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It was Connor.

Connor is Chris, the man who claimed my body, my heart, and my soul that night and then left without a trace. The man I’ve been searching for, dreaming of, aching for—he’s been right in front of me this whole time.

And he lied about it. He fucking lied.

“Why?”

The single word holds a thousand questions. A thousand accusations. The man I gave my heart to is a lie.

He reaches out, his hand trembling, but I step back.

“How is this possible, Chris? No,… you had no tattoos,” I say.

“I covered them.”

“Your eyes were different, too.”

“Contact lenses.”

“You went through all the trouble just so I wouldn’t recognize you?”

“So you would think I’m Chris, yes.”

“Why?” My voice cracks. “Why did you lie to me?”

His hand reaches out again.

The dam breaks, and my voice rises in volume, a shout that fills the room with its raw anguish. “Why?”

He stops his hand mid-air, a statue frozen by the gravity of my pain. “Blue, please. Let me explain.”

I can’t bear to look at his face, to see the deception in his eyes. The eyes I thought held nothing but truth.

Truth and love, both as false as his name.

“Just tell me the truth,” I say.

“I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you.”

“A little late for that.”

“You’re right.” His eyes meet mine, dark and tormented.

“Who are you? Who is real? Chris or Connor?”

“Connor. Chris is someone else.”

“What?”

“Chris is real, but he…”

“He what?”

“He was going to hurt you. I couldn’t—I wouldn’t…”

I stand still, my body rigid as stone while my heart races with anger. “What do you mean?”

“I found out Chris planned to drug you at that party to take photos of you while you’re… and then using that to blackmail your father. They’ve done it before. You were just a target with more money. I couldn’t let that happen, so I took care of it. Taking his place… It wasn’t about the thrill. It was about keeping you safe.” He swallows hard, the guilt etched into every line of his face.

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