Chapter 2

When I pushed open the front door of Hillside Estate, the living room was a wreck. Emily was wearing the reception gown with gold floral embroidery my mother had left me.

She sat on our bed, eagerly unwrapping gifts from the guests. The emerald bracelet my grandmother had left me hung loose around her wrist.

Alex crouched beside the bed with a bandage in hand. "I told you to change into flats during the toasts. You had to prove you could handle those heels, and now you've rubbed your skin raw, haven't you?"

There was a tender note in his voice. He carefully stuck the bandage over Emily's heel. There was barely a red mark there.

At the sound of the door, Alex looked back. He saw me barefoot in the doorway. His gaze paused on the mud and blood coating my soles, and his brow furrowed.

He turned and pulled out the first-aid kit, then handed it to me. "Finally decided to come back? Treat yourself."

He walked to the bar, poured a glass of warm water, and held it out to me. "You were being selfish today. Your elders spent the whole reception looking for you.

"Even if you got lost, you should've called for help sooner. Disappearing like that only made everyone laugh at you."

I looked at the water but didn't take it. Blood still seeped from my soles. Every step left a red print on the light-colored carpet.

Yet in his eyes, the tiny mark on Emily's heel deserved his attention. My bleeding feet, meanwhile, were mine to bandage.

Emily touched the bracelet and lowered her head. "Olivia, I'm sorry. I accidentally stained my bridesmaid dress on the way down the mountain. Alex said you hadn't worn this reception dress, so he lent it to me in an emergency."

She lowered her head again, looking utterly innocent. "Alex gave me the bracelet, too. He said the emerald would help with my sleep. If it bothers you, I'll take it off right now."

I stared at her. "Take off the dress. Give me the bracelet."

Emily bit her lip and reached for the bracelet. When it caught at her knuckles, she gave a little cry. "Alex, it hurts."

Alex immediately crossed over and held her hand in place. "Don't yank it. You could injure your hand."

He went to the bathroom, got a bottle of body oil, rubbed it on her wrist, and eased the bracelet lower inch by inch. "Olivia, wait a minute. Emily's afraid of pain."

I stood there while blood from my feet seeped into the carpet. He kept his movements gentle, so he wouldn't hurt Emily.

As the bracelet slid over her fingertips, Emily's hand jerked. It hit the marble floor and broke into three pieces.

The room fell silent. Alex immediately seized Emily's hand and inspected it over and over. "Did any shards cut you?"

Only after confirming Emily was unharmed did he look up at me. "If it's cracked, it's cracked. I'll send someone to an auction house tomorrow and get you one with better color and clarity."

His tone was flat, as if he were discussing a shattered drinking glass. I crouched and wiped the oil off the bracelet shards with my sleeve.

"My mother left this to me," I said, my voice hoarse.

Alex paused briefly but still frowned. "Emily didn't do it on purpose. Don't force her to apologize today."

As I wiped the shards for the third time, I stopped. I realized that in Alex's world, the bride could be replaced, the reception dress could be replaced, and my mother's only keepsake could be replaced too.

"Don't buy another one." I stood and swept the fragments into the trash. If everything could be replaced, then replacing him would be no different.