Chapter 1

After eight years together, Brenda Townsend finally agreed to marry me.

I was over the moon. First, I could spend the rest of my life with the woman I loved. Second, I could finally fulfill Grandma's wish so she could leave this world without regrets.

On the day we were supposed to get married, I arrived early at the city hall and realized the only person waiting at the entrance was Brenda's best friend, Megan Cunningham.

Megan lowered her gaze and said she came to celebrate her best friend's special day.

The minutes ticked by, but Brenda did not show up. She didn't answer, even after I called her several times.

The queue kept getting longer. The city hall was about to close for the day when I finally received a response.

Brenda said that Ethan Kramer was in a bad mood and had too much to drink, so she had to look after him.

I tried calling her again, but it was like she had vanished again.

Just when I was feeling completely hopeless, my gaze landed on Megan. My mind went blank, and I grabbed her hand, asking, "Will you marry me? Grandma wants to see me get married before she leaves this world."

Megan froze, and I suddenly realized what I had just asked of her. I let go of her hand and was about to apologize when I heard her say, "Sure. I always carry my ID with me."

When Brenda called me, the staff was already guiding Megan and me through a souvenir photoshoot, which we both found quite awkward.

Hearing Brenda's custom ringtone, I couldn't help but space out for a moment. Next to me, Megan was starting to look uneasy, too.

The staff's voice snapped us back to reality. "Say cheese! You're getting married. Don't look so serious. Can you lean your head toward your husband a little?"

My phone kept ringing. It was as if, as long as I didn't answer, Brenda would keep calling me.

The piercing ringtone was getting on the staff's nerves. "Sir, your phone keeps ringing. Would you like to take the call first? It might be an emergency."

I smiled apologetically at the staff, picked up my phone, and blocked Brenda's number. "Let's continue."

Seeing that, Megan reached for her phone and turned it off as well.

I could imagine how upset Brenda must have been on the phone, but I wasn't in the mood, nor did I have the energy to think too much about it. I didn't even want to think about how I was going to cheer her up.

When she hurried off to her childhood sweetheart's home without uttering a single word and left me hanging at the city hall, I knew it was over between us.

By the time Megan and I received our wedding certificate, two hours had already passed.

Just then, I got a call from an unknown number. I paused before answering.

Brenda's cold voice came through the phone. "Harry Henderson, you've got some nerve now. How dare you block me!

"All I did was go to Ethan's place to take care of him. Must you throw a tantrum over this?

"We can get married anytime, can't we? Ethan had too much to drink. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

Her questions left me speechless. I could even picture her angry expression over the phone.

Sure, I could wait, but Grandma couldn't. The hospital had warned several times that she was in critical condition. They also told us to prepare ourselves, saying it would be just a matter of days.

Grandma only ever wanted to see me get married, and I didn't want her to leave the world with any regrets. When Megan agreed to marry me, I was over the moon.

"Harry Henderson, did you fall off the face of the earth or something? Why aren't you saying anything?"

Hearing Brenda's voice, I suddenly came to my senses.

She became even more upset when she realized I still hadn't apologized. Her voice was so shrill that I thought my ears would burst.

"Harry, I'm warning you. If you keep treating Ethan like this, it's over between us."

I found Brenda's words ridiculous. We had been together for eight years. All this time, it felt like there was a third person in our relationship.

It was Ethan, her childhood sweetheart.

Whenever we went to the movies, she would invite Ethan. Even on vacation, he would tag along. Them sitting together made me feel like a background character.

Whenever Ethan needed something, Brenda would ditch me to look after him.

Brenda always told me she and Ethan were childhood sweethearts. If they really had something going on, she wouldn't have been with me in the first place.

Back then, I cared too much about Brenda, so I would always give in. This time, I wasn't going to give in anymore.