Page 160 of The Substitute Fiancée

I stand up, legs trembling, a huge smile stretching across my face.

“Thank you. Thank you so much.”

I leave the room in a daze. The hallway moves around me like a dream. My classmates watch me, waiting for my signal.

I raise both thumbs, unable to contain my smile.

Joy lights up their faces—pure, radiant.

I run down the stairs, cross the lobby, push through the doors.

Alexander is there, talking with Mara. As if he sensed my gaze, he turns just in time to catch me in his arms.

“I got it!” I shout. “With honors!”

He lifts me up and spins me around, his laughter ringing in my ear.

“I knew it! I knew you would!” he says, setting me down, his hands framing my face. “I’m so proud of you.”

He kisses me passionately, right there, in front of everyone, not caring about the stares.

Emelyne joins us five minutes later, glowing.

“I got it too!” she announces. “With honors!”

I throw my arms around her and hug her tight.

“We did it! We made it!”

Mara joins us, and we fall into a group hug, laughing and crying at the same time.

*

That evening, Alexander takes us to a fine-dining restaurant to celebrate our degrees. Champagne, refined dishes, festive energy. Emelyne recounts with hilarious details how she almost spilled coffee on one of the jury members. Alexander, seated beside me, doesn’t let go of my hand the entire meal. Every so often, he leans in to kiss my forehead, my temple, my lips.

“I’m proud of you,” he murmurs for the tenth time.

“You already told me,” I reply, laughing.

“And I’ll keep telling you.”

Toward the end of the meal, his phone vibrates several times. He frowns, pulls it from his pocket.

His expression shifts. An amused smile curves his lips.

“What is it?” I ask.

He hands me his phone.

On the screen, a photo of us in front of the school. Alexander is lifting me above him, our faces glowing with joy. The moment is frozen in all its spontaneous beauty.

The post already has thousands of likes.

@ParisianLife: “AlexanderDelaunay celebrating the graduation of his fiancée Samantha Chevalier. The couple melting Paris. #RelationshipGoals #AlexanderDelaunay”

I scroll through the comments.

@RomanticParis: “Where is my Alexander?”