Chapter 1

By the time I rushed into the venue, the wedding was already reaching its climax.

Even beneath the dim, shifting lights, I recognized the bride immediately. Floriane Marsh was the campus beauty who'd lived in the dorm right next to mine back in college.

As the ceremony continued, the room erupted into thunderous applause, and people I knew cheered at the top of their lungs.

"Vincent, you lucky man! You married the most beautiful woman in New York!"

"Are you kidding? The Dunn family is worth billions. Vincent could have any woman he wanted!"

"Did you see that diamond on her finger? He practically shut down the entire Fifth Avenue flagship store to get it! A billionaire heir and a Manhattan heiress. Now that's a power couple!"

I stared at Vincent Dunn onstage, struggling to believe what I was seeing.

Dressed in a bespoke tuxedo, he knelt before Floriane, slipped the diamond ring onto her finger, and leaned forward to press a reverent kiss against her hand.

The diamond glittered so brilliantly that it almost blinded me.

The man I knew had spent years pinching pennies. He'd ride an electric bike for two hours across the city just to save on Uber fares, then pick up delivery shifts after work to make ends meet.

As the cheers grew louder, Vincent happened to turn his head. The moment his eyes met mine, his entire body stiffened, and he instinctively pulled away from Floriane.

I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could get a word out, someone seized my wrist and dragged me toward a secluded corner.

It was my best friend, Gail Cook. Still dressed in her bridesmaid gown, she glared at me with undisguised anger. "What are you doing here, Nancy? Are you trying to ruin their wedding?"

My gaze fell on her bridesmaid dress, and an old memory suddenly came back to me.

When Vincent and I had first started dating, Gail had scolded me for being hopelessly romantic.

Yet shortly afterward, she'd spent two months' worth of her part-time earnings to buy me a delicate silver necklace.

I'd been so moved that I'd nearly cried, but she had brushed it off with a playful smile. "When you two tie the knot, I'm going to be your maid of honor. Consider this my contract. Don't you dare go back on it!"

Remembering that promise made her presence here even more painful. I struggled to steady my trembling voice as I asked, "Gail, what on earth is going on?"

"You're standing right in the middle of their wedding reception." She cut me off impatiently. "What else is there to ask? Get over it, Nancy. They've been together for five years."

But Vincent and I had been together for seven years.

When I didn't respond, Gail pulled up the couple's social media account and began scrolling through thousands of videos, one after another, as though she intended to make me see the truth for myself.

"Remember Valentine's Day, when Floriane got into skiing? Vincent flew her all the way to Northern Europe on a private charter."

That was the day I'd been working a grueling shift at the coffee shop, drowning in an endless stream of orders.

On my way home, I'd gotten into a minor car accident. Frightened and shaken, I'd tried calling Vincent for comfort, but my call had gone straight to voicemail.

Now I finally understood why.

While I was struggling alone, he was in another country, keeping Floriane warm at a luxury ski resort.

"And on your birthday, when Floriane wanted to watch fireworks? Vincent rented out the entire Victoria Harbor just for her."

That day, I'd left work early and spent half a month's paycheck on Maine lobster, the kind Vincent had always said he wanted to try.

I'd prepared everything and waited for him until the middle of the night, only to receive a call telling me he'd been sent out of town on an urgent business trip.

While I sat alone with a table full of food going cold, he was holding Floriane in his arms beneath a sky illuminated by custom fireworks.

"And that's not all," Gail added, showing me more clips. "They went to Iceland to see the Northern Lights, and they went diving in Bali. I've known about all this for ages. I just didn't tell you because I didn't want you to make a scene."

As the videos continued playing on her screen, each new revelation drove the truth deeper into my heart. A crushing weight settled over my chest until I could barely breathe.

Right then, hurried footsteps sounded behind me.

Vincent had finally finished his duties onstage and rushed over. Grabbing both my hands, he looked at me in a panic.

"Nancy, please, let me explain! It's not what you think!" he pleaded. "Our families arranged this marriage. It's just for show. You have to understand my situation."

Pain twisted through my chest. Fighting back the tears burning behind my eyes, I stared at the man I'd loved for seven years.

"An arranged marriage?" My voice caught in my throat. "So, you're finally admitting it? You pretended to be broke all these years just to deceive me?"

Vincent swallowed hard, struggling to find an answer.

Floriane stepped beside us and let out a soft, amused laugh. "Nancy, if I were you, I'd know better than to walk into someone else's wedding and pick a fight.

"Nearly two hundred media outlets are waiting outside, and cameras are recording everything in this hall. Are you really that eager to let the whole world know you're the other woman?"

Vincent shot her a helpless glance. "Nancy gets scared easily. Don't frighten her."

Then he turned back to me, softening his voice. "Floriane is only joking. Don't take it personally."

His attempt to brush off her insult only made the situation more unbearable. I tried desperately to pull away, but his grip remained tight, keeping me trapped in his embrace.

"Why?" I managed, my tears breaking free. "Why did you do this to me?"