Chapter 1

“Have you lost it, Rhys? Danny is family. How could you attack him?

“Know your place. Was Danny wrong?”

The sickly-sweet cream dripped down my hair, obstructing my vision and muffling my ears.

However, my mother, Emma Green’s shrill voice rang in my ear anyway.

I smirked to myself. Even at this point, the only thought on my mind was that I finally had a moment of dignity, only to have it stripped away.

Lifting my arm, I wiped my eyes with a blank face as Danny scrambled toward me to clean the cream off me.

His voice was thick with hurt.

“Mom, Dad, don’t blame Rhys. It was my fault for bringing up the past. It’s all my fault for upsetting Rhys…”

My father, Liam Green’s chest heaved in rage, but he kept to himself.

I took a step to the side, shying away from Danny’s reaching hand.

Kyra Hunter came my way with a handkerchief in hand.

Before I could say anything, Kyra took great care to dry the tears off Danny’s face and the cream off his hands.

Her touch was light, her eyes full of pity and tenderness.

No one cared whether I was in pain.

No one asked why I got violent.

Heck, no one even bothered to hand me a napkin to clear away the humiliating mess from my face and hair.

I stared at Kyra, my voice raspy when I spoke, “Kyra, who is your fiancé?”

Kyra’s fingers froze.

She snapped her head toward me, her brows furrowed.

“Rhys, Danny has suffered enough on his own. Must you be aggressive because he expressed his feelings?

“What happened to the modest, dependable guy that I know? Why have you become so jealous over every little thing?”

“Jealousy?” I rolled the word over my tongue, finding the whole thing absurd.

Emma said furiously, “Apologize to Danny now, or don’t bother coming back. A petty son like you has no place in this family.”

Silence hung heavily in the air.

I looked at the people who were once the closest to me.

The heaviness that had pressed on me for five years was finally gone.

“Fine,” I answered calmly.

The Greens were taken aback by my docile response.

I removed the engagement band and threw it into a glass, forming a champagne tower.

Emma looked at the ring in the champagne tower, fury overwhelming her. “What’s the meaning of this? Is this an act of defiance? How long do you plan to carry on with this outburst in front of family and friends?”

A fluster fleeted across Kyra’s frowning face as she eased the tension in her tone.

“Stop it, Rhys. Give yourself a good wipe down and apologize to Danny. We can still go ahead with the engagement party.”

“Go ahead?”

I scoffed.

“Why should I give you what you want?”

I tore off the boutonniere from my suit and threw it to the ground, stepping right over it.

Liam and Emma’s angry swearing and Danny’s crocodile tears echoed behind me.

Not even looking back, I hastened my pace.