All Chapters of The Night Before My sisters Wedding : Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Andrea's PoV:The hospital lobby smelled like antiseptic and fresh lilies, the kind of sterile sweetness that always made my stomach turn. I’d driven here on autopilot after Victor stormed out this morning, my hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles ached. The envelope from Boston General had felt like a live wire in my purse the entire way. I kept telling myself it was probably nothing, just some normal routine results or maybe a minor vitamin deficiency. Victor and I were supposed to be starting our life together, creating heirs and a noisy house full of little Langfords with his blue eyes and my dark hair. That was the dream he’d whispered to me during late-night talks, the one that had made me fight so hard to become Mrs. Victor Langford.I signed in at the fertility wing, my name feeling foreign on the clipboard: *Andrea Langford*. Still new enough to send a thrill through me… until the nurse led me into Dr. Patel’s office.She was waiting behind her desk, fi

Adelaide's POV:The city lights blurred past the passenger window in streaks of gold and red as Jax’s truck hummed along the highway. I sat in the front seat, my hand resting on my thigh where the new ring caught every passing glow, sending little sparks of joy through me. Engaged. Me—Adélaïde Hale, the shadow twin, the one who always watched from the sidelines—engaged to a man who’d chosen me first. The rooftop proposal still felt like a dream I hadn’t woken from: roses, blindfold, Jax on one knee with that steady hazel gaze that made my knees weak. Two weeks until the wedding. Two weeks until I finally had something that was mine.I glanced over at Andrea in the driver’s seat of her sleek SUV—we’d switched cars after dress shopping because mine was acting up again. She’d been quiet the whole ride, fingers tapping the wheel in time to the soft radio hum, but her eyes were distant, lost somewhere beyond the windshield. Every time I’d chatter about veil options or seating charts,

Andrea's PoV:The car door slammed shut behind us, and the sudden quiet inside the sleek black SUV felt heavier than the argument we’d just left behind. Victor’s hands gripped the wheel so tightly his knuckles were white. He didn’t look at me. He just started the engine and pulled away from the Hale estate, the tires crunching over gravel like they were grinding down everything we’d built.I waited until the estate gates disappeared in the rearview mirror before I spoke. My voice came out smaller than I wanted. “Victor… why did you snap at me like that? In front of Addie? Why do you care so much about what my sister does with her life? What is *wrong* with you tonight?”He didn’t answer right away. The city lights streaked across his face as we merged onto the highway, turning his sharp profile into something almost unrecognizable. When he finally spoke, his tone was cold, controlled, but laced with something raw underneath.“You’re what’s wrong with me, Andrea.” The words landed

Adelaide's POV:The music at The Loft pulsed through my veins like a second heartbeat. I’d shown up still in the same dress from dinner, eyes red from crying in the car on the way over, but the second Jenner spotted me she pulled me straight into the middle of our old college crew. There were half a dozen of them — faces I hadn’t seen in years — laughing too loud, drinks already in hand. Someone shoved a shot glass into mine before I could even say hello.“To new beginnings!” someone yelled. I didn’t even know who.I threw it back. Then another. Then another.I wanted to forget everything. Especially, mom’s threat that Dad would cut me off. That because I chose to marry someone different from their idea of who they think I should marry, I didn't deserve to be called a “Hale”.The way my own happiness always seemed to threaten the precious Hale name made me sick and regret, that I was born into such a household.Every shot burned away another layer of it until the music felt louder,

Andrea's PoV:I paced the length of the master bedroom, phone clutched so tightly my knuckles ached. I've been calling Adelaide what feels like forever and she still isn't picking any, which somehow made my blood boil so much I might explode.The scandal was everywhere. Every gossip site, every trending hashtag, every “concerned” friend who had texted me screenshots with little crying-face emojis. “Adélaïde Hale Kisses Billionaire Heir Tyler Harrington in Steamy Truth-or-Dare Video — While Engaged.”The blurry photo of my sister locked in a kiss with Tyler was burned into my brain. I kept refreshing the page like it might change if I stared hard enough.How had it come to this? One night out and my twin had managed to blow up her entire life in high definition.Addie, why are you always creating problems? Why can't you just lie low and live for just once in your life? Is it so hard to live without always being a mess? Now Dad will be 10 times mad right now. And what makes me even