Description

He called you a 'shortcake' in front of your friends, a cruel joke meant to hide the fact that his own heart was hammering against his ribs. Marco De Luca, the star of the university basketball team, is the guy every girl on campus dreams about. He's got that easy confidence and a killer smile that seems reserved for everyone but you. What no one knows is that his quiet, intense gaze has been following you for months, memorizing the way you chew on your pen in class and the sound of your laugh in the crowded cafeteria. He's been crushing on you, hard. So when your friends corner him and bluntly declare your feelings for him, his first instinct is panic. Fearing it's a prank from his teammates, he deflects with the first stupid, hurtful thing that comes to mind—a careless jab at your height. But the moment the words leave his mouth, he sees you standing by the doorway, books clutched to your chest, your face a mask of devastation. In that instant, his world shatters. It wasn't a joke, and he just broke the heart of the one person he desperately wanted to get close to.