Chapter 1: Betrayed

Annalyn’s POV

There it was.

A photo. Framed in gold. Propped neatly beside the grand hotel entrance like an ornament on display.

“Welcome to the Engagement Party of Clarissa and Kristoff.”

My breath caught.

No. It couldn’t be.

But the picture… it was him. Kristoff. Smiling. Holding some woman’s hand like she was royalty. Her dress sparkled like frost, and his lips were pressed to her knuckles.gentle, reverent. Like he used to kiss mine.

The world tilted beneath me.

I didn’t move. Couldn’t. The sign stood just inches from me, blaring truth I wasn’t ready to hear.

Kristoff. Engaged.

To someone else.

I blinked. The cold Kancun air stung my eyes, but it wasn’t the wind making them burn. A low ringing filled my ears as if the city had gone silent just for this moment.

I hadn’t meant to end up here like this.

Not like this.

Just hours ago, I was still on the bus. Shaky, crowded, swaying through the edge of the city. My heart was pounding, sure but with anticipation, not devastation.

It was my birthday. I was smiling. Hopeful.

And I’d clutched Kristoff’s last message like it was gospel.

“Can’t be there, babe. I have got this Big tech summit in Kancun this weekend. Wish I could spend the weekend with you, but this is huge for us. I’ll make it up to you. Promise.”

He promised.

And I believed him.

I always believed him.

The bus driver’s voice had echoed through the cabin “Next stop, Kancun City!” and I’d practically bounced in my seat. My palms were sweaty, and I could hardly sit still. I pulled out my phone, grinning at our wallpaper: Kristoff with frosting on his nose, me laughing into his chest. His hands had been sticky with cake and affection that night.

That was the last birthday we spent together. That night, he’d told me I was the only woman he’d ever want.

He told me to be patient.

So I was.

I planned everything. Bought a ticket. Packed the red coat he loved. Even splurged on a new blouse.. white with little pearl buttons that caught the light. I’d brushed my hair until it shone, spritzed perfume he once said reminded him of peaches and spring rain. I told myself I’d surprise him. That he’d wrap me in his arms and whisper how proud he was of me for coming.

We’d make new memories. Better ones. in a new town.

I remember flagging down a cab outside the station, telling the driver, “Royales Hotel, please.”

He raised an eyebrow at my nervous grin but nodded. “You meeting someone special?” he asked.

I nodded, pressing my fingers together. “My boyfriend. It’s a surprise.”

As we drove, the city sparkled like a dream.. the tall buildings, the polished streets, the glittering skyline that seemed to stretch into the clouds. Every blinking light looked like a wish waiting to come true.

Kristoff always said we’d live in a big city one day, raise our kids in a big house with smart locks and voice-controlled blinds. “A future dripping in luxury,” he’d called it.

And I believed him.

I had every reason to.

I’d stepped out in front of the hotel, head high, nerves buzzing like a thousand fireflies under my skin. I dragged my suitcase over the smooth sidewalk, trying to ignore the sleek Ferraris and Bentleys pulling in one by one.

The Royales Hotel towered above me, all steel and shimmer. It looked like something out of a movie.. one of those black-and-white ones where the women wore gloves and the men tipped their hats.

I stepped into the lobby, practically holding my breath.

Everything glowed. The gold trim along the ceiling. The chandelier dripping with crystals. The faint sound of jazz curled through the air like smoke.

Then I walked up to the reception desk, offered my brightest smile, and said, “Hello.”

The woman barely looked at me. Her eyes flicked over my jeans, my coat. Her lips curled.

“I have no spare change,” she said coldly. “Run along.”

I stared at her, stunned.

“I think you misunderstood,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. “I’m not a beggar. I’m here to ask about the Tech Summit happening this evening. I’d like to see one of the attendees. He’s lodged here?”

She looked at me like I’d just told her I was royalty in disguise. Then she laughed. A full, scornful laugh that echoed through the marble lobby.

“What’s funny?” I asked, my smile twitching.

“There’s no summit,” she said, shaking her head. “Not here, not anywhere in the city. Did you escape an asylum or what?”

My stomach dropped. I glanced down at my phone, like the screen would suddenly save me. “That can’t be right. My boyfriend said he’s attending a tech conference this weekend. He said it’s happening in this hotel. I have his text… look.”

“Well, your boyfriend’s either a liar or he’s got a very different kind of event going on,” she said with a smirk. “You see, we’re hosting a very big engagement party tonight. Very exclusive. You’ll need an invitation or a last name worth printing before you can gain entry.”

I blinked, trying to keep the heat behind my eyes from spilling out.

“There must be a mistake. Could you just check? Please? I’m sure it’s here.”

She sighed dramatically. “I’d kindly ask you to leave before I call security.”

“Wait… you need to…”

She didn’t let me finish. Picked up the phone, mumbled something under her breath.

Moments later, two suited security guards appeared like shadows at my sides.

“Ma’am, we’ll have to ask you to leave,” one of them said.

“Wait… what? I just want to…”

They didn’t shove me. But they didn’t need to.

The way they stood. The way they stared.

I felt like filth on velvet.

Outside again, I stood frozen in the cold. My coat was warm, but it did nothing to numb the ache blooming in my chest.

I reached for my phone. Maybe I’d just call him. Hear his voice. Make sense of…

“Excuse me,” someone said behind me, forcing me to realize I’d been standing in the way. I shuffled to the side and nearly knocked something over.

I reached out instinctively to catch it.

That’s how I saw the portrait of my boyfriend with a beautiful stranger.

Before I could stop myself, I saw a group of sharply dressed guests approaching a different side entrance. Laughing softly. Flashing invitations. Their designer clothes whispered of money and status I could never match.

Something inside me moved.

I tucked my hair behind my ear, steadied my breathing, and slipped in behind them… silent, unnoticed. Like I belonged.

The hallway opened into another part of the venue, lit with soft golden lights and trailing orchids. A gentle string quartet played somewhere in the distance.

Then I saw him.

Kristoff.

Standing tall near the entrance to the ballroom, shaking hands with an older couple, smiling that winning smile he always practiced in the mirror. He looked… different. Older. Polished. Powerful.

Like someone I didn’t know at all.

I felt my phone in my hand before I realized I’d grabbed it. My thumb moved on instinct. Call.

I watched his face contort as he glanced at his screen, then he smiled at a couple walking in, moving to the corner of the door. He picked up on the second ring.

“Hey, babe,” he said smoothly, barely above a whisper. “Can’t talk long… I’m still in the forum. Speakers are dragging on. Total snore fest.”

I stared directly at him in shock, my heart pounding like a war drum.

I swallowed. My voice cracked. “Kristoff,” I said, shaking now. “Look at the door.”