Then, I followed Oscar to his office.

It was my first time in his office. It was a room all to himself.

A considerable bookshelf was filled with various medical books.

I randomly pulled out one.

"Human Anatomy and Physiology!"

I felt speechless.

I put the book back and turned to ask the man sitting at the desk, "When did you become the dean?"

His slender fingers paused on the keyboard as he looked up at me. He smirked, "This hospital is my dad's. Being the deputy dean of our own hospital isn't too much, is it?"

So it was his family's hospital!

I smiled obsequiously, "No, not too much at all."

Oscar stood up and leaned lazily against the desk. "Lauren, do you think I'm abnormal?"

I nervously swallowed, whispering, "No."

Although I did think he was a bit off, I couldn't admit it aloud.

Oscar scoffed at me, "Thanks for your concern, I'm perfectly normal."

I didn't reply to his words.

Oscar ruffled my hair. The gesture was hardly gentle. It was more like a rough tousle.

"It would help if you watched fewer of those pornographic movies and novels."

At that, I looked up defiantly and retorted, "I haven't been watching the movies!"

"Really?" Oscar said with a meaningful smile, "I remember you reading a comic back in high school..."

I remember that embarrassing episode from my high school days. My ears turned red, and I reached out to cover Oscar's mouth.

"Shut up, just shut up."

In high school, my best friend, Evelyn Walker, gave me a comic book and claimed it was a must-read.

I believed her.

But what she handed me was a sexually explicit comic.

It was my fault, really. I should've tossed it the moment my heart started racing after one glance, but curiosity got the better of me. I was right in the thick of it when our homeroom teacher, Sienna Swift, caught me.

Sienna took one look and furiously dragged me off to her office.

Then, Oscar stood up and addressed Sienna, "I'm sorry, Ms. Swift. That comic book is mine."

So there we were, both getting a scolding in the office.

Initially, my feelings towards him were just a flicker of attraction. But after that incident, I decided he was the man for me.

He stood up for me and went to the office. This act made me think he might like me. But it turned out he was just covering for his sister, Evelyn.

He explained, "That comic book was a gift from Eve to you. As her brother, I failed to properly supervise her, and for that, I should helped you out."

Later, I met him. We ended up in a sham marriage and signed a contract.

There was only one month left in our three-year marriage contract.

I need to find a way to make him fall for me in a month.

At night, I put on a sexy black nightgown and spritzed some perfume. I also let my hair down casually to look sexy.

I grabbed a couple of Coke from the fridge and handed one to him with a charming smile. "Care for a drink?"

"Thanks."

He didn't even look at me. He just took the drink and continued talking on the phone with Evelyn.

"Oscar, you have to beat him up for me."

"I can't win."

"You're such an embarrassment. You're older and still can't beat him!"

Then I watched as Evelyn disgustedly hung up on her brother.

I watched Oscar pull the tab off a can and take a sip of Coke.

Seizing the moment, I sat next to him and cooed, "My hands are sore. Help me open this!"

Oscar finally gave me a natural look, opened the can for me, and said, "So, you grabbed a drink you couldn't open so that I'd do it for you?"

What!

He was so stiff!

I continued in a timid voice, "Honey, I'm not that kind of person."

Oscar paused, shocked, "What did you call me?"

His reaction startled me.

It seemed like my coquettish voice disgusted him.

I dared not continue in that tone, anxiously reverting to normal. "Honey."

Oscar stared at me silently, then suddenly chuckled, "Forgot we're only sham married?"

I quickly explained, "Even though it's a sham marriage, the divorce will be real, so calling you 'honey' isn't too much, right?"

Oscar's expression remained indifferent. "It's fine."

"Oscar, actually we..."

Seeing he wasn't put off by my calling him honey. I tried to discuss a potential future together.

What I wanted to say was, "Actually, we could become a real couple."

But before I could speak, he cut me off.

Oscar glanced at me, "It's getting late. Let's go to sleep."

With that, he stood up and left.

I was left sitting alone on the couch.

Today's plan failed!

Half a month later, I had a feeling that Oscar was allergic to romance. I couldn't seem to charm him.

I accidentally spilled the beans to Evelyn during one of my rants.

Oscar and I were in a fake marriage, bound by a three-year contract. We hadn't told anyone about this, not even Evelyn, who thought we were actually married.

When Evelyn found out the truth, she was about to storm off to confront her brother, but I quickly stopped her.

If Oscar found out that I told Evelyn the truth, my chances of winning him over were doomed!

I was determined to keep trying until the very end, but today, that end had finally arrived.

Driving absentmindedly down the bustling street, Evelyn tapped my arm. "Lauren, isn't that my brother?"

I stopped the car and followed her gaze.

What I saw sent my heart plummeting.

Oscar was seated at a restaurant, enjoying a candlelit dinner with another woman happily. I could see a smile gracing his lips.

I let out a scoff.

So, it wasn't that he was allergic to romance. He simply wasn't interested in me at all.

Evelyn, filled with righteous indignation on my behalf. Before I could even recover from my heartbreak, she angrily called Oscar.

I tried to stop her, but it was too late.

"What are you doing, Oscar?"

"What do you mean? What's gotten into you?"

I could hear the confusion and displeasure in Oscar's voice.

Evelyn, her voice rising in anger, repeated, "I'm asking you, what are you doing?"

Oscar retorted, "Is that how you talk to your brother?"

"I don't have a brother like you!"

Evelyn hung up and wanted to get out of the car.

Anticipating her intentions, I reached out to stop her.

"Evelyn, let it be. My relationship with your brother is just a sham marriage anyway. Our contract is up in half a month, and we'll get divorced. It's not a big deal for him to be dating someone at this point," I said calmly.

I pretended not to care about this.

The whole point of our sham marriage was to not interfere in each other's lives. To be honest, it was more like a roommate situation than a marriage.

Evelyn looked at me. "Don't you like my brother?"

I sniffed and chuckled at Evelyn, "I just have a thing for your brother's looks."

Evelyn stared at me, speechless.

With a sad sigh, I lowered my gaze and continued, "Besides, there are plenty of other hot guys out there. It's better to find someone who loves me than someone who doesn't, right? I'm not into self-inflicted emotional pain!"

From the moment I decided to let go, I stopped flirting with Oscar. I only treated him like any other roommate.

I was watching TV at home when Oscar came back from work and changed his clothes. He approached me.

"Let's go out for dinner tonight."

I looked at him. He still wore a gentle smile. It was refined and courteous.

He was very gentle, but he was gentle to everyone.

When I saw him eating steak in an upscale restaurant with other girls, laughing and chatting, I had already lost.

I retracted my gaze, my chin resting on the stuffed animal I was hugging, and said softly, "I've already had dinner. You can eat alone or ask someone else to eat with you."

Oscar chuckled and ruffled my hair, "Then, will you join me?"

I flatly refused, "No, I won't."

Just when I sensed a subtle change in Oscar's demeanor compared to his usual self, I noticed the smile on his face falter slightly.

The air in the living room seemed to thicken with an awkward silence.

Ignoring Oscar, I turned my attention back to the romantic drama on TV. The scene depicted a woman pouring rain, desperately pleading with her lover not to leave her.

"Please, don't leave me, please..."

I couldn't help but twitch my lip, feeling a pang of embarrassment.

Wasn't I just like this woman on TV?

Love or not, no amount of deliberate flirting could change that.

It was time to salvage my self-respect.

Oscar, seeing that I wasn't going with him. He sat down and joined me in watching the melodramatic TV show.

I tilted my head to look at him. "Aren't you going to eat?"

Oscar replied, "No, I won't. Eating alone is boring."

I scoffed inwardly.

He needed someone to accompany him even for a meal.

The woman who usually accompanied him for his steak dinners was unavailable today, so he turned to me, right?

The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I could have easily kicked him into the trash bin with one swift move.

I got up and left him there, watching TV alone.

The contract's expiration date was looming, so I packed my bags early, along with the divorce agreement.

When he came home from work, I slammed the divorce agreement down on the table in front of him.

"The three-year contract is up. Let's get a divorce. Look over the agreement and let me know if there's anything you want to change."

Oscar held the divorce papers tightly, staring at them for a long time. I could see the veins on the back of his hand standing out, but he didn't respond.

I was puzzled and handed him the pen.

Oscar set down the divorce papers, his face tense as he looked up at me. "I need to think about it."

I was impatient. "What's there to think about? Just sign it so I can leave. I've packed everything."

Evelyn and I had plans to hit the club tonight and let loose on the dance floor.

I didn't want this mess to cut into my party time.

"We'll discuss this later," he mumbled.

Oscar crumpled up the divorce papers I had prepared and threw them in the trash.

Without another word, he turned and retreated into the bathroom.

After glaring at Oscar's retreating several times, I didn't linger in the living room and left the room.

On my way to the bar, I got a call from Evelyn saying she was mistakenly arrested at a bar under suspicion of illegal activities.

I had no choice but to head back home, grab my ID, and rescue her.

Then I saw Oscar lounging in his pajamas on the couch, fiddling with his phone.

The TV was on, but he wasn't watching.

When Oscar saw me return, his lips parted slightly. "Where did you just go?"

I rolled my eyes internally.

None of your business!

Although I didn't want to deal with him, he was Evelyn's brother after all.

Since his sister got mixed up in a bar raid, I still needed to inform him.

"Your sister's been taken to the station."

Oscar's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "For what?"

"She was at a bar, and they mistook her for a prostitute."

I felt a bit relieved inside.

Luckily, I didn't go earlier, or I'd have been arrested too.

Unlike Evelyn, I didn't have a husband in the police.

Moreover, Oscar and I were about to get a divorce.

If I were arrested, there would hardly be anyone to bail me out.

I expected Oscar to jump up and head to the station. But instead, he said coldly and mockingly, "She deserved it."

I twitched the corner of my mouth, glancing at him displeased. "How can you say that? Isn't she your sister?"

This heartless man.

Oscar gave me a look and said, "Don't worry, you no need to bail her. She might run into his husband, Ben Scott at the station and get a lecture from him."

I was speechless.

Despite Oscar's words, his concern for Evelyn prompted him to call Ben.