Chapter 1

I hung up the phone and forced myself to calm down, my fingers trembling as I slid the mouse across the pad.

Aside from the wallpaper, the desktop was almost too clean, with just a single folder named "My Treasure" saved.

Zane Lockhart had once made me a folder like that, too. It was filled with photos of us growing up together.

My heart hammered against my ribs as an absurd thought exploded in my head. Was he having an affair?

The thought barely lasted a second in my mind before I crushed it. I knew that even if every other man in the world cheated, Zane would be the only exception.

We were childhood sweethearts, and the entire neighborhood had watched us grow up together.

He loved me so much that he remembered my monthly cycle and prepared dark chocolate and heating pads ahead of time. He loved me so deeply that the passcodes to his phone, laptop, and all his social media accounts were my birthday.

Besides, our wedding was barely two weeks away. This had to be a misunderstanding.

I took a deep breath, as if I was trying to push down the wave of inexplicable panic in my chest.

After I double-clicked, the folder opened. The first thing I saw was an intimate photo of Zane with a woman I didn't recognize.

All the blood in my veins seemed to have turned to ice. It felt like a bolt of lightning had struck me, the shock reverberating through all my organs and bones.

One by one, I scrolled through the photos. Each of them seemed to mock me for the lies I had told myself.

Zane had cheated, yet I had been blissfully wrapped up in the joy of becoming his bride. It was pathetically ridiculous.

I didn't know how long I sat there, paralyzed, before I finally calmed down. The first thing I did was to unlock my phone and book a flight to Portia for seven days from now.

Portia was the city of my dreams, which I had given up just to stay by Zane's side. Now, I was going to pick up my brush again and chase the art dream I had put on hold for love for far too long.

Next, I zipped the sordid photos from the laptop and sent them to my best friend, Renee Jones. Her call came through almost instantly, and her voice was full of shock and fury.

"Sadie, I can't believe that absolute monster! Stay right there; I'm coming over with a few tough guys to crush him!"

"No need," I interrupted in a terrifyingly calm voice. "I'll deal with him myself at our engagement party this Saturday. I just need you to do me a favor. I want to give Zane a very special gift."

I had just finished speaking when Zane's voice suddenly came from behind me. It was light and gentle.

"Guess what I got you, Sadie?"

He was holding a box of cream puffs from my favorite bakery. But the moment he saw the look on my face, his smile froze.

"What's wrong, Sadie? Why are your eyes so red?"

He dropped everything and rushed over, reaching out to pull me in for a hug, but I instinctively recoiled.

When I opened my mouth to speak, my voice was so dry that it did not sound like my own at all. "Zane, you—"

Just as I was about to tear away his mask of affection, his phone suddenly rang. He instinctively glanced at the caller ID, and his expression shifted.

He lunged for the phone and hit the mute button before flipping it face down on the table, all a little too fast like he was hiding something.

"That's just… a sales call," he explained in a strained, unnatural voice.

But I had seen it. The moment the screen lit up, the caller ID displayed the name "Cassie".

I looked up at him and softly asked, "Do you love me, Zane?"

The question caught him off guard. Then, he laughed and dotingly tapped my nose.

"Why kind of question is that, silly? Who else would I love if not you?"

I stared straight into his eyes and asked in a clear, deliberate voice, "What about Cassie Tate? Do you love her too?"

Cassie Tate was the seller's name.