Chapter 4
The wooden tag dangled from Emily's palm.
The hotel lights hit it, and the words "Emily's House" were plain as day.
Katherine rushed over and grabbed the keychain right out of her hand.
"What is all this crap?" she snapped.
Emily shrank back, her shoulders trembling.
"Katherine, the renovation company gave it to me. I didn't even notice," she stammered.
"The renovation company gave you a keychain with your name on it?" Chloe asked coldly.
Emily bit her lip.
"Maybe they misunderstood," she mumbled.
Everyone turned to look at James.
James stood there, tall and straight, his suit crisp and flawless, not even a flicker of discomfort crossed his face.
His greatest skill was this: the messier things got, the more he looked like the innocent victim.
"Olivia," James murmured, his voice dropping low.
"I admit, I messed up with the renovation and made things tough for you."
Katherine let out a sigh of relief.
"See? As long as you two clear the air, it'll be fine," she said.
James went on.
"But you can't say you had nothing to do with how things blew up today."
My mom couldn't hold back anymore. "What did my daughter do wrong?"
"She doesn't trust me," James said.
He looked right at me, eyes red at the corners.
"I've been juggling the wedding, work, and both our families, and now, just because of a few pieces of furniture and a couple of comments, she's dragging me out here to be judged by everyone," he said.
Some guests started to second-guess things.
An older relative in the back sighed.
"Guys get busy, they can't sweat the small stuff."
"That's the secretary's problem, not a reason to cancel the wedding."
James walked up to me and pulled out a velvet box.
Inside was a diamond ring
It was passed down from my grandmother.
Half a year ago, I gave it to him for safekeeping, so I could wear it as a family heirloom on our wedding day.
"Olivia, if your grandma were here, she wouldn't want you to be so stubborn today," James said.
I felt my blood boil.
"Are you really using my grandma to guilt-trip me?" I shot back.
James's eyes were rimmed with red.
"I just don't want you to regret this," he said.
He dropped to one knee.
The whole room erupted in shock.
The handsome groom dropped to one knee, holding out the old ring like he was surrendering all his dignity to me.
"I love you," James said.
He gazed up at me.
"If you're not happy with the new house, we'll redo it," he said.
"If Emily makes you uncomfortable, I'll make sure she never comes near our home again.
"But please, don't give up on our seven years together, not today."
Those two words, seven years, hit me so hard I could barely breathe.
Back when we graduated college, I had a fever of 104°F, and he carried me on his back, running three blocks to get me to the ER.
The night my dad had surgery, he stayed with me all night in the hospital hallway until sunrise.
He wasn't always like this.
But because he was once so good to me, his betrayal hurt like being skinned alive.
My mom covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face. "Olivia."
My dad didn't say a word, just looked at me.
Samuel spoke up, his voice low and serious.
"James knelt down already. The Sinclair family should cut him some slack."
Katherine chimed in right away. "Yeah, girls need to be grateful for their blessings and not push their men away."
Emily stood at the doorway of the lounge and suddenly bowed to me.
"Olivia, I'm sorry," she said.
She was sobbing so hard she could barely catch her breath.
"It's all my fault. Mr. Foster simply trusted me. I'll keep my distance from him from now on," she choked out.
She took off her employee badge and set it on the table.
"I'm quitting," she said.
Everyone was now on her side.
A picture-perfect groom, a secretary owning up to her mistake, and a bride about to break down.
What a flawless performance.
James extended the ring toward me, his eyes pleading.
"Olivia, put it on. Let's try again," he said softly.
I looked down at the ring.
There was a faint chip on the inside of the emerald ring.
This wasn't an old scratch; it hadn't been there before.
Ever since my grandma passed it down to me, I'd checked it over and over. It was always perfect.
"How did the ring get chipped?" I asked.
James looked stunned.
"What?" he asked.
I picked up the ring and held it under the light.
"When I gave you this ring, it was flawless. There wasn't a single chip," I said.
Emily's sobs faltered for a moment.
James answered without hesitation.
"Maybe I accidentally knocked it when I was putting it away."
"Where did you keep it?"
"In the safe."
"Which safe?"
James's face finally changed.
I looked at Emily.
"Or was it in her nightstand?" my voice was icy.
Emily's head snapped up. "Olivia, you can't just throw accusations around like that."
"We'll know if I'm lying or not the moment we check the new house," I shot back.
James stood up and grabbed my hand.
"Do you really have to make a scene at the wedding?" he asked.
"Yes," I replied.
I clasped the ring tightly in my palm.
"Let's go now," I said.
Samuel banged his cane hard against the floor.
"This is ridiculous!" he barked.
My dad finally broke his silence. "Let's go."
My mom wiped away her tears.
"I'm going too," she said.
Katherine was getting anxious.
"Genevieve, are you really going to let us make a spectacle of ourselves in front of all the guests?" she blurted out.
Her face turned icy for the first time.
"The mess is already on the table. Might as well lift the lid and let everyone see for themselves," she said.
The hotel manager just stood aside, not daring to get in our way.
Everyone marched out of the banquet hall together.
James trailed behind me, his voice so low only I could hear him.
"Olivia, my mom's got the key. There's no way you'll get in."
The elevator doors slid open.
Chloe held up her phone, showing a message from the property manager.
"Olivia, the property manager says Emily's fingerprint is saved in the new house's door lock," Chloe said.
James's expression darkened completely under the elevator lights.