Chapter 1

Adrian's POV

The voice kept echoing in my head, so sharp it hurt.

Then sound and images suddenly flashed across the big screen, cutting it off for a moment.

Not far away, my sister, Sophie Hale, pointed excitedly at the two people onscreen.

"Look! I shot this video for Evelyn and Nathan."

I blinked slowly.

In the video, Evelyn Brooks and Nathan Cole were walking away from the camera, their backs lining up perfectly with the two of them standing here now in a wedding dress and a suit.

They looked so good together.

"They look so good together." The voice of my childhood friend, Ryan Mercer, came through the video too.

My hands curled into fists. I remembered this trip.

Evelyn had told me she was going away on business. Sophie and Ryan said they were worried about her, so they bought tickets and tagged along.

Before they left, they'd both sworn up and down, "Don't worry, Adrian. We'll keep an eye on her for you!"

So they'd been helping Evelyn lie to me even back then.

The light from the screen washed my face pale.

My breath caught in my chest.

What about my parents?

The scene changed. The camera jostled.

"Go on, Evelyn. Nathan's already up there waiting for you."

I remembered this too. It was even earlier.

After I found out about Evelyn's affair, my depression kept getting worse.

My parents said they wanted to go to a little chapel up in the hills to pray for me, and Evelyn offered to go with them.

They hadn't liked the idea of her being so far from me, but in the end they'd agreed.

"It's fine, Adrian. We'll be right there with her. Nothing's going to happen."

Just as those words surfaced in my mind, the video showed Evelyn and Nathan kissing beneath the old oak where they'd supposedly prayed for me.

I turned the leather cuff on my wrist.

They'd brought it back from that trip.

Evelyn said it would hide the scar on my wrist, and that it would bring me luck.

It turned out to be one Nathan had passed over.

The scar had long since healed, but it felt like it had been ripped open again.

The pain nearly took my legs out from under me.

Someone beside me reached out to steady me, then struck up a conversation like we were old friends.

"Romantic, huh? Honestly, though, I feel bad for the groom.

"I heard the bride has a depressed ex who wouldn't let go after the breakup. He kept threatening to kill himself.

"The groom was big about it and never held it against her. If you ask me, people like that should be locked up in a psych ward!"

It felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room.

I couldn't stop shaking.

I was the one who'd been with Evelyn for ten years.

Nathan was the one who'd come between us.

"How do you know all this?"

I heard myself ask, my voice hoarse.

The man pointed toward my parents.

"Good thing the ex's family and friends have some sense. They felt bad for the bride and groom, so they pitched in and helped plan the whole wedding."

His mouth kept moving, but I couldn't hear a thing.

No wonder.

No wonder my parents, Sophie, and Ryan had all been missing these past few days.

They'd even forgotten my birthday.

They'd been busy planning Evelyn and Nathan's wedding.

The man leaned in closer.

"And get this. I heard the ex's parents even gave the couple a house as a wedding gift.

"Sure, it's out in Westfield, but that area's getting redeveloped. It'll be worth a fortune someday."

My head reeled. I spun around and bolted outside.

My hands shook so badly I misdialed several times before the call finally went through.

"Hello, I'd like to know who the current owner of 56 Westfield Road is."

It was a long moment before the other end answered.

"That would be Mr. Nathan Cole."