Chapter 1

I stepped forward, but my mother grabbed my arm.

"It’s Tiana’s wedding day," she warned. "Don't you dare ruin it."

I froze. The whole situation felt absurd.

I spent a month planning this proposal. I picked every flower. I designed every detail.

Now, Tiana wore the veil I spent hours embroidering with my hands.

My life savings paid for the ring on her finger.

The vows she read were stolen directly from the love letter I wrote to Liam Daniels.

I was supposed to be the happiest woman in the world tonight.

Instead, I was just a fool setting the stage for someone else's fairy tale.

---

As the ceremony wrapped up, Liam followed me outside. He pulled me into an embrace, just like he used to.

"Don't misunderstand," he whispered. "Tiana is terminally ill. She doesn't have much time left. She just wanted to feel what it's like to be a bride."

He pressed a kiss to my hair. "We didn't sign a marriage license. I'm still yours."

Mine?

He had used that same phrase for five years every time he crossed the line with another woman.

I used to forgive him. I thought he cared because he always confessed.

Now, the sickly sweet perfume on his suit made me gag.

Tiana's signature lipstick was smeared across his collar.

"Right. I won't misunderstand."

I reached for a glass of red wine from a passing waiter's tray.

Liam's face shifted. He immediately stepped in front of Tiana.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

He looked at me with pure suspicion, instantly treating me like a threat.

I forced a bitter smile and raised the glass. I threw my head back and swallowed every drop.

"Enjoy your wedding," I said softly.

Liam Daniels's eyes widened.

Tiana clutched her dress, instantly playing the victim. "Cassandra, please don't be mad. It's all my fault. I didn't know Liam Daniels was planning to propose to you tonight."

Liam snapped. "Cassandra, is this little thing really worth throwing a tantrum over? Do you have to ruin everyone's night?"

A cold bitterness spread through my chest.

A little thing.

That’s what he called it when I was stranded in a snowstorm without food for three days, crying on the phone.

“Is this little thing worth making a scene over?”

That’s what he called it when a coworker stole my project and I asked him to pull the security tapes.

“Don’t waste company resources on a little thing like that.”

Two years ago, when I lost the baby and craved pie from across town, he refused to drop it off.

“A miscarriage doesn’t mean you can’t walk. Don’t bother me with little things.”

My eyes burned.

Liam took a step toward me, reaching out as if to touch my cheek.

Tiana gently pulled his sleeve. "Liam... it's time for the toasts."

He turned away immediately.

I watched his back, feeling completely hollow.

In eight years, Liam Daniels had never respected my time.

He canceled a vacation I planned for months just thirty minutes before our flight.

He bailed on a dinner reservation I waited five hours for when we were next in line, using a vague work excuse.

Even tonight, a proposal he promised would be perfect was casually handed to someone else.

I used to tell myself a man like him was just too busy for small details.

Now I realized the truth.

To him, anything involving me was a small detail.

My phone buzzed in my hand.

It was an automated text from the clinic.

[Ms. Davis, you missed your scheduled prenatal appointment. Please call to reschedule.]

I deleted the message and dialed the bridal shop instead.

"Hi," I said, my voice steady. "Please cancel the gown I ordered.”