Chapter 1

I was secretly dating Wade Sullivan for ten years.

Just how extreme was he about keeping our relationship a secret?

One Valentine's Day, I secretly took a photo of us together. I hadn't even had the chance to post it on Instagram when he found out. He immediately flew into a rage and smashed my phone's camera lens with a hammer right then and there.

Later, with my parents constantly pressuring me to get married, I brought up meeting Wade's parents three times.

The first time, he said, "After graduation."

The second time, he said, "Once my career is stable."

The third time, he said, "Once I've saved enough money to buy a house."

Last year, I finally couldn't take it anymore, so I broke up with him.

Wade would rather stand outside in 15-degree-Fahrenheit weather all night trying to win me back than agree to let me meet his parents.

And yet, someone as insanely low-key as him actually went and announced our relationship out of the blue in the class group chat.

The group chat had already exploded.

Alan Burk, our class representative, sent a meme of someone groveling on their knees.

"I was blind and failed to recognize a true big shot. Wade, you're the bigger man here. Don't hold it against a nobody like me."

Samantha Huffman, the aloof campus belle, sent two voice messages in a row.

"Merry Mountain Villa, seriously? Wade, you really know how to keep a low profile, huh? If I had known your family's rich, I would've gone all out to win you over back in college."

I sat on the edge of my bed, gripping my phone so tightly that my knuckles turned white.

An inexplicable sense of panic welled up inside me. It was so suffocating that I could barely breathe.

Suddenly, someone looking for a bit of drama tagged me.

"Lucille Combe, why are you so quiet? Don't tell me you're so excited you've fainted. You're probably hiding under your blanket and secretly grinning from ear to ear. Come on, get out here and share your thoughts."

Secretly grinning? My entire body was trembling, and my legs felt so weak they could barely support me.

Wade quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

"Alright, everyone, please stop teasing Lucille. She's just shy. By the way, the villa has hot springs, a karaoke room, and a poker room. There's also some vintage wine my dad has been storing in the cellar, so help yourselves.

"The only downside is that the signal's pretty bad up in the mountains, so you won't be able to use your phones much."

My heart pounded wildly as I stared at the words "poker room", "vintage wine", and "bad signal".

The door suddenly flew open.

My best friend, Danielle Klein, rushed in and thrust her phone in front of my face.

"Lucille, have you seen the group chat? Wade's going to propose to you! Turns out Merry Mountain Villa belongs to his parents! Who would've thought you'd landed yourself such a rich catch! Hurry up and start packing! Wade's booked the flights for tomorrow afternoon."

She was practically hopping with excitement, and she was so loud my eardrums were about to burst.

I turned my phone facedown on the bed and tried to steady my trembling voice.

"I can't go. The company is sending me to Terraton on a business trip."

Danielle's smile froze instantly. Then, she stared at me in disbelief as she asked, "What did you just say?"

I paused, then repeated myself. "I said I can't go."

"Are you freaking kidding me? You've waited ten whole years for Wade to propose to you, and you're going to throw it all away over some stupid job?"

She rushed over and pressed a hand to my forehead. "You don't have a fever. Don't tell me you're possessed or something!"

I pulled her hand down and clasped it tightly. "Danielle, listen to me—you'd better not go either."

Danielle froze, then stared at me with confusion. "Why? Just tell me what's going on!"

I bit my lip, unable to say a single word.

After all, how could I explain it?

That Wade had kept our relationship secret for ten years, so his sudden decision to make it public was deeply out of character?

That he had never once mentioned his parents, yet now he wanted to take the entire class to meet them?

That he had never even dared to post a photo of us on Instagram, but suddenly wanted the whole class to witness his proposal?

Each of these things could be explained away on its own. But put them all together, and something about it was downright chilling.

Danielle looked increasingly annoyed. She yanked her hand out of mine and said, "Lucille, don't tell me you've got someone else on the side! Have you forgotten how good Wade has been to you?

"You know what, suit yourself! Wade's a rich heir, for crying out loud. I'm pretty sure he's got plenty of gorgeous women chasing after him."

With that, she stormed out and slammed the door behind her.

I stared blankly out the window, my fingers icy cold.

After thinking it over for a long time, I finally opened the group chat and typed out, "I have plans for Thanksgiving, so I won't be able to make it. Hope you all have fun."

The group chat was instantly flooded with replies.

"What could possibly be more important than a marriage proposal?"

"You're the star of the show! How can you not show up?"

"Did Wade do something to upset you? Whatever it is, just talk it out."

I didn't respond.

The next second, a private message from Wade popped up on my screen.

"What are you throwing a tantrum about now? Haven't you spent the last ten years waiting for the day you could marry me?"

My fingers hovered over the screen for a long time. Finally, I typed the question that had been weighing on my mind.

"You don't even dare to post a photo of me on Instagram, so why are you suddenly letting the whole class witness our proposal?"

Wade's typing bubble kept popping up, and five whole minutes passed before he finally replied, "We've been together for ten years, so it's time we settle down."

My heart gave a sudden lurch.

I had said those exact words to him countless times before with tears streaming down my face, yet he had never once taken them to heart.

So, why the sudden change of heart?