Chapter 4My Casanova Girlfriend

I scrambled to find a way to cover my mistake, but Liam simply nodded, his expression neutral. "Understood. I'll make a note of that."

He didn't ask any questions.

I let out a quiet sigh of relief, though a strange, uneasy feeling lingered in the back of my mind.

The rest of the dinner went much smoother than I anticipated. Liam was a man of few words, but he was incredibly attentive, ensuring the conversation never felt forced. He listened quietly, nodding occasionally with a soft smile.

After that evening, Liam began inviting me out regularly.

We had dinners, went for long walks, and visited art exhibitions on the weekends. Meanwhile, Serena seemed to lose all interest in him. She was far too busy managing her other relationships—spending Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays with her younger boyfriend, and Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays visiting her older benefactor at his corporate office. She was a master of time management.

One evening, after we finished dinner, the sky was still painted with the pale colors of twilight.

Liam mentioned a quiet park nearby and asked if I wanted to take a walk. I agreed.

The late April breeze carried a gentle warmth, and the cherry blossoms along the path were in full bloom, scattering pink petals with every gust of wind.

He walked on my left, matching his pace perfectly to mine.

We talked about random things until he suddenly asked, "Which high school did you go to?"

My heart seized. I quickly named a school on the other side of town. "St. Jude's."

Liam paused in his tracks, then simply murmured, "Ah." He didn't press further.

As we turned down a quiet, winding path, the sound of familiar laughter drifted through the air—a soft, sweet, melodic giggle.

I instinctively raised my eyes, and my entire body went rigid.

On a wooden bench just a few yards away sat Serena. She was draped over a young man's lap, her arms wrapped around his neck as they kissed passionately. It was her younger boyfriend.

Liam stopped walking. He had seen them too.

My stomach twisted into a tight knot, but then I realized there was no reason to panic. To Liam, the woman on the bench was just a stranger. I was the "Serena" he was dating. He had no reason to care.

Forcing a light, casual laugh, I murmured, "Kids these days are certainly adventurous."

I smiled, trying to ease the sudden tension in the air.

But there was no response from the man beside me.

I turned to look at him, preparing to say something else, when Liam spoke. His voice was incredibly low, cold, and sharp.

"What does she have to do with you?"

I froze, the sheer hostility in his tone catching me completely off guard.

We walked the rest of the way in suffocating silence. It was only as we neared the exit of the park that his steps finally slowed.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, his voice returning to its usual quiet warmth, as if his sudden outburst had been nothing but a figment of my imagination. "I lost my temper back there. That was uncalled for."

"It's fine," I whispered.

After that day, my dates with Liam became even more frequent.

I truly believed that I had successfully stepped into Serena’s shoes, that I was finally the one he was falling for.

Until today.

I had left work early, wanting to surprise Serena for her birthday, only to be met with a reality that showed me just how foolish I had been.