Chapter 4

I could hardly believe Ryan would make a decision like that. "Can't she just stay at a hotel?"

Ryan's brows furrowed. "Hotels aren't safe. I wouldn't feel comfortable knowing she was there alone."

Lily immediately nodded in agreement. "Exactly. Besides, I'm a scaredy-cat. Even if I stay at the house, you have to stay with me tonight, okay?"

Ryan raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement flashing across his face. "What are you thinking? Of course, I'm not going to leave you alone. We'll sleep in the same bed tonight. How's that?"

Lily quickly covered her chest, pretending to be flustered. "Why are you being so sweet all of a sudden? Tell me—have you been after my body all this time?"

Ryan let out a couple of mischievous chuckles. "And what's wrong with that?"

I took a deep breath, feeling a pounding headache coming on. "Pull over. I'm exhausted. I want to go home."

Ryan's expression stiffened, though his tone softened slightly. "Why don't you lower the seat and get some sleep first?"

"Pull over," I ordered.

"Just give me half an hour. I'll drop Lily off, then I'll take you home. Okay?"

"Pull over," I repeated.

"Sienna, it's the middle of the night. You really think I'm going to let you get out of the car by yourself?"

"I'm telling you to pull over! Pull over! Pull over!" I finally lost my temper and shouted. "Which part of that don't you understand?"

His jaw tightened before he slammed on the brakes. "Fine. Get out. But if you get out of this car tonight, we're completely done. And don't bother showing up for the wedding three days from now!"

Lily hurriedly ran a hand through her hair, looking flustered. "Wait… I didn't even do anything. Sienna, you're not going to fight with Ryan over me again, are you?"

I didn't answer. I simply opened the door and stepped out.

Ryan rolled down the window and shouted after me, "You'll be crying and begging me to take you back before long!"

With a muttered curse, he slammed the car into gear and sped away, leaving me standing alone in the darkness as his taillights disappeared into the night.

…

Half an hour later, I finally made it home, where Mom was waiting with the newly printed wedding invitations. I took the stack from her and stared at the red cards embossed with gold lettering.

There, printed beneath the wedding date, was the name of the man who was supposed to become my husband three days from now.

"Julian Blackwell?"

Mom beamed. "He's Northbridge's newest rising star—the CEO of Blackwell Group. Young, accomplished, handsome, and polished. Honestly, he's better than Ryan in more ways than I can count."

I nodded, my fingers tightening around the invitation. "Then, that's good."

If I couldn't have Ryan's love, then perhaps I could at least make this marriage count. I would use it to secure the best possible future for myself and my family.

I had barely made it back to my room when Ryan called. "You left your bag in my car. Come get it yourself."

I had no desire to have anything to do with him anymore. "Just throw it away."

He let out a mocking laugh. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm not giving you an excuse to come crawling back. Your ID and other documents are in the bag. You don't want those?"

Before I could respond, he hung up.

…

When I arrived at the house we'd bought for our wedding, I froze the moment I stepped into the yard.

Lily was wearing the silk nightgown I'd carefully picked out for our honeymoon, while Ryan stood behind her with a measuring tape, carefully taking her measurements. They were practically pressed against each other, both of them flushed and strangely quiet.

Then, as if something inside her had finally broken, Lily's eyes filled with tears.

"Ryan… I've loved you for more than ten years. I've loved you for so long it hurts."

She swallowed hard before continuing, "But I've always been too scared to tell you. I was afraid that if I confessed how I felt, we'd never even be able to stay friends. Now that you're getting married, I can't keep pretending anymore. Maybe I should stay away from you after this. Maybe I'll never see you again."

Ryan immediately lost control. He pulled her tightly into his arms. "Lily, don't you dare."

Before he could say anything else, he lowered his head and kissed her. Under the hazy night sky, they closed their eyes and kissed passionately, completely lost in each other and utterly unaware that I was standing only a few feet away.

I remained surprisingly calm. Instead of confronting them, I simply held up my phone and took a picture.