Victoria.
"Hey, I won’t be able to join you for dinner. I’ll be late tonight. I’ve got a babysitting gig—rich kids, you know how it is. I’ll be back around 4 a.m.," I texted Christian, hoping he’d buy the lie.
I hated lying to him. But what choice did I have? Once I’d worked a few more shifts and found some financial stability, I’d stop. That was the plan. Until then, I felt like a burden, even though Christian never said a word to make me feel that way. He was a billionaire, after all—what’s a little charity between friends? Still, I wasn’t raised to depend on others.
He’s just my best friend, I reminded myself. He hadn’t made anything official. On social media, he was a bachelor, and I had to go along with it. No posts, no declarations, no hints that I might be anything more. May
