Chapter 4

Sienna threw her arms wide and flung herself at him.

"Honey! I'm seventy-seven pounds!"

Damon went rigid. Disgust flashed through his eyes.

"S-Sienna?" he stammered.

"You... you're amazing. I'm speechless.

"But something urgent came up at the company. I have to go abroad on business for a month!

"I have to leave right now, or I'll miss my flight!

"Wait for me to come back!"

The instant the elevator doors slid shut, I caught the look in his eyes: pure relief, like a man who'd just escaped with his life.

Sienna whipped around, a little dazed.

I thought she'd finally gotten it. Instead, she said, "Erin, do you think he was moved?

"The way he looked at me was pure shock.

"He never expected me to be this hard on myself for him, right?

"But why didn't he take me with him?"

I curled my lips. "Yeah, why didn't he?"

"Maybe he thinks seventy-seven pounds still looks a little fleshy? Those supermodels are all skin and bones, after all!" Sienna said thoughtfully.

I didn't deny it.

"If he still thinks it's not enough, I'll keep going.

"I'll get down to fifty-seven pounds. I'll be so tiny he could hold me in the palm of his hand!

"In a month, I'll show him an even more perfect me!"

"Mom and Dad won't go for it," I reminded her right on cue.

She called our parents right away and told them Damon had agreed to marry her.

She said she needed to stay in Harbor City to prepare for the wedding.

She also asked them to wire her fifteen thousand dollars for her wedding fund.

Less than ten minutes later, thirty thousand dollars landed in her account.

The last trace of pity I had for her disappeared completely.

When Mom bought me a four-dollar cover for my AC unit, she chased me for the money for three days.

The moment Sienna opened her mouth, they gave her everything they had.

Was I even their real daughter?

Sienna rented a suite in Harbor City and began her road to "stardom."

Every day, she lived on nothing but vitamin water.

Now and then, she'd call me to complain.

"Erin, I'm so hungry. My heart's racing so fast..."

I would cheer her on.

"Hang in there. Soon you'll have the soul of a truly slender woman."

And her confidence would flare up all over again.

Mom and Dad were afraid Sienna's wedding fund wasn't big enough for a rich family and that she'd be looked down on after the wedding.

So they demanded that Owen pay them seventy thousand dollars for my hand up front so they could put it toward Sienna's wedding fund.

They even expected me to understand. Damon's family was rich, and Owen's family couldn't compare!

I wanted to curse them out.

Luckily, Owen could tell right from wrong.

He told me the first time he came to our house, he'd seen exactly where I stood in the family.

He was on my side, and if I needed help, all I had to do was ask.

I asked him to pretend to date me to keep my parents off my back, as long as he didn't give them any money. He played his part perfectly.

Before long, Sienna's weight settled at fifty-seven pounds.

She happily sent me a video.

In it, she spun in front of the mirror in a princess dress.

Her cheekbones jutted out, her eyes were sunken, and you could count every bone in her arms and legs. She looked like an anatomy skeleton.

"Erin, what do you think?"

"Gorgeous! Sienna, you're so determined! Long live love!"

I cheered for her.

She told me she'd had a wedding dress custom-made and booked the biggest screen on the plaza right outside Damon's office tower. She was going to officially declare her love to him.

I said I'd come to her proposal to witness her big moment!

"You can come, but don't get jealous," Sienna teased smugly over the phone.

I teased her right back. "I'm not jealous. I just hate you!"

She thought I was joking, but I meant it.

The busiest shopping plaza in Harbor City was packed with people.

Suddenly, the ads on the giant screen changed into a declaration of love.

"Damon, I love you. I want to be your pocket-sized bride!"

Colorful hearts floated across the entire screen. It couldn't have been more romantic!

Sienna stood in the middle of the plaza in her wedding dress, waving at the crowd.

Screams erupted from the onlookers.

Phone cameras were aimed at her, recording like crazy.

Sienna, glowing with pride, held the microphone and declared her love at the top of her lungs.

"Damon! Look! I've become exactly the delicate kind of girl you love most!

"I'm thinner than any actress out there! Your love gave me the strength!

"I went from one hundred thirty-two pounds to fifty-seven. I went through so much, but for you, it was all worth it!"

The crowd went wild.

Damon didn't show up.

Sienna called out again. "Damon! I know you're watching! Come out already! I'm waiting for you to take me home..."

Thunderous applause filled the plaza.

Damon still didn't show up.

After a few awkward minutes, a handsome man walked up to Sienna.

He handed her a letter.

Sienna took it and showed it off excitedly to the crowd.

"It's from Damon. He's so romantic. Let me share it with everyone!"

She eagerly tore open the envelope.