He Kept Me Hidden Then Pushed Me To Date Others Chapter 01
At an old classmates’ reunion, someone introduced me to my boyfriend of five years—the man I’d been secretly dating all along.
“Dean Holloway, Claire is also a researcher in your group. Why don’t you two give it a shot?”
I walked toward him, hoping to use this opportunity to finally come clean about our relationship. But Ethan Holloway stepped back and pointed instead at Gemma Reeves—his childhood friend who’d just returned from abroad.
“No need. I already have someone I like.”
His face was all distance, careful to avoid any hint of familiarity. “If you’re looking to get married, I could introduce you to someone. He’d be a good match for you.”
Watching him keep a solid ten feet between us, I let out a dry laugh. Five years of secret dating, and Ethan always stayed single—at least publicly. He always kept me at arm’s length.
I waited five years for him to go public. This time, I was done waiting.
“Fine,” I said. “Set it up.”
***
The air went still for a moment.
Ethan didn’t seem to expect me to actually agree.
He frowned, about to say something, but after a few seconds’ pause, he pushed a contact card over under the watchful eyes of our friends.
He called the person directly.
“Didn’t you say your family’s been pushing you to settle down? This is Claire Brennan—Ph.D., top-tier, senior researcher in our lab. You two should talk.”
He listened to the thanks on the other end and walked off.
If our mutual friend hadn’t called him back, Ethan would’ve done what he always did—kept three yards away and acted like I didn’t exist.
The bitterness of bourbon exploded in my mouth. I dug my nails into my palm just to keep my expression normal.
My friend, seeing I was open to a setup, pushed another contact my way. “He’s been asking about you for ages. You just never wanted to meet before. Good guy, Claire. Give him a shot.”
I instinctively glanced toward Ethan. He stood beside Gemma, a smile on his face, not sparing me a single look.
One of his buddies overheard our conversation and laughed. “Ethan, come on. Everyone knows Claire’s been hanging around you because she’s into you. Setting her up with someone else? That’s brutal.”
“No kidding. She bought us like, what, thousands of dollars’ worth of coffee over the years? And you never gave her the time of day.”
Gemma swirled her drink and raised an eyebrow. “Were you waiting for me to come back all this time? Then why didn’t you ever say anything?”
Ethan gave her an indulgent look. “Of course the setup had to be right. You deserve nothing but the best, Gemma.”
She beamed at that.
His words stuck in my throat. When we’d gotten together, there’d been no confession, no grand gesture. Ethan just asked me, “Claire, you like me, don’t you?”
I’d had a crush on him for three years by then. When I nodded, he said, “Fine. We can be together. But I won’t make it public. If a single person finds out, we’re done.”
At the time, I was so drunk on the rush of finally being with Ethan Holloway that I didn’t think twice. I thought he’d seen my sincerity. I thought our secret relationship would eventually see the light of day.
So I forced myself into his social circle, hoping that one day he’d introduce me to his friends as his girlfriend.
Instead, he not only never did—he pushed me off on someone else just to keep the distance clear.
I smiled bitterly.
My friend let out a relieved breath when he saw me add the new contact.
“You used to always say you had a secret crush and turn everyone down. But this guy kept you waiting without ever giving you a clear answer. You should’ve moved on ages ago!”
He leaned in with a wink. “Trust me. This one won’t disappoint.”
I dropped my gaze.
Yeah. I should have moved on long ago.
My friend shot a pointed look toward Ethan.
“The guy he recommended—Derek Vance, right? Don’t even bother with him.”
“He’s got a reputation. Models, actresses, you name it. Everyone in the circle knows his family has been encouraging him to settle down, and he’s willing to consider almost any serious match.”
As he was leaving, he muttered under his breath, “How could Ethan say you two are a good match?”
My smile froze on my face.
Apparently, “good match” meant “two people who were both ready to settle down.”
A while back, my parents had been pressuring me, and I’d texted Ethan about it.
I thought he’d agree to go public and meet my family. Instead, he ignored my text and didn’t come home for a whole month.
If Ethan didn’t want to be part of my world, then I didn’t need to squeeze into his anymore.
I turned and walked away, putting in a transfer request to leave Arcadia Bay.
Just then, my new match texted: [Free to meet tomorrow?]
