Chapter 2
Tony, the wedding planner, called out, "Mr. Jackson, the bride needs you."
Zachary glanced at me. "I'll go check it out."
After he left, I stood alone in the lounge, my mind racing.
If there was something between Zachary and Yvonne, why would Yvonne marry someone else?
Wait, who was Yvonne's groom again?
Suddenly, it hit me—I hadn't seen Yvonne's groom at all.
Yvonne had only told me that her groom was someone she met at work, a great guy named Kevin.
But today, I'd been in the makeup room with Yvonne the whole time and hadn't seen the groom at all.
I decided to find Kevin.
I stepped out of the men's lounge and stopped Tony in the hallway.
"Where's the groom?" I asked.
"The groom?" Tony paused. "You mean Mr. Jackson?"
My heart thudded hard. "Mr. Jackson?"
"Yeah, Mr. Zachary Jackson. He's the groom today."
The world seemed to freeze in that moment.
I could literally hear my heart shatter.
Zachary was Kevin.
My fiancé was Yvonne's groom.
No wonder Yvonne said Zachary stared at her intensely.
No wonder she had the same lingerie as mine.
No wonder Zachary reacted so strangely earlier.
I leaned against the wall, my legs feeling like jelly.
"Are you alright, miss?" Tony asked, his face full of concern.
"I'm fine," I said, trying to steady myself. "Um... how long have Mr. Jackson and the bride known each other?"
"I heard it's been about two years," Tony said, sounding a bit envious. "They're really in love. Mr. Jackson has been planning this wedding for ages."
I'd been with Zachary for three years, which meant he'd met Yvonne during our first year together.
And Yvonne was my best friend, and we'd known each other for ten years.
What did this all mean?
It meant Zachary met Yvonne through me, then cheated on me with her for two years behind my back, and now he was going to marry her.
And I was like an idiot—clueless about the truth, and even playing the bridesmaid for them.
I thought back to earlier in the dressing room, when Yvonne seemed like she wanted to say something but held back.
Was she trying to tell me the truth?
Or was she just as clueless, not knowing Zachary already had a fiancée?
No, she definitely knew.
I'd constantly talked about Zachary to her and even shown her our photos together.
There was no way she didn't know.
So this was a betrayal they'd been plotting from the very beginning.
My best friend and my fiancé had teamed up to betray me for two whole years.
Tears blurred my vision.
I needed to calm down and think about what to do.
The wedding was about to start. What should I do?
Should I storm in and expose them?
Or should I just slip away quietly and pretend I didn't know a thing?
No, I couldn't let this slide.
They betrayed me, and they had to pay the price.
I wiped away my tears and fixed my makeup.
If they wanted to put on an act, then I'd play along—all the way to the end.
I was going to turn this wedding into a nightmare they'd never escape.
When I got back to the makeup room, Yvonne was already in her wedding dress.
The long white train flowed behind her, and she did look stunning.
If I didn't know the truth, I might have been happy for her.
"Winona, where did you go?" Yvonne asked, beaming.
"Just went to the restroom," I replied with a smile. "Yvonne, you look amazing today."
"Thanks," she let out a breath, seemingly relieved. "I was worried you might be mad at me."
"Mad? Why would I be mad?" I asked, feigning innocence.
"It's about the underwear earlier. You looked kind of off," she said, a little hesitant.
I walked over and helped fix her veil. "I just thought it was a weird coincidence. But now that I think about it, maybe it really was a coincidence."
"Exactly." Yvonne nodded. "I think it's a coincidence too."
We locked eyes in the mirror, and I caught that guilty flicker in hers.
She was lying.
"Yvonne," I said softly, "we've been friends for so many years. Do you believe in our friendship?"
"Of course," she answered without hesitation.
"So, would you mind telling me how you and Kevin met? I want to hear your love story," I said, keeping my tone calm.
Yvonne noticeably tensed up. "Um... we met at work."
"What work?" I pressed.
"It was a project, and we were partners," she replied, her voice a little shaky.
"Which company was the project for?" I continued, not letting it go.
Yvonne grew more and more nervous. "Winona, why are you suddenly asking all these questions?"
"Because I care about you," I said, still fixing her veil. "I want to make sure he truly loves you. You're my best friend, and I don't want to see you get hurt."
Yvonne was silent for a long time before saying, "Winona, some things aren't that simple."
"How?"
"I... I don't know how to explain it to you."
"Then let's start from the beginning. When did you two start dating?"
Yvonne took a deep breath. "Two years ago."
"When exactly two years ago?"
"In the summer."
I remembered that summer two years ago—I had taken Zachary to Yvonne's birthday party.
That was the first time they met.
"Was it at your birthday party?" I asked, keeping my voice steady.
Yvonne nodded, tears gathering in her eyes.
"So, you two met at your birthday party, and then fell for each other at first sight?"
"Winona, I..."
"Yvonne," I cut her off, "can you tell me my boyfriend's name?"
She froze.
"You know it—I've brought him up in front of you more times than I can count," I said, my voice icy.
Yvonne started crying. "Winona, I didn't want things to turn out like this."
"Oh? You didn't want what, exactly? Didn't want to hook up with my boyfriend? Or didn't want to make me your bridesmaid while you married him?" I shot back, my words dripping with sarcasm.
"You know everything?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.