweat.

Her mind went totally blank, and she froze up, not daring to move an inch.

Dominic wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on top of her head. "You're the one who kept insisting on saving money, but you couldn't even handle it for a second."

Burying her face in his chest, she mumbled in a muffled voice, "I just didn't expect it to be that awful."

Dominic laughed out loud. His chest vibrated against her, making her heart skip a beat.

The room went quiet, with only the sound of their breathing filling the space. Dominic ran his fingers through her hair, his thumb lightly brushing the back of her neck.

Louisa shivered and tried to sit up, but Dominic pressed down on her shoulders. "Don't move. I'm hard."

Louisa went stiff as a board.

Dominic had always had a crazy high s*x drive. Counting the time from her past life, they had been apart for way too long. If Dominic actually wanted to go for it, she really wouldn't be able to get into the mood—mostly because the image burned brightest in her mind was still his cold, mocking face after he found out the truth.

Luckily, Dominic didn't seem to want to push it.

"Those old neighborhood blocks all look the same on the outside," Dominic said. "The ones with nicer renovations are usually toxic with formaldehyde anyway. Don't settle for junk. Next month, I'm getting bumped up to security captain, which comes with a 300 bucks raise. We'll find a nice one-bedroom place then."

Whatever, she really couldn't handle roughing it like that anyway. Once she landed a job, covering rent shouldn't be an issue. Besides, it would only be for a few months. Once Dominic went back to the Rodgers, she would just head back to the small town.

Thinking it through, Louisa nodded.

By the time Dominic finished his shower and stepped out, Louisa was already drifting off.

Her phone buzzed, and she reached over to check it.

"Haven't heard from you in forever. Found a new guy already?"

The drowsiness vanished instantly.

"Who's that from?" Dominic asked.

"Just spam." She quickly shut off the screen, her fingers shaking as she wiped the text.

With that kind of tone, there was no way Louisa didn't know exactly who it was. It had to be one of those rich guys she used to scout out at those sketchy spots.

Except in her past life, no one had ever sent her a text like that.

Louisa couldn't wrap her head around it. She racked her brain going through every shady person she knew, but couldn't pinpoint who it was.

To be fair, with her looks, if she really wanted to lock down a rich guy, she easily could have.

It was just that her standards were way too high—no old guys, no ugly guys, and no being a side chick.

Those three rules alone basically filtered out everyone.

The guys who were young, wealthy, and hot already had tons of gorgeous girls throwing themselves at them, girls with great family backgrounds and Ivy League degrees.

Compared to them, Louisa didn't really stand out much.

That was why, right up until the truth about her playing Dominic came out, she had never managed to find a backup guy to take care of her.

The phone buzzed again.

"Hey babe, playing hard to get now, ignoring me like that?"

She swiftly deleted the message and blocked the number.

Dominic walked over after drying his hair and held out his open palm.

"Let me see your phone."

Louisa's heart started pounding.

The air froze for a few tense seconds.

Then, Louisa looked up at him, her eyes welling up with tears.

"It's... it's a debt collector. I owe 200 bucks on my credit card and haven't paid it yet..."

Dominic completely didn't expect that. He paused for a second, sighed, and opened his banking app.

"If you want to buy something, just let me know. Stop using that card. Exactly how much do you owe altogether?"

"Just... just two hundred."

Dominic transferred 250 to her.

Seeing that she had successfully fooled him, Louisa let out a breath of relief. "You don't have to send that much. Do you even have enough left in your account?"

Dominic looked at his remaining balance of 23.50 and said without blinking, "Yeah, plenty."