Chapter 3

In my desperation, I shouted, "I already have a husband! He'll be here any minute!"

The moment those words left my mouth, everyone froze before bursting into laughter.

"Claire, give it a rest. Aren't you tired of living a lie?"

"Seriously, Ray's crazy about you. Don't break his heart like that!"

"Get together! Get together! Kiss her! Kiss her!"

Watching me get humiliated, Asher showed no concern whatsoever. Instead, he joined in the jeering.

"Claire, I actually think you and Ray make a pretty good match."

I clenched my fists and said through gritted teeth, "I told you, I already have a husband!

"If you don't believe me, you can all come with me to city hall and see for yourselves!"

Worried they still wouldn't believe me, I reached into my bag for an invitation, only to remember I'd handed out the last one yesterday. When she saw my expression, Violet put on a sympathetic act.

"Claire, you know I've always had your back, but this time I really need to speak up for Ray.

"He finally worked up the courage to confess his feelings. If you don't want to accept, fine, but how can you hurt him with such a terrible excuse?

"After all, everyone knows you've been chasing after Asher this whole time. Where would you even get a husband?

"Don't be upset. Everyone just wants what's best for you, so just stop lying. You're only hurting yourself."

When Violet finished, everyone nodded in approval.

"She really is cultured, being a music student and all. So refined and reasonable."

"No wonder Asher likes her. I'd pick someone like that too. Who would want someone as unreasonable as Claire Sutton?"

At that, Violet frowned slightly as if feeling sorry for me. "Claire, just apologize, and we can pretend this never happened, okay? We're all still friends."

That same line again. Whenever there was any kind of conflict, she always played the peacemaker. She seemed to take my side, but really, she was just forcing me to admit fault.

It worked perfectly on Asher and his friends. So I opened my phone, scrolled through it a few times, then held it up in front of them.

"I'm out of paper invitations, but I saved a digital copy. If anyone's interested, feel free to come. I'll make sure to give you all a proper welcome."

The group crowded around to look at the invitation. Someone gasped.

"Holy shit! A wedding on a private island!"

"This island is privately owned. It's worth hundreds of millions!"

Hearing this, Asher scoffed and locked my phone. "God. This is obviously fake. Does Claire look like someone who could afford to get married there?

"She probably took someone else's invitation and changed the names. Talk about shallow and vain!"

After he spoke, everyone's mocking expressions intensified.

"Claire, you really know how to delude yourself!"

"That's what I'm saying. How could someone like you possibly land a wealthy man who owns a private island?"

Violet came over and took my arm, trying to reason with me. "Claire, there's really no need for this. Why are you humiliating yourself like this?

"Even though Asher doesn't have feelings for you, he's always treated you like family. Acting like this will only make him hate you more!"

Asher waved a dismissive hand. "Violet, you can't reason with someone like her. Just leave her alone."

I sighed and pulled off my gloves. A massive diamond glittered on my ring finger.

Violet went still.