Chapter 1

"Harry, today is the day you and Nadia are supposed to register your marriage. If you don't show up, aren't you afraid she will get mad?"

"Everybody knows Nadia sticks to him like glue. Even if she knew Harry skipped today because of Sammy, she still wouldn't have the nerve to get angry at him."

"Exactly, no way Nadia is nearly as important as Sammy. Harry has doted on her ever since they were kids..."

The Sammy they were talking about was Samantha Jones, Harry Jones's younger sister in name only.

Nadia stood outside the private room at the hotel, feeling a chill down her spine.

So, this was the man she had loved for so many years. How pathetic he really was! She clenched her fists, her fingertips digging deep into her palms. That physical pain did not even come close to the ache in her heart.

She took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

Bang!

The noisy room fell instantly silent.

"Nadia Thompson...?!"

The room was filled with gasps.

At the door was a beautiful woman with fair skin and long legs. The pink dress she was wearing traced the curve of her narrow waist with her hair styled in a gentle side-swept. She was so beautiful that the whole room seemed to be holding its breath.

But her eyes were cold. She looked over Harry and Samantha and sneered, "Harry, is this why you didn't have time to register our marriage?"

A hint of guilt crossed Harry's handsome face. He walked over to her and said, "We can register our marriage at any time. Sammy hardly ever comes back from overseas. As her second older brother, I'm expected to take her out and welcome her home."

Nadia let out a mocking laugh. "And we only get one dating anniversary a year. Does that really not matter to you at all? You know if we miss it this time, we have to wait until next year, right?"

They had agreed on it together. They had planned to turn their dating anniversary into their wedding anniversary, killing two birds with one stone. It was supposed to mean something.

But it was now painfully obvious that Harry did not want to marry her.

The person he truly wanted to marry was Samantha, his childhood sweetheart!

Maybe sensing something, Harry reached out for her again. "Stop making a scene. I'll explain when we get back."

Nadia shook his hand off at once.

It was at that precise moment that Samantha decided to speak. "Nadia, I'm sorry. It's my fault. I didn't know you were registering today."

She lowered her head as she apologized, looking so pitiful it was as if she were the one being bullied.

Nadia had always disliked her and said nothing.

Samantha raised her head, tears shimmering in her eyes as she said with a fragile look, "Nadia, please forgive me. You and Harry really do have my full blessing."

Blessing?

Nadia let out a chuckle. "Can you stop with the act? If you really wished us well, you wouldn't have rushed back here."

Harry's face instantly darkened. "Nadia, don't be so harsh."

"What, did I upset you by talking about your little sweetheart?" Nadia looked at him like he was a stranger.

Harry's expression grew even darker. He lowered his voice and snapped at Nadia, "Watch your tongue and stop talking nonsense!"

See how fiercely he defended his precious little sister? Since he insisted on protecting her, Nadia decided to give them exactly what they wanted.

"You've already got it done. Why are you so worried about what others might say?"

Samantha's eyes reddened, her face full of hurt.

"Nadia, it's not like that between Harry and me. Can you stop misunderstanding me like in the past? If I had known returning home this time would make you two fight again, I would never have come back."

She sounded like she was about to cry, and that sad, tearful look made everyone feel pity for her.

The people around them could not stand seeing Samantha having to suffer such unfairness, and all turned on Nadia.

"You've crossed a line with that, Nadia. Harry and Sammy grew up as siblings. You're telling me you're jealous of that?"

"Exactly. Just because you could not tolerate her, she went abroad for the past three years to make way for you two. Are you going to pull the same tactic again?"

"Careful. If you go too far, Harry will not want you anymore!"

Nadia watched, calmly and coldly, how they burned bright with righteous fury. She had been extremely tolerant of Harry's so-called friends for his sake in the past. They could joke about her or badmouth her to him all they wanted behind her back, but she just acted like she didn't hear a thing.

But not this time.

Nadia's gaze became sharp. "How is it normal for a younger sister to be so clingy with her brother every single day? Are you all out of your minds? Or do you just like watching this kind of forbidden romance playing out in front of you? I don't mind stepping aside and letting them put on a show for all of you."

Everyone was stunned.

None of them had ever imagined that Nadia, who had always been so mild and docile in front of Harry, could be this sharp-tongued.

Her words sounded far too harsh.

"Nadia, why do you have to insult me like this?" Samantha was on the verge of tears, her eyes becoming red as she looked pitiful. "It's fine if you don't like me, but Harry likes you a lot and has done so much for you. What more do you want to make you happy?"

Nadia frowned.

The others might not know about it, but she knew very well how good Samantha was at playing pretend.

She and Harry had known each other for a decade and had been dating for five.

During their first year, on Nadia's birthday, one phone call from Samantha had Harry running off, saying there had been a car accident.

On their second Valentine's Day together, Samantha had been dumped by her boyfriend. She bawled her eyes out as she called Harry, saying she was going to kill herself.

The third time, the fourth time...

Samantha had countless reasons to call Harry away, and every time, Harry chose to leave Nadia behind.

Then, three years ago, Samantha suddenly suggested going abroad on her own. Harry and their friends all thought it was Nadia who had driven her away.

Nadia's icy stare was laced with sarcasm as she stared at Samantha.

"Would a pair of normal siblings just abandon something as important as registering their marriage with their partner? It's obvious one of you has no self-respect, and the other is shameless. And now, you turn around and blame me and tell me to be more magnanimous. Why should I? Just because both of you are shameless enough?"

Samantha's face became red with embarrassment. She could not argue back, so she cried, her tears rolling down her cheeks without pause.

Harry could not bear it any longer as he growled at Nadia with his face red. "That's enough! Can't you see how ridiculous you are right now? It's just registering our marriage. If we can't do it on our dating anniversary, we can just change it to your birthday, right? What's the big deal? Why can't you be more magnanimous about all this?"

Magnanimous?

She could. Of course, she could.

Nadia's heart was completely calm as she said, "We're over."

Everyone was stunned.

Harry froze for a few seconds, his face dark.

"Breaking up again? Sammy was afraid we'd separate, so she went abroad three years ago because you said you wanted to break up. You still won't stop now. Do you want to drive her away again?

"Nadia, how can you be such a schemer? I already agreed to register the marriage with you, and you still can't tolerate Sammy! Do you really want her to die that much? If you keep being this vicious, you can forget about registering the marriage with me."

Samantha was enjoying Harry's protection. When she lowered her head, a trace of smugness flashed in her eyes.

After hearing Harry's words, Nadia laughed. Her smile was bright, like a blooming rose.

"Fine, then. Forget about the registration and the marriage."

Nadia left those words behind and turned around.

Harry stared at her figure and threatened angrily, "Nadia! If you walk out of this room today without properly apologizing to Sammy, I won't forgive you!"

Everyone was betting that Nadia would surely back down and apologize. After all, she loved Harry so much.

Sure enough.

Nadia stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at them. Suddenly, she raised her hand.

"Since you're all here, then listen. I, Nadia Thompson, swear right here and now that I'm breaking up with Harry and there will never be any chance of marriage. If I ever break this vow, he'll have no children in this life and will die a miserable death!"

After throwing down this vicious oath, Nadia ignored the dumbfounded crowd, turned around, and left the private room without hesitation.

Nadia had no idea how she even made it into the cab. All she knew was that she methodically blocked every way Harry could contact her.

It was not until her phone rang, yanking her back to the present, that she came back to herself. She glanced at the caller's number, both unfamiliar and recognizable.

For a moment, her heartbeat seemed to stop.

The call connected, and a low, pleasant voice belonging to a man came from the other end. "If you want to get married, why not consider me?"