His Fake Love, My Real Heart

Chapter 16 — The Message

It was just after ten when my phone buzzed.

Alex was in the other room, his voice low on a call I wasn’t supposed to overhear. I almost ignored the notification, thinking it was another email I could delete without reading.

Then I saw the sender’s name.

Daniel.

I told myself not to open it. I told myself not to give him the satisfaction.

But my thumb had a mind of its own.

The photo hit me like a slap.

Jenna. Standing outside her apartment, her keys in one hand, her phone in the other. She was smiling — not at the camera, but at whoever she thought was taking the picture.

The timestamp was from fifteen minutes ago.

My stomach dropped.

Nice sister you’ve got, the message read. Shame if she stopped smiling.

I didn’t realize Alex was standing in the doorway until his shadow moved across the floor.

“What is it?” His tone was already sharp, already on alert.

I turned the phone toward him. “He’s watching Jenna.”

Alex’s jaw clenched, and for a moment, I thought he might crush the phone in his hand.

“He’s not just pushing at you anymore,” he said. “He’s widening the target.”

“He’s not going near her,” I snapped, my own fear twisting into anger. “I’ll call her—”

“No.” His voice cut through mine. “You won’t warn her. You won’t let him know he got to you. We handle this my way.”

I hated that part of me wanted to listen.

But then Alex’s phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen, and whatever he saw made his expression go from controlled to lethal in the space of a breath.

“What is it?” I asked.

He looked up at me, eyes like steel. “He’s already at her building.”