Chapter 4

Owen, Amy, Cynthia arrived at the hospital just as Grandma was being taken into the ICU.

In front of everyone in the hallway, Amy pointed at me and snapped, "You may not have much of a background, but you sure know how to scheme! You befriended Cynthia just to go after Joel. Aren't you ashamed of yourself?"

I looked at Cynthia. She was still wearing the Hoover family bracelet.

Joel arrived a little later. Cynthia stood behind him with red-rimmed eyes, as if I were the one who had hurt her.

For once, I thought Joel might finally tell everyone the truth. Instead, he pulled me aside.

"I'll handle it as soon as I can," he said.

That evening, Joel came to see me with divorce papers and a public statement.

The statement said I had known all along that Joel and Cynthia were in love, but I used Grandma's illness to pressure him into marrying me in secret.

It claimed our marriage was only on paper and that we had been living separately for a long time.

It also said I had leaked the proposal photos and pictures of Joel and me together. I had supposedly done it just to get back at Cynthia.

If I signed it, I would be admitting that I was the one who had come between them.

I looked at Joel. "Who proposed to me three years ago? Who knelt beside Grandma's hospital bed and promised to take care of me for the rest of my life?"

Joel was quiet for a moment. "Cynthia didn't do anything wrong."

"And I did?"

He glanced toward the ICU. "Reporters are already waiting downstairs. If you don't sign it, my parents will go talk to your grandma themselves.

"They'll ask if she knew you were forcing me into marriage and did nothing to stop you. She just pulled through. You know what could happen if she gets upset again."

Once again, he was using Grandma to make me step aside for Cynthia.

In the end, I picked up the pen and signed the statement and the divorce papers.

Joel let out a sigh of relief. Before he left, he even tried to hug me.

"Once this is settled, I'll explain everything to my parents."

I stepped back before he could touch me.

Once the waiting period was up, Joel and I went to the courthouse to finalize our divorce. Owen and Amy were waiting outside with Cynthia, a few relatives and friends, and a photographer.

To clear Cynthia's name once and for all, Joel made me read the statement on camera. It said our marriage had only been on paper and that I was the one who refused to let him go.

I read every word exactly as written.

The second I finished, Amy shoved Cynthia's bouquet into my hands. "You're her best friend. Who better to hand her the bouquet and wish her well?"

I had barely received my divorce decree when Joel took Cynthia down the hall to the clerk's office. Less than half an hour later, they walked back out as husband and wife.

Amy asked me to take their first photo as newlyweds.

In the frame, Cynthia leaned against Joel, the Hoover family bracelet on her wrist and their marriage certificate in her hand.

Behind me, their family and friends kept gushing about how Joel and Cynthia had finally ended up together.

And there I was, the woman who had actually been his wife for the past three years. I had just gone on camera and admitted that I was the other woman.

After I took the picture, I handed the phone back. "Congratulations."

As usual, Joel told me, "Go back to your place and wait for me. I'll come find you after the celebration."

I didn't tell him I'd already moved out of the temporary place I'd been staying. My luggage was already on its way to the new city. I'd shipped it the day before.

I headed straight for the airport.

That evening, their wedding photos were all over their family and friends' feeds.

Cynthia captioned hers, "Three years late, but we finally made it official."

For the first time, Joel left a public comment of his own. "You're the only one I want for the rest of my life."

By then, my plane had already taken off.