Chapter 1

He wrote back almost instantly, "Are you sure?"

I looked at the two of them, their backs to me.

It was like Ian wanted to punish me for being difficult.

He made a point of keeping his distance from me the whole time.

He let Sophie cozy right up to him.

And whenever his eyes met mine, he'd look away, a little smug.

I sat nearby and watched them all afternoon. As evening fell, I finally replied, "I'm sure."

When I got home, I threw a few things in a suitcase.

I planned to spend the night at a hotel.

I was just closing my suitcase after packing the last coat when Ian came home.

He'd brought home my favorite takeout, a sirloin steak.

The moment he saw the suitcase, he frowned and asked bluntly, "You're still mad over something this small? It's been all day.

"How much longer are you going to keep this up?"

But inside, I'd gone cold and quiet.

"You promised me."

He'd promised to marry me before I turned 30.

Ian scowled. "Yeah, I promised. But your family's been pressuring me nonstop. Weren't you the ones who broke our agreement first?

"The deal was that we'd get married once we saved up the down payment."

I looked him in the eye.

"Then why did you spend half our savings on a ring?"

With what he earned, he should have saved enough for a down payment long ago.

But ever since he'd seen me reprimand Sophie at work and make her cry, he'd been saving less and less.

At first, he'd scoffed, "You brought your dad's illegitimate daughter all the way to New York. What, are we supposed to give her a room too?" Back then, he'd been eager to marry me.

A month later, he was saying, "Sophie's had it rough. She has no one in New York but you. I almost feel guilty taking you away from her."

Six months later, he was the one joking, "We should set up a small room for Sophie, in case she gets sick..."

I made it clear that Sophie had her own life to live and would eventually find someone of her own.

Ian's face soured a little at that.

After that, whenever we got close to our goal, he'd find something more important to spend the money on.

It happened once, then twice, then every single time.

When I called him out so bluntly, he looked uncomfortable for a moment.

"I only did it so I could give you a proper wedding."

As if something had just occurred to him, he let out a cold laugh and tossed his suit jacket onto the couch.

"Sophie was right. You really are just like your mom. Controlling and heartless."

Heartless?

I could hardly believe those words had come from the sister I'd looked after for 20 years.

Sophie's birth mother had spent one drunken night with my dad, then tried to use it to force her way into our family. When that failed, she raised Sophie until she was five. Then she showed up at our house, tried to extort $150,000 from us, and abandoned Sophie on our doorstep.

My mother, Sharon Yates, knew the child wasn't to blame, so she adopted Sophie and loved her as her own.

She also worried that Sophie hadn't been raised properly in her early years, so she was always strict with her.

And she often told me that as the big sister, I had to look out for her.

So when Sophie said the house was too big and she was scared, I pulled a chair up beside her bed and sat with her all night.

When someone called her a stray we'd taken in as a maid, I stepped in and defended her.

Later, when I left home so I could choose who I loved, she came to me and begged.

"Fiona, what am I supposed to do if you leave? Nothing I do at home is ever right."

So I took her with me. I even signed a performance-based agreement with the company to secure her a job.

I never imagined she'd turn around and betray me after everything I'd done for her.

Ian set the steak down on the table.

Then he wrapped his arms around me from behind as if nothing had happened, his tone casual.

"Okay, enough.

"You're not even 30. There's no rush. Trust me, we're not getting married this year."

I looked at the steak and decided to give him one last chance.

"What if this is your last chance? Would you still refuse to marry me?"

"I told you. Once we have the down payment." He sounded impatient again.

By then, the steak in front of me had gone cold.

It was his peace offering, and his way of telling me I'd made my point and should let it go.

But this time, I didn't want to play along.

I didn't touch the steak. I pulled out of his arms, grabbed my suitcase, and walked out.