Chapter 1

Everyone in Northfield said Adrian and I were the perfect match.

Then, exactly one month before our wedding, he dropped the bomb: he was marrying her instead. The girl with the congenital heart defect.

When I confronted him, he had the nerve to look helpless.

"If I don't step up, she'll have to marry some rich, disabled guy in the next town over just to survive. You know I can't let that happen, Evelyn."

I just nodded, turned around, and tossed my engagement ring in the trash.

The day before the wedding, Adrian draped an arm over my shoulder, his voice dripping with condescending warmth.

"Come on, Evie, stop pouting. Once I get her settled, I'll file for divorce and we'll have our wedding just like we planned."

I smiled. He had no idea that tomorrow wasn't just his wedding day. It was mine, too.

The very day he decided to marry Lily, I agreed to the match my parents had arranged for me.

As he tried to drag me along to help Lily pick out a wedding dress, I shoved an invitation hard against his chest.

When he read the name on the thick cardstock, his smug smile completely froze.

"Evelyn... what the hell is this? Why is there another groom's name on here?"

"Who else's would it be?"

I stared at him, my face completely blank. I wasn't about to explain myself.

He flipped the invitation over, reading it twice before letting out a harsh scoff.

"What kind of game are you playing, Evelyn?"

"You really went all out for this stunt. Same day as my wedding? And Julian Whitmore?" He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Look, I know you're pissed, but I told you. Once I help Lily out of this mess, I'll divorce her. Is it really that hard for you to just be understanding for once?"

Right on cue, a soft knock interrupted him.

Lily Hart pushed the door open, her eyes rimmed with red.

"Adrian... maybe we should just call it off. It's fine if I have to marry that man... I just... I..."

Seeing her tear-streaked face, Adrian's expression instantly softened into something dangerously close to heartbreak.

He closed the distance between them, gently rubbing her back.

"Hey, don't say that," he murmured, his voice thick with devotion. "I told you I'd take care of you, and I will."

I had zero interest in watching their little soap opera. The invitation was in his hands. I had better things to do today.

I bypassed them entirely and walked straight out the door.

"Evelyn, where are you going?" Adrian called out.

I didn't look back. I could faintly hear Lily's muffled sobs starting up again, followed by Adrian's low, soothing whispers.

I knew he wouldn't chase after me.

And I had already made my peace with letting go.

I took a deep breath and kept walking.

Adrian and I grew up together. We transitioned from childhood friends to lovers so seamlessly that it just felt like a given.

Our families were close. Once we came of age, our parents immediately started planning the wedding.

But Adrian's focus was always on his ambition.

For years, he kept pushing the wedding back, claiming he was too busy at Mercer Hardware Works, too close to a promotion, too stressed.

In the beginning, I supported him unconditionally.

I even put my own future at Carter Textile Mill on hold, pouring my time and resources into paving the way for his success.

Everyone in Northfield envied us. We were the golden couple.

Until Lily showed up.

Lily was an orphan with a congenital heart defect. She had nothing and no one in Northfield.

My parents, seeing a hardworking girl who couldn't afford her medical bills, stepped in and paid for her treatments.

We literally saved her life. And the moment she was well enough, she went straight to work at Mercer Hardware Works.

At first, she and Adrian barely interacted.

Then, Adrian came over to my house one evening, right as Lily was begging my parents for a loan, claiming her father was sick.

Adrian didn't even hesitate. He handed her the cash on the spot.

Not long after, he promoted her to be his executive assistant.

Over time, the dynamic between them shifted into something ugly.

They started having private meetings they conveniently forgot to mention to me. Adrian became fiercely protective of her.

At the company's year-end party, Lily spent the entire night practically glued to Adrian's side, giggling at everything he said.

I finally pulled him aside.

"We're engaged, Adrian. If you keep parading her around like this, people are going to talk. You're ruining her reputation."

Lily, who had followed us, looked up with wide, tear-filled eyes. Her voice trembled perfectly.

"Evelyn, I know you're his fiancée. But we just work closely together, that's all."

A single tear slipped down her cheek. "How could you think so poorly of us?"

Colleague? Anyone with eyes could see exactly what game she was playing.

But Adrian didn't distance himself. Instead, his face darkened as he glared at me.

"Are you out of your mind, Evelyn?"

"Do you have any idea how hard Lily has it? She's new, she just got promoted, and everyone's icing her out."

"I say two nice words to her and you throw a fit?"

He looked me up and down, his eyes filled with resentment.

"If it weren't for the engagement settlement our parents agreed on, do you think I'd even put up with you?"

I stood frozen in the hallway, watching him walk away with Lily right by his side.

That was the exact moment I realized it was over.