Chapter 1
Inside the most luxurious hotel in Aurissy City, Jake Harvey stood in front of a full-length mirror, adjusting his groom's tuxedo for the hundredth time.
A faint smirk rested on his lips. His eyes were steady and calm, as if nothing in the world could shake him.
Three years earlier, Alice Harmon had been hunted by enemies. Jake had stepped in to protect her, but he was badly hurt when he fell off a cliff. After that, he developed a rare kind of memory loss that came and went without warning.
For the first ninety-nine weddings, everything had fallen apart at the last minute because he claimed he couldn't remember who Alice was.
Today was supposed to be their hundredth wedding.
"Mr. Harvey, all the guests have arrived," his assistant said in a low voice.
Jake gave a small nod. He glanced toward the ballroom, where the most powerful and wealthy people in Aurissy City had already gathered.
"Is Alice ready?" he asked the bridesmaid, his tone gentle.
The bridesmaid hesitated. She looked uneasy. "Ms. Harmon said she needs a little more time."
A quiet sense of pride rose in Jake's chest.
Of course, she needed more time. It was their hundredth wedding. She would want to look perfect.
For three years, no matter how many times he "forgot" her, she had stubbornly started everything over again. She kept arranging new weddings as if nothing could stop her. Her devotion almost felt insane.
"It's fine," he said with a soft smile. "I'll wait."
Ten minutes passed. Then twenty. The guests started whispering among themselves.
Jake kept the same polite smile on his face, but something inside him began to tighten.
Alice was never late. Not once. In all ninety-nine weddings before this, she had always been there at the end of the red carpet, waiting for him with hopeful eyes.
By the thirty-minute mark, unease spread through the room. Jake turned to his assistant. "Go check on her."
The assistant hurried off and came back moments later, pale and shaken. "Mr. Harvey, the dressing room is empty, and her luggage is gone."
Jake's smile froze.
*****
For a split second, Jake's face twisted into something dark and ugly. "What did you say?"
"Ms. Harmon isn't there. I don't know where she went," the assistant said, his voice growing softer with every word.
The impatient urging behind them grew louder. Jake suddenly felt like the air had been sucked out of the room.
This wasn't like Alice. She had always been desperate to marry him. Even if he forgot her a hundred times, she would still try a hundred and one.
"Find her," he said as he turned away. His voice came out slow and tight, each word forced through clenched teeth. "If you don't find her, you're all going to regret it."
The assistant trembled and quickly ran off.
Jake remained alone on the red carpet, staring at the empty doorway. For the first time, something slipped out of his control.
The whispers around him grew louder, but he couldn't hear any of it. There was only one thought in his mind. He had to find Alice.
*****
At the same time, Alice sat in the back of a taxi. Through the rearview mirror, she caught a distant glimpse of Jake's figure as the car pulled away from the hotel. Her eyes were cold and empty, almost lifeless.
For the past ninety-nine times, Jake had always "lost his memory" right before they were about to sign the marriage papers.
He would act like he didn't know her. He would forget that they were about to have a wedding.
"Alice, I promise I won't forget tomorrow," he had told her the night before, holding her close. His voice had been as soft and sweet as ever. "The doctor said the treatment is working this time."
She had believed him. Just like every time before, she had chosen to believe.
She had been so happy. She had planned to tell him the good news that she was pregnant.
But when she passed by his study, she heard voices inside.
"Jake, how long are you going to forget her this time?" Larry asked, his tone teasing.
Alice stopped walking. Her hand tightened around the doorknob.
Jake's voice came next, calm and cold. "Tomorrow, I'll make it look even more natural."
The metal doorknob felt ice-cold in her hand. Her heart skipped a beat.
"It's been three years. Aren't you tired of this yet?" Larry laughed. "That fake kidnapping you set up was perfect. Even the hospital reports looked real.
"But Alice is stupid. She's the daughter of the powerful Harmon family, but you've had her trapped for three years."
"She's not stupid. She's proud," Jake said quietly. "Alice used to be the brightest, freest woman in Aurissy City. Everyone chased after her.
"I just wanted to see her bow her head to me. I wanted her to feel guilty for my injury. I wanted her to give up everything for me."
A soft laugh slipped from his lips. "Isn't it entertaining to watch her happily plan another wedding, only to have it fall apart at the last second? The proud Ms. Harmon is nothing more than a toy in my hands now."
Alice covered her mouth to keep from making a sound.
She looked through the crack in the door. Jake had his back to her. He was casually flipping a ring between his fingers.
It was their engagement ring, the one from his seventeenth proposal.
Every time he "remembered" her and proposed again, he told her it meant a fresh start.
It was never a fresh start. It was a loop, a carefully designed cycle of pain.
"Fiona is coming back next month," Larry said. "What are you going to do then?"
The name hit Alice like a sharp needle.
Fiona was Jake's first love. She had left the country three years ago.
"When Fiona comes back, this game ends," Jake said.