Book excerpt: Like the Little Mermaid, I want to be by his side even if I can't tell him how I feel. Maureen, a zoologist, was at her wits end as her work visa was about to expire. Then Xander, who worked on the same island, proposed a sham marriage. This marriage, he said, would allow him to avoid losing his daughter to his late wife's parents and allow me to continue doing the work I love. It sounds like a dream come true, if not for the fact that I've loved him for so long, and the proposal is only a fake... And how can I bear the cruelty of a token marriage to a man who doesn't love me? Don't be so nice to me... I'll mistake this for something that's real.