Chapter 1

Jocelyn Stanton's POV

Calvin Graham casually draped a thin blanket over me, then cocked a brow at everyone else. "Alright, you've had your fun. Everybody out. Don't get in the way of Josie and me enjoying our wedding night."

I let out a bitter laugh and looked up at him. "Let's break up."

His parents had always thought I was some nobody from a poor family and beneath them. They'd announced that they needed three years to "evaluate" me before they'd agree to our marriage.

For those three years, Calvin had defended me each time his family made things hard for me. He'd held me in his arms and consoled me more times than I could count.

"Josie, nobody gets to bully you as long as I'm here."

If not for this cruel switch on our wedding night, and if I hadn't heard him toss out, oh-so-casually, that he was going to marry Mandy Beech when he knew I'd dreamed about it for years… I might still be fooling myself into believing Calvin's love was real.

Mandy hooked an arm around Calvin's neck, looking like she'd seen it all. "Look at your sweetheart, threatening to break up with you again. Last time she tried to force you into marrying her, she pulled the same stunt.

"What's she after this time? A car, a house, or shares in your company? Honestly, I feel bad for you. Chicks from poor families are the best at milking a guy dry."

Calvin hesitated, glanced at me, then pulled back the hand he'd been about to reach out with.

My so-called best friend, Christine Johnson, stared at me with open contempt and rolled her eyes. "You sure were enjoying yourself when Chester was pistoning into you, weren't you? What are you acting all high and mighty for now?

"Do you really have to kill the mood on such a fun night? You've spent the past six years putting up with this. How come you suddenly can't take a joke anymore?"

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms.

She was right. They'd been playing this sick game for six long years.

When I first started dating Calvin, I hadn't even known he had a twin brother. On our very first date, Mandy secretly got Chester to meet me in Calvin's place.

When Chester kissed me, Mandy and Christine had jumped out from the corner with a camera, laughing so hard they had tears in their eyes.

"God, Jocelyn. You're so dumb it's painful to watch. You can't even recognize your own boyfriend?"

"Cal's gonna lose it when he finds out your first kiss went to his brother."

I'd bawled my eyes out, and Calvin had slapped himself over and over. He'd sworn nothing like that would ever happen again.

But countless pranks had followed that one.

Mandy had Chester pretend to be an injured Calvin and tricked me into handing over a whole year's tuition, almost getting me expelled.

When Mom was critically ill and wanted to see Calvin one last time, Mandy had deliberately lured him away and made Chester show up instead.

Mom had lain there on her deathbed, hanging on by a thread as she'd clutched Chester's hand and begged him to take care of me.

All she'd gotten was Christine's merciless mockery. "You need to get your eyes checked, Mrs. Stanton. This is Chester, not Cal! Cal's at a theme park with Mandy right now."

That prank had pushed Mom over the edge and left her with regrets she'd carried to the grave. Right up until the end, she'd been worried about me. Would I be mistreated? Would I ever be happy?

Calvin hadn't shown up until after Mom had been buried. He'd knelt in front of her grave and sworn he would cut Mandy out of his life, that he'd spend the rest of his life treating me well.

Yet the same man who'd promised to protect me had forgotten his vow almost instantly and instead hurt me the most.

The truth was, he'd never really cut ties with Mandy at all. Every promise he'd made had only been meant to placate me.

I slowly looked around at everyone in the room and said, loud and clear, "That's right. I'm done playing your game. Calvin, we're over."