Funding My Ex's True Love

I was paying for Wyatt. And his secret obsession. My fingers pinched the edge of my black card. Then, the text hit my vision.

A glowing, scrolling feed of comments flashing right behind my eyes— [Fallon, put the card away!

Once she becomes a worldclass surgeon, Wyatt is going to dump you!] A worldclass surgeon?

My hand clamped over my stomach, pressing into the sharp, twisting spasm. "The little girl I'm sponsoring is really that much of a badass?" I whispered.

Chapter 1 "What do you need thirty grand for?" I asked. I bought Wyatt everything. The designer slides on his feet. The silk boxers he wore.

Where exactly was he blowing that kind of cash? His eyes darted away, refusing to meet mine. "I… have a friend who wants to go to college.

It's not like sponsoring one more kid is a financial burden for you…" The phantom chat in my head erupted into a piercing screech— [His first love! He wants you to fund Iris!

The future prodigy!] [Wyatt is a walking red flag.

Draining the heiress's bank account to spoil his true love, just to gaslight and abandon Fallon later.] [Do NOT give him the money, Fallon!] But my brain snagged on one specific word buried in the spam.

Prodigy. "Is it a girl? Did she score higher than you on the high school placement exams?" I pressed. Wyatt shifted his weight. His jaw tightened. "Scores? About the same, I guess.

I forget. Girls aren't exactly wired for STEM anyway, but you're loaded, so…" "Fine," I cut him off. A girl. Dead broke. Brilliant. Desperate for an education.

That was enough for me. It made zero sense. "I'm the one funding her tuition. Why does the cash need to go through you?" I asked. Playing the middleman for a cut?

Wyatt sighed, laying it on thick as the exhausted, patient boyfriend. "Iris doesn't have Venmo or Cash App.

Just give me the money, and I'll deliver it to her." The comments in my head were already painting the miserable picture. Detailing exactly how Wyatt swooped in with my cash.

Playing the white knight. Dragging Iris out of the dirt and becoming her main pillar of support. Excuse me?

Since when did the delivery boy get the credit instead of the one footing the actual bill? I ignored Wyatt. I pulled out my phone and booked a flight. "Perfect.

I'll go meet her myself." After putting on a flawless face of makeup, I hired a sixman security detail and stuffed a duffel bag full of crisp hundreddollar bills.

I needed to make damn sure Iris knew exactly who her actual savior was.

Three delayed flights, a hellish offroad drive deep into the Appalachians, and two ruined designer boots later.

I sat on a rotting porch, gripping a chipped mug of sweet tea Maxine had shoved into my hands— A tiny girl sprinted up from the muddy creek, lugging a sloshing, heavy bucket.

Maxine's expression instantly hardened. "Iris! What kind of trouble did you stir up at school?

Get over here right now!" She shot a hypervigilant glare at Wyatt, who was hovering by my shoulder. She calculated her next words. "We all know Wyatt has a city girlfriend.

That's you, right?" Maxine's voice was tight. "Did my Iris cross a line?

Did she—" She assumed Iris had messed around with a taken man and thought I dragged my muscle out here to teach her daughter a lesson.

But this place didn't match the backwoods, toxicfamily trope I expected. They were dirt poor, yes. But the worndown trailer was spotless.

Maxine wore a threadbare flannel, but she carried herself with a fiercely protective spine. Even as she scolded her daughter, Maxine subtly shifted her weight.

She planted herself directly in front of Iris, shielding the girl with her own body while tracking our every move.

The livechat flared up, rushing to Iris's defense— [Iris didn't even do anything wrong!

The second she found out Wyatt had a girlfriend, she completely ghosted him.] [She didn't even like him at first.

It was only after he paid her tuition that she started developing an obsession.] [Uh, excuse me. Fallon paid for it. Wyatt was just a glorified errand boy…] Iris was small.

Half a head shorter than a typical high school freshman. Skinny to the bone. She didn't argue with her mother's harsh words.

Instead, her small hands reached out, gently pressing against Maxine's lower back to support her weight. Chapter 2 "Maxine, you've got this all wrong." I waved Iris over.

My fingers brushed the girl's rough, cracked knuckles. "I didn't come here to start a fight.

I came to ask a question—" "Does Iris still want to go to school?" I held the girl's gaze. "I'll cover her prep school tuition. Every cent.

And if she gets into a good college, I'll fund that too." Iris's head snapped up. Her eyes locked onto mine, shining with bright anticipation.

Just as I thought, a brilliant kid starving for a chance. I had checked her transcripts before the flight. Wyatt, that lying piece of trash.

Iris blew his entrance exam scores out of the water by a solid three hundred points! He didn't score "about the same." She operated in a completely different stratosphere.

Wyatt clawed his way into college using my financial backing and expensive prep courses. Iris crushed those exams running purely on her own grit.

She should jump at the opportunity, right? I flashed her a warm smile. But Iris dragged her teeth hard over her lower lip.

She took a step back, nervously wiped her hands on her jeans, and shattered my expectations. "Thank you, Fallon.

But I'm dropping out." High school tuition was steep enough, but once you factored in textbooks, a laptop, uniforms, and boarding fees, the costs stacked up to thousands.

Plus, she needed cash to survive. Maxine suffered from a chronic illness. The expensive prescriptions bled them dry, and the sickness kept her from working manual labor.

If Iris left to study, Maxine's medication stopped. "Fallon, Aunt Tonya can get me a job off the books at the warehouse." Iris's voice barely shook. "I checked.

In two years, when I turn eighteen, I can get hired officially with full benefits…" I let the silence hang for a second, then cut her off. "You're throwing away your education just to clock in at a warehouse and buy your mom's meds?" The tiny girl froze.

She gave a single, jerky nod. "Easy fix." I clapped my hands together, shattering the heavy tension. "I'll cover Maxine's medical bills too!" I lacked a lot of things in this world, but I possessed a disgusting amount of money. [Who else is super jealous?!

I want to crawl through the screen and simp for Fallon.

She literally throws cash at problems!] [Speaking of simps… the actual simp in the room looks sick to his stomach right now…] The phantom chat dragged my attention back to Wyatt.

He stood silently in the corner, his jaw locked tight. Wyatt. The charity case I had sponsored a few years ago. Now a college sophomore playing the freshfaced, devoted boyfriend.

I threw money at plenty of students, but Wyatt played the gratitude game better than anyone. Back in high school, he mailed me handwritten letters every single month.

He applied to a university in my exact city. He sprinted over after his classes just to bring me coffee and check on me.

Before this thirtythousanddollar request, we actually maintained a decent relationship.

But the chat insisted Iris served as the ultimate catalyst for our downfall. [Fallon is losing it! Why keep your romantic rival right under your nose?!] [Just watch.

The major plot twist drops soon. She's going to regret this so hard!] I was the textbook definition of a chronically unloved heiress.

Montgomery, my father, lived for extreme sports and adrenaline. He wrapped his racecar around a barricade, killing himself and leaving me a huge, multimillion dollar settlement.

Rosalind, my mother, couldn't handle the heat. She bailed when I turned two and vanished off the grid.

I swallowed up Archibald's entire estate on my father's side, and Theodore's fortune on my mother's. Honestly? Strip away the trust funds, and I had absolutely nothing left.

A vicious rumor constantly circulated through the elite country clubs. Need capital? Go play boyfriend to Fallon. Serve up a handsome face, pretend to care, and secure your bag.

I lost count of the men revolving through my penthouse. But Wyatt stuck around the longest. He clung to my side like a desperate stray dog, impossible to kick to the curb.

So, when the glowing text exploded behind my eyes, claiming Iris acted as Wyatt's ultimate obsession—his true first love—my chest didn't cave in. Boyfriends came and went.

I treated them as replaceable assets. A lack of love didn't terrify me. If you threw enough quantity at a void, it eventually mimicked quality.

But Wyatt's sheer audacity caught me off guard. I hadn't even started scouting for his replacement yet, and this snake already planned his exit strategy right under my nose.

Chapter 3 Two AM. A vicious, twisting cramp ripped through my abdomen. I slid off the leather office chair. My knees slammed into the carpet. Cold sweat slicked my spine.

Earlier, Wyatt had practically begged to pick me up. He played the sweet, devoted boyfriend. He even sent Ralph home for the night.

Then, while I buried myself in the final quarterly report, he vanished. He took my custom Mercedes.

He drove off with my prescription painkillers and my hot tea. [Iris is running a fever in her dorm!

Wyatt is peeling out, burning rubber to get to her…] The scrolling text flared behind my eyes. That little shit. That was my damn car. [He could have at least texted Fallon!

He's the one who insisted on staying, and now he leaves her completely stranded.] [This is exactly why you don't fund his little obsession!

You literally paid for them to reconnect.] [Shut up, both of you! Fallon is literally convulsing on the floor…] The pain blinded me. A whitehot spike drove straight through my gut.

I clawed at my phone, hitting the emergency dial for 911 while my trembling fingers smashed the automated location broadcast on my desk. The edges of my vision bled to black.

I let the darkness pull me under. The sterile burn of hospital bleach mixed with the greasy scent of chicken noodle soup. It made my stomach heave. "Baby, I'm so sorry.

I messed up." Wyatt hovered over the hospital bed. Dark stubble shadowed his jaw. His eyes were deeply bloodshot. We had been dating for two months. I knew his red flags.

He was deeply insecure, overly defensive, and obsessed with his fragile pride. But I had genuinely liked him. He played the fiercely loyal college guy perfectly.

He acted like the sun rose and set only for me. He memorized my schedule, waiting outside my highrise every night with a brilliant, breathless smile.

He spent hours perfecting my favorite meals in the kitchen, obsessing over the exact ratio of salt and acid just to please me. "I lost my damn mind," Wyatt pleaded, his hands gripping the metal bedrail. "I swear to you, it will never happen again.

I'll never leave your side.

I was terrified I'd lost you…" I let out a light cough, breaking his gaze to stare at the blank wall, and cut him off. "I'm starving." Wyatt flinched, then scrambled to unscrew the plastic thermos on the tray.

He poured the steaming broth. "How long was I out?" I asked. "Six hours." He handed me the spoon. "Careful, it's boiling. The ER doc said no more eightyhour work weeks.

Your system is crashing. Let me move into the penthouse. Let me take care of you…" I took one sip of the broth. I froze. "What is it?" Wyatt's entire body tensed.

I shook my head, staying silent as I scooped up another spoonful and let it hit my tongue. Way too salty. Wyatt didn't cook this.

Pure instinct pulled my gaze toward the hospital room door. A mop of messy hair peeked through the cracked opening.

It snapped back a second too late. "You lingering in the hallway," my voice cut through the quiet room. "Come in." All the blood drained from Wyatt's face.

Iris shuffled into the room. A sickly, feverish flush stained her cheeks. Her small fingers twisted the hem of her oversized hoodie.

She stared a hole into the linoleum floor. [Why is she literally everywhere?!

Wyatt and Fallon were just starting to fix things, and now she's ruining the vibe again!] [Fallon, kick her out!

Wyatt acts totally gaslit and possessed the second Iris breathes in his direction.] [If you let her stay in your orbit, Wyatt is going to abandon you over and over again.

He will always choose her!] Was that true? I shifted my gaze back to Wyatt.

His earlier devotion vanished, replaced by sheer, frantic panic. "Fallon, please don't be pissed." Wyatt stepped in front of me, blocking my view of Iris. "It was the middle of the night.

She was burning up and didn't have anywhere to go.

I just brought her to the ER to get checked… I'll make her leave right now." He shot a harsh glare over his shoulder. "Get out—" "Hold on." My voice was barely a whisper.

I locked eyes with the trembling girl. "Did you call him to come get you?" Chapter 4 Before Iris could even open her mouth, the glowing chat fed me the truth.

Sadie had made the frantic call because Iris was a fresh transfer at the prep school. Her contacts list held exactly three names. Maxine, Wyatt, and Fallon.

Sadie didn't know who the hell I was, and Maxine lived out in the sticks. Desperation forced her to dial Wyatt. "I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry!" Iris gnawed on her lip, looking like she wanted the floor to swallow her whole. She offered zero excuses. Just a breathless, repeated apology.

I let out a heavy sigh. "You didn't do anything wrong, kid," I said. "You were sick. You asked for help.

What were you supposed to do, just lay there and die?" My phone always had 911 on speed dial. Stashes of painkillers sat in my desk, my glovebox, my nightstand.

Automated emergency beacons tracked my medical stats everywhere I went. I had let my guard down. I trusted a boyfriend. Tonight served as a brutal wakeup call.

This girl wasn't plotting to steal Wyatt. She was just collateral damage. I couldn't blame her. "You brought the soup?" I asked.

Wyatt's knuckles turned white on the metal bedrail. "Fallon, I—" "I wasn't talking to you." I cut him off cold. I kept my eyes locked on Iris.

The girl's wide, panicked eyes darted around before she gave a stiff nod.

A sick girl, burning up with a fever, dragging herself to a kitchen in the middle of the night just to make me broth.

If I hadn't caught her hovering by the door, I never would have known. "Thanks," I said softly. "Go back and rest.

I'm covering your medical bills." The text behind my eyes spammed an endless wall of ellipses. [Is the female lead suffering from some extreme savior complex?

Why hasn't she kicked Iris out yet?!] [Just wait. When the male lead ditches her for the second and third time, she'll finally learn her lesson.] I didn't say a word.

I waited in absolute silence as Iris ducked her head and slipped out of the hospital room. Then, I turned back. My voice was dead calm. "Wyatt.

We're done." The porcelain bowl slipped from his fingers, shattering across the linoleum floor