Chapter 2

Timothy gently patted Wendy's hand and turned to the guests with a calm smile.

"Everyone, Wendy and I aren't blood-related. I was adopted by the Hudson family when I was young. I worked hard all these years before I finally felt worthy enough to hold her hand. Please, give us your blessings."

Wendy stepped forward as well.

"Tim never wanted to bring up his past. It's only because of this ungrateful troublemaker that we have to explain," she said. "Today's my wedding. Fine if you won't offer your blessing, but why come here just to cause a scene?"

A glass of wine was thrown straight at my face, red liquid running down my hair and collar as curses followed from every direction. I sneered and wiped the wine from my face.

Ungrateful? That word suited Timothy Zuckerman far better.

The three of us were about the same age, and we had been inseparable as children.

Back then, when the Hudson family found out he wasn't their biological son, they planned to send him back to the orphanage. I was the one who begged my parents to take him in.

We ate at the same table, lived under the same roof, and grew up together. After graduation, I even funded his startup and helped him build his career from the ground up.

He knew full well that Wendy and I were married, yet he still destroyed our relationship. If anyone was an ingrate, it was Timothy.

At that thought, I grabbed a glass of wine from a nearby table and flung it straight at Timothy. "I should be the one splashing wine here. Back then, when you were kneeling outside the Miller residence, begging my parents to take you in, you weren't so cocky.

"You cried and swore you'd repay me for the rest of your life, but now, you stole my wife—your niece. Is this how you repay me?"

For a brief second, the room fell silent. Then, an even louder laughter erupted.

"Wait. The Millers? You've got to be kidding. A broke nobody pretending to be the heir of the richest family in the country. He probably heard the real heir rarely stayed in the country and thought he could bluff his way through."

Timothy listened to the laughter and donned a smug smile. "Oh, Jake. You don't actually believe changing your last name makes you the heir of the Miller family, do you?

"All these years, I pitied your poor background, so I never said much about Wendy sponsoring you. But what you've done today is overboard. Do you have any idea how much gossip this will bring down on her?"

As soon as he finished, guests around us chimed in.

"Don't worry. We'll all be your witnesses! This lunatic barged in, assaulted you, and even tried to fake someone else's identity!"

Seeing the crowd on their side, Wendy finally relaxed. She even smiled, then pointed at me. "If I'd known you'd turn out like this, I would've donated that money to stray dogs instead… Security, throw this madman out!"

The guards who had been waiting nearby rushed forward at once. I grabbed a bottle of red wine from the table and smashed it onto the floor. "Lay a finger on me if you dare! Wendy, think about what will happen to your parents."

Her face dropped instantly.

Her parents, Luther Hudson and Janet Cole, had always thought highly of me, not just because I was the heir of the Millers, but because their family had risen with my family's backing.

For these two to secretly hold a wedding behind their backs was practically asking for trouble.

I smirked and said coldly, "My family helped build yours from the ground up. Say, what do you think will happen to Timothy when they find out about this wedding?"

Timothy's face stiffened. He was about to speak when a voice rang out from the entrance. "Mr. and Mrs. Hudson have arrived!"