They Called Me a Failure I'm Secretly a CEO Chapter 1

On the live finale of the reality show, the host had a cheap gimmick: check the seventh photo on each guest’s phone.

I sent them the one I had of Sophia—a sweet, candid selfie she’d sent me last week.

But when it flashed on the screen, the young heartthrob sitting next to me, Ethan Cole, scrunched his perfect brow.

"Liam, man, I get it," he said, his voice dripping with false concern. "You can come after me all you want, but can you please not be a creep about my girlfriend?"

I froze. "I'm sorry, since when does she have a boyfriend?"

Without missing a beat, Ethan pulled out his phone and dialed Sophia. "Babe," he cooed, the cameras zooming in on his face. "Someone's trying to break us up..."

There was a pause on the other end, and then Sophia's voice, crisp and serious even through the speaker. "Who? Where? I'm on the next flight back to the States."

My jaw hit the floor.

The internet exploded.

[I KNEW IT! LIAM KNIGHT IS ALWAYS CHASING CLOUT!]

[GUESS AGAIN, LIAM. SOPHIA ROSE ISN'T SOMEONE YOU CAN JUST USE FOR ATTENTION!]

[OMG, ETHAN AND SOPHIA ARE SO CUTE! GET MARRIED AND MAKE LIAM KNIGHT'S HEAD EXPLODE!]

Seriously? I was just blindsided by the fact that my little sister was secretly dating my number one rival.

* * *

My dumbfounded expression was instantly clipped, GIF'd, and trending on Twitter.

[LMAO does Liam Knight actually think Ethan is joking? Does he think everyone is as desperate for attention as he is?]

[As if Sophia Rose would ever give him the time of day. This GIF is the best thing to happen all year, I swear.]

[Hahaha, this is GOLD. I love watching this phony get put in his place by Ethan!]

The live chat was a waterfall of hate. I couldn't take it. I bolted from the stage and ducked into the nearest dressing room.

[Did he just run off? Can't handle the heat?]

[Seeing him get knocked down a peg is my new favorite thing.]

I slammed the door shut and immediately called Sophia.

Her voice was rushed on the other end. "Liam, I'm in the middle of something urgent. I'll call you back."

"Let me guess," I said, my voice tight. "Did your new 'boyfriend' call you crying?"

Sophia went quiet for a second. "How did you know?"

"Are you insane? You're dating a guy like that?"

"You don't get it, Liam. He's the most special man I've met in my entire twenty-five years."

I felt the air leave my lungs. "He's an actor, Soph! He can act like anything! I'm telling you, I know exactly who Ethan Cole is, and you need to break up with him. Now."

"It's not an act!" she shot back, defiant. "He tells me he loves me even when he's blackout drunk!"

A knot of frustration tightened in my chest. "What's so hard about that? It's a performance! Watch, I can do it, too. I love you, I love you, I love you!"

"Are you crazy? That's disgusting!" Sophia sounded genuinely repulsed, like she had a full-body cringe. She hung up before I could say another word.

Furious, I spun around—and found someone standing in the doorway.

Ethan Cole had one hand on the doorknob, the other holding his phone. His eyes were wide with manufactured surprise. "Liam? Hey, sorry, I didn't know you were in here."

I gave him a humorless smile. "Funny. I could've sworn I saw you watch me walk into this very room."

"Liam, you..." Ethan's face crumpled into a mask of hurt.

The online comments, which I could only imagine, were probably going wild.

[OMG, YOU PSYCHO, GET AWAY FROM ETHAN!]

[I can't stand this fraud. His movies suck, and so does he. He was hitting on Ethan's girlfriend first!]

I was done playing this game. I brushed past him and walked away.

But of course, in the time it took me to walk to the restroom and back, another social media bomb had gone off.

I clicked the link. It was a three-second video of me on the phone. My frantic, mocking "I love you" to Sophia.

The headline was brutal.

Sophia Rose to Liam Knight: "Are You Crazy? That's Disgusting."

Liam Knight Attempts to Sabotage Relationship, Gets Savagely Shut Down by Business Mogul Sophia Rose.

My world went black.