Loving Alek Johnson should have been simple. For three years, Hayvin James believed it was.

But the longer they were together, the more truth she saw.

She wasn’t his first choice, she was only his “just because.”

Every kiss, every promise, every moment wrapped in his arms was built on a lie. Because the girl who owned his heart wasn’t her. It was his best friend. The one who never left his orbit and the one Hayvin could never compete with.

Now she’s back, and Hayvin refuses to keep bleeding for a man who made her feel like second place in her own love story.

But Alek won’t let her walk away without a fight. He swears it was never about anyone else. He swears she’s always been the one. Words, though, are nothing without scars and sacrifice.

And this time, Hayvin isn’t waiting to be chosen.

If Alek wants forever, he’ll have to prove she was never the placeholder.