Chapter 2

The next morning, I woke up with an aching body and a parched throat.

Supporting my sore waist, I was about to get up for some water when I caught sight of James resting beside me with his eyes closed.

His hair was disheveled, and visible scratches and kiss marks adorned his neck, looking utterly debauched.

Especially that large bite mark on his chest.

My breath caught as my brain went into overdrive.

Who am I?

Where am I?

What did I do?

Who is this man next to me?

Then I let out a high-pitched scream like a startled meerkat.

Holy crap, I had spent an entire day and night rolling around with James, my sworn rival!!

Forgetting all shame, I hurriedly put on my clothes and fled the room on shaky legs.

When I got home, my parents, who had been unable to find me, looked me over several times. Seeing that I was unharmed, they finally relaxed.

"Oh, Lily dear, have you seen my James?" a voice suddenly cut in, making me jump.

It was James's mother.

I looked up and realized that James's parents were also at my house, seemingly having been there for a while.

James's mother's face was filled with worry: "That boy disappeared after the party last night."

"We checked the security footage and saw you two leaving together."

"How come only you came back?"

Meeting James's mother's gaze, my heart suddenly tightened, and I couldn't help but look away guiltily.

Of course I knew where James was. We had been lying in bed together just hours ago, doing unspeakable things.

If our parents found out we had slept together, they would definitely try to get us together.

But James was my sworn rival. We could never be together.

Besides, last night was just an accident.