Chapter 3

I nodded in response and saw Jayden's parents to the door. Just as it clicked shut behind them, I heard their voices echoing down the stairwell—Jayden's father scolding Jayden's mother.

"What were you thinking just now? Sure, our family's doing better these days, but we're not at the top yet. We still need her family's help to rise in the business world. If we break things off now, what does that make us look like?"

Jayden's mother seemed to realize something and kept repeating, "You're right, you're right."

I gave a soft, mirthless laugh in my heart. Just then, my father called.

"Leah, I've found you a potential fiancé. The two of you should meet, get to know each other a bit. Come home tonight for dinner."

I said yes without hesitation and threw on something simple.

When I got home, though, I was so shocked I nearly dropped my purse.

"Nick? What are you doing here?!"

Nick Parker was sitting on the living room couch, wearing a well-cut suit, posture straight and composed. When he saw the surprise on my face, he stood up, raising an eyebrow slightly, a trace of amusement playing at his lips.

"What, am I not good enough for you?"

I stared at the Parker heir, frozen for a long moment.

It was true that our families had a number of business ties, but Nick had never gotten along with Jayden. Not even a little.

He and I had studied abroad together, and we were friends, in a way. But when I came back and officially started dating Jayden, Nick's attitude toward him turned openly hostile. He picked fights, made digs, said we weren't even from the same world.

At first, I tried to smooth things over. Tried to be polite. But the more I tried, the more aggressively he targeted Jayden. In the end, I started to lose patience with him, too.

And now, here he was, not only willing to marry me, but willing to take Jayden's place—even after the wedding date had already been set. It would be a proper family alliance.

It was unbelievable.

In my memory, Nick had always thought I was too sentimental. Too easily fooled.

I couldn't help laughing softly, more in resignation than anything, nodding my head. "Good enough, for sure. But weren't you the one who…"

'Didn't you hate me the most?' were the words I wanted to say, but didn't.

He clearly caught my drift and looked a little awkward.

"I—I never really hated you. You were just always chasing after Jayden. I mean, I'm willing to marry you now, aren't I? Who else would want to deal with that mess you've got?"

"You're… willing to marry me?" I repeated, my voice distant, like it didn't quite belong to me.

My mother, standing to the side, gave a heavy sigh and scolded me with thinly veiled exasperation.

"Leah, can't you see? Nick's always liked you. Always. He just told me, all those times he clashed with Jayden—it was because he could tell Jayden was just using you. He wanted to stand up for you!"

Nick looked even more uncomfortable. He cleared his throat. "You just never got it. That guy was only after your money, and you couldn't see it. Then you stopped talking to me altogether. What kind of friend does that?"

"I was wrong," I said quickly, feeling a pang of guilt. "Jayden fooled me. I didn't see it. I'm sorry, Nick."

He brushed it off with a wave, his tone unusually calm. "Forget it. I'm marrying you anyway."

With Nick and his family's full support, our engagement moved ahead swiftly. The details were finalized almost overnight.

News spread fast. Everyone in the city with any kind of status heard about it. They called it a perfect match—two strong families, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, a textbook union.

Jayden's parents came to find me the very next day.

They looked haggard, hollow-eyed, standing at my door with none of the arrogance they'd shown before. The moment I opened the door, they leaned in urgently.

Jayden's mother spoke first, her voice timid. "Leah… is it true? They're saying you're marrying the Parker heir. What's going on? Weren't you supposed to marry Jayden?"