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All Chapters of Secret Boyfriend Suddenly Plans a Public Proposal: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

I was secretly dating Wade Sullivan for ten years.Just how extreme was he about keeping our relationship a secret?One Valentine's Day, I secretly took a photo of us together. I hadn't even had the chance to post it on Instagram when he found out. He immediately flew into a rage and smashed my phone's camera lens with a hammer right then and there.Later, with my parents constantly pressuring me to get married, I brought up meeting Wade's parents three times.The first time, he said, "After graduation."The second time, he said, "Once my career is stable."The third time, he said, "Once I've saved enough money to buy a house."Last year, I finally couldn't take it anymore, so I broke up with him.Wade would rather stand outside in 15-degree-Fahrenheit weather all night trying to win me back than agree to let me meet his parents.And yet, someone as insanely low-key as him actually went and announced our relationship out of the blue in the class group chat.The group chat had

Chapter 2

I didn't sleep a wink all night.Early the next morning, I went to the office and submitted my application for an overseas assignment to Terraton.My manager, Benny Ramsey, glanced up at me while reviewing the paperwork."Wade called me last night."My fingers froze.Mr. Ramsey shot me an amused look. "Well, well, who would've thought you two had that kind of relationship? He said he was planning to propose to you on Thanksgiving and had even invited your old classmates to witness it. Then, he asked me to turn down your overseas assignment application."My throat tightened. "What did you tell him?""I told him it was a company decision and that I couldn't interfere with it personally. He didn't sound too happy when he hung up."Mr. Ramsey finished signing the paperwork, then looked at me with undisguised curiosity."Didn't you turn down the overseas assignment before? Why the sudden change of heart? What's going on? Trouble in paradise with Wade?"I opened my mouth, but I cou

Chapter 3

Just as the car pulled up at the airport, my father, Arnold Combe, called."Are you coming home for Thanksgiving?"I was silent for a long moment before answering, "I can't. I'm being sent to Terraton for a week."Dad paused, then asked, "What about Wade? Is he still refusing to take you home to meet his parents?""We broke up."A deafening crash sounded from the other end of the line. Dad was so furious that he had smashed an ashtray."Good riddance! What's the point of keeping a man who's never even had the guts to make your relationship public?"My mother, Trisha Novak, snatched the phone from him."It's just a breakup, sweetheart. Don't be sad. Plenty of people get married and divorced more than once. If you meet someone suitable, give it a try. But if you don't, that's fine too. Your father and I will always have your back."My eyes stung with tears as I murmured a quiet acknowledgment before hanging up.Wade posted several photos of the villa in the group chat.The spr

Chapter 4

"Can anyone get in contact with Wade?""What about his parents? Where are they?""Crap! There's no signal. How the hell are we supposed to call the police?"The class group chat was filling up with messages at lightning speed.My fingers trembled uncontrollably.Alan sent more than a dozen messages in rapid succession."It's over! I'm finally done for!"After reading through the messages one by one, I finally pieced together what had happened that night.When the tour bus arrived at the villa, Wade was standing at the entrance to greet everyone warmly. Beside him stood Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan, dressed to the nines.His father, Javier Sullivan, wore a tuxedo. With a broad, welcoming smile, he ushered everyone inside for dinner.His mother, Angelica Navarro, poured each guest a glass of wine."This is vintage wine that's been aged for a long time. It's wonderfully smooth, so make sure you drink every drop of it."Alan eagerly took his first sip. But a moment later, he frowned.

Chapter 5

After informing Mr. Ramsey, I caught a flight that very night to Wade's hometown.I didn't sleep a wink on the plane, for all I could hear in my mind was Danielle's sobbing.Alan had lost 200 thousand dollars. Samantha, 150 thousand dollars. Katie, 88 thousand dollars. Dana, 35 thousand dollars.And Danielle? Not only had she lost the 50 thousand dollars she'd saved for a down payment, but she also owed another 50 thousand dollars in online loans.I closed my eyes, remembering how Danielle had lost both her parents at a young age and spent more than a decade struggling to make it on her own.She had once told me that her biggest dream was to own a home before turning 30 years old.She had scrimped and saved until she'd accumulated 50 thousand dollars. And we had even agreed that I would accompany her to put down the deposit after Thanksgiving.But now, it was all gone.When the plane landed, Officer Roger Byrd picked me up in a police car and asked me to hand over every chat re

Chapter 6

By the time the police car arrived at Merry Mountain Villa, it was already afternoon.From a distance, I spotted Danielle, Samantha, and Katie sitting by the roadside near the villa's back gate.Katie was trembling uncontrollably, while Samantha sat silently hugging her knees.Danielle kept repeating the same thing over and over: "It's over. My life is completely ruined."Dana was crouched in a corner, repeatedly slapping herself across the face. She had lied to her parents in order to gamble with the money they had spent their entire lives saving for retirement. And now, she couldn't bear to face them.I walked over and reached out to help Danielle up. She lifted her head and looked at me, her eyes so swollen she could barely open them.Without saying anything, she grabbed my hand and held on with all her strength. Her nails dug into my flesh, but I didn't pull away. Instead, I squeezed her hand tightly in return.Alan sat alone in the poker room, with an online loan page open

Chapter 7

The police began questioning everyone at the scene.Danielle sat in a corner, her face frighteningly pale. Alan had pulled his cap low over his head and curled in on himself, while Samantha still wore a hospital wristband.Katie's mother, Sarah Sawyer, had rushed over too. She clutched Katie's hand, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed uncontrollably.The officers pieced together the events in chronological order.Wade made our relationship public, invited the entire class, promised free meals and accommodation, and arranged a tour bus to pick everyone up.Once everyone arrived, he cut off their phone signals, suggested a few rounds after dinner, raised the stakes, lent them money, and pushed them toward online loans.Officer Byrd looked visibly exasperated."There were red flags at almost every stage. How did not a single one of you notice anything was wrong? On the night of the incident, Wade left through the back door of the poker room and got into a vehicle with his p

Chapter 8

I hesitated for a few seconds, then nodded.Officer Byrd led me aside and played a video on his laptop.In the footage, an officer asked Wade why he hadn't tried to run."I don't want to hide anymore," Wade replied.The officer continued, "Did you know your parents had spiked the wine?"Wade nodded."Did you know Lucille was on that list?"Wade nodded again."She was your girlfriend for ten years. How could you bring yourself to scam her? From what we've learned, when you were working part-time in college, you accidentally scraped an Audi A9."And it was Lucille who braved the bitter cold selling things at a street stall to save up enough money to pay off the damages for you."Wade fell silent for a long time.For several seconds, the interrogation room was completely quiet.Suddenly, Wade lifted his head. His eyes were bloodshot as he snapped, "What choice did I have? If I didn't scam Lucille, I'd be dead! I learned to shuffle cards when I was seven years old. By ten years

Chapter 9

The case proceeded to criminal prosecution.Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan were arrested at the border, and Wade was charged with helping orchestrate the scam and participating in the fraud.Alan's 200-thousand-dollar debt soon brought collection agencies knocking on his door. He changed his phone number three times, but the collectors still managed to track him down.One night, he called me after midnight. Speaking in a hushed voice, he told me that debt collectors had just left his building after spray-painting the words "Pay up" in red on the wall.The next morning, his father, Hugh Burk, saw the graffiti as he was leaving home. His blood pressure spiked, and he was rushed to the hospital."Lucille, I might have to sell my apartment," Alan said.Mr. Burk had left him that apartment. He had spent 20 years working in construction, saving every penny he earned to afford it.Samantha's photos were posted in the class group chat.She reported it to the police, who told her to preserve the

Chapter 10

After I had finally pulled myself together, I moved to another city for a new job.The new company was small. My colleagues were polite to one another, but everyone kept a certain distance.I liked it that way.One evening after work, my usually aloof supervisor, Wanda Medina, suddenly stopped me."There's a high-end investment reception tonight," she said. "Big names from the financial world will be there. There'll be free dinner, and you'll get to meet lots of important people."She asked if I wanted to go with her.I asked just four questions."Who's the organizer? Can the guest list be made public? Can I travel to and from the venue independently? Are the drinks sealed and self-serve?"Ms. Medina paused, then replied with a smile, "You'll miss out on a lot of opportunities if you think like that."I smiled back. "Some opportunities are better left alone."She had no answers to my questions, so I declined the invitation on the spot.At 10:00 pm, I had just finished shower

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