Chapter 1

The four years Natalie Sherman spent with Austin Chandler were the happiest years of her life. After the breakup…

She spent the next five years tearfully grieving the relationship. While she didn't cry every day, whenever she thought of him, a heavy gloom gripped her heart. It made her feel suffocated, and her eyes would grow wet along with it.

Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think she'd run into Austin again—and especially not at Shane Barnett's dinner gathering.

The moment she entered the noisy private room, her gaze locked onto a familiar side profile. Her heart lurched, catching her completely off guard. She felt as if a bomb had exploded in her head. All sound and color seemed to fade from the world.

All she could see was Austin.

He was wearing a white shirt and a pair of black pants that highlighted his tall, muscular frame. He carried himself with an air of sophistication and indifferent detachment. Even his side profile alone made him look so handsome that it felt almost unreal.

Austin was looking down at his phone, and seeing him seemed to draw Natalie right back into the memories of their past.

She recalled that spirited young man who often bore a grin that reminded her of the sun. It felt like only yesterday, he'd been holding her in his arms, leaning down toward her as he said breathily, "Kiss me, Nat."

But that didn't happen yesterday. That was five years ago, and it felt like an entire lifetime had passed since then.

Natalie's fingers trembled slightly. A bitter sting spread through her heart. Her eyes immediately misted over. She lost all courage to face Austin, feeling the urge to flee instead.

She stood hesitantly at the door. In her panic, she turned to leave.

"Natalie!" Shane called out to her. "Why are you leaving? You only just got here!"

She froze mid-step, her hand stiffening around the doorknob.

Almost everyone in the private room turned toward her—except for Austin. His thumb had paused mid-scroll, but other than that, he showed no reaction and remained completely still.

Natalie let out a heavy exhale, feeling a tightness in her chest. She could barely breathe. It was so awkward and mortifying to run into her first love like this. In fact, it was even more so, considering that their relationship had ended on pretty ugly terms.

"Come on in! Hessy will be here soon," Shane urged her.

Hestia Sullivan was Natalie's childhood friend and also her best friend. Last month, she went on a blind date with Shane, and it was love at first sight for them. They made their relationship official pretty soon after that.

Swept up in the fiery whirlwind of romance, the two had even decided to get married. The wedding was set for the middle of the next month.

The couple organized this dinner gathering to introduce their respective closest friends to each other. Everyone would need to get to know each other better and discuss the performance they'd be putting on during the wedding reception as well.

Hestia seemed keen to have the bridesmaids and groomsmen dance together, while she and Shane, the bride and groom, sang a romantic duet.

No one would be willing to go up on stage and risk potential embarrassment if they weren't extremely close to the couple.

After taking some time to steel herself, Natalie finally turned around and headed further into the private room.

Shane stepped forward to receive her. He held out his arm behind her as if ushering her forward but without actually touching her, maintaining a polite distance instead. Meanwhile, with the other hand, he gestured for her to sit with the other women.

Just as she sat down, she noticed a strikingly beautiful woman sitting beside Austin—Emily Upton, Austin's childhood friend.

When Natalie and Austin had been dating, Emily had constantly been openly hostile toward her. And right now, Emily's gaze was especially unfriendly.

She didn't even bother hiding her contempt as she grumbled, "What's wrong with you, Shane? Why are you letting a trashy woman be one of the bridesmaids?"

The moment those words came out, the entire room fell into stunned silence. Even Shane froze in complete bewilderment. None of them had ever seen anyone make such a harsh and nasty comment at a gathering among new friends.

All eyes fell on Emily.

Natalie knew she was the one being insulted. Her heart clenched, feeling a wave of embarrassment as she shifted her gaze toward Austin.

He kept his eyes lowered, still staring at his phone, as if this situation had nothing to do with him. There was a sharp coldness to his sculpted features. The bright light made his hair cast a faint shadow at his temples, making him seem even more unapproachable.

One of the women piped up in displeasure, "Who are you talking about?"

"Natalie Sherman knows full well who I'm talking about," Emily fired back arrogantly.

Everyone looked at Natalie.

She was an attractive woman with an understated kind of beauty—the kind that made her seem like a delicate fairy. Her long, dark hair was tied neatly behind her, and she had a calm, pleasant demeanor. Even though she was a public interest lawyer, she had a gentle air of almost childlike innocence, giving others the impression of someone sweet and easygoing.

But those familiar with her knew her personality was the complete opposite of her appearance.

Everyone was curious what kind of grudge there was between them that Emily had called her a trashy woman the moment they met.

Natalie should've been angered by someone calling her trashy and stood up for herself. But she knew that Emily had done it because of Austin, which meant she wasn't entirely wrong.

To Austin, she probably was a piece of trash.

Shane had an awkward expression. "So you guys know each other? Natalie is my fiancee's best friend. Whatever problems you two have had with each other in the past, why don't you just have a few drinks tonight and put it all behind you, yeah? As a favor to me?"

Emily scoffed. "I don't have any issues with her. I would never claim to be acquainted with a shameless bitch like her, either. It's Austin who has a grudge against her. You should ask him whether he's willing to drop the matter."

A shameless bitch?

That made things sound even more complicated, and Shane felt all the more awkward now. Forcing a smile, he asked, "Austin, do you and Natalie know each other?"

What he really wanted to ask was whether Natalie had cheated on him and dumped him or something.

Natalie's hands, which were under the table, clenched tightly into fists. In the seconds before Austin answered, the tension in the room could almost be cut with a knife. It was as if the oxygen had been sucked out of the air, replaced with a suffocating pressure.

Now that Emily had specifically named Austin, he couldn't avoid getting dragged into it. He slowly put down his phone and lifted his gaze toward Natalie. His dark eyes looked like icy pools of water, cold and unreadable.

"I don't know her," he said, his deep voice devoid of warmth.

Those words made Natalie feel like a boulder had crashed into her chest. Her heart squeezed in pain, and disappointment washed over her.

Their eyes met for a brief moment, and her eyes reddened. Feeling the urge to cry, she fought back that feeling so hard that her fists trembled, and she quickly lowered her head.

This was far too painful and unbearable. She was desperate to leave.

The atmosphere in the room remained heavy and tense. Everyone here was an adult. They could read between the lines, based on the expressions and emotions of the parties involved.

Shane broke the silence. "Hestia and I gathered all of the bridesmaids and groomsmen here today so that everyone can get to know each other and get along better. Let's play a game before we start eating."

One of the most common games that young people used to break the ice was Truth or Dare.

"I'll begin!" Shane said before placing an empty wine bottle on the table and spinning it hard.

Except for Natalie, almost all the other women in the room were hoping the bottle would point at Austin.

After several spins, the bottle finally came to a stop. Everyone else was eager to see that their wish had been granted. "Oh! It's pointing at you, Austin. Truth or dare?"

Austin's expression was perfectly calm. Not wanting to reveal any of his true feelings or thoughts to other people, he replied, "I pick dare."

Shane picked out one of the pre-written dares and read it out in surprise, "Kiss one of the women present for two minutes with only a piece of tissue between you two."

Austin frowned slightly, his handsome face darkening. Natalie's hands slowly clenched around her pants, too, her knuckles turning white from the force. Another wave of bitterness rose in her heart.

She felt like she had to be sick in the head to insist on staying in this room and suffering this agony. Her desire to leave reached its peak.

Meanwhile, Emily pulled out a piece of tissue and beamed. "You women are out of luck. Aust will definitely choose to kiss me!"

She placed the piece of tissue against her lips before leaning toward Austin.