Chapter 1

After dropping hints about marriage to Matthew Quinn for the ninth time, he finally gave in.

I quickly picked out the wedding invites and the venue.

At the class reunion that night, Matthew and the school belle, Grace Lynn, lost a game and were coaxed into revealing their true feelings.

Grace gave Matthew a shy glance and said she was still single.

Matthew smiled and replied, "Me too."

The next second, my phone buzzed with a message from Matthew.

He sent: [Rachel, let's put off our wedding for a few more years.]

I saw the way he was looking at Grace, then looked down and replied to the custom invitation vendor.

Me: [Please change the groom's name.]

Matthew had no idea that by next week, I had to be married, whether the groom was a total stranger.

*****

My best friend, Emily Chandler, was more pissed than I was. "What the hell is Matthew thinking? You two are getting married next week, and he still wants to hide your relationship from your classmates?"

My throat felt tight as I said, "Emily, let it go."

Emily gave me a look like she couldn't believe I was being so passive.

Not far away, our classmates started making a scene, egging them on.

"Matthew's been single for so many years. Was he waiting for our Grace all this time? Back then, everyone thought you two would end up together. Who knew..."

Matthew and Grace were standing really close.

It was like watching a rom-com reunion after years apart.

If only he weren't my boyfriend...

Matthew seemed to sense something and turned to glance at me.

He jerked his hand away from Grace, like he had touched something hot.

I didn't bother looking at him anymore. Instead, I started serving Emily some food.

The class president, Mike Wilde, suddenly turned to me with a grin.

"Rachel, I remember back in the day, everyone thought you and Matthew were a couple. But you've been off the market for ages now, right?" he asked.

I smiled. "Yeah."

My phone started buzzing like crazy.

I didn't have to check; I knew it was Matthew.

Grace was sitting right next to him, and he was probably freaking out that I'd spill everything right there.

I left my phone alone and kept talking. "I'm getting married in a week."

Matthew immediately stiffened.

All these years, I kept hinting to Matthew about marriage, again and again.

It wasn't until the ninth time that he finally gave in.

But after one class reunion, he suddenly changed his mind again.

Mike was the first to chime in. "When did this happen? Why haven't you sent any invites to us old classmates yet? Come on, Rachel, that's not cool."

I gave a crooked smile. "The invitations aren't printed yet. Give me a couple of days, and you'll get yours."

Mike was about to ask for more details.

Matthew finally couldn't hold back anymore.

"Mike, Rachel's joking around. She's been single for years; how could she possibly be getting married in a week?" he said.

Matthew shot me a pointed look.

I knew exactly what he meant; he was warning me.

I picked up my glass of orange juice and took a sip.

A sharp, bitter taste filled my mouth; maybe the juice had gone bad.

Emily snorted, shooting back with a sneer. "Rachel doesn't lie. If she says she's getting married in a week, that's exactly what's happening. Not like some people who claim they're single, who knows how many they've got on the side."

She shot Matthew a glare sharp enough to cut right through him.

The room went dead silent.

Matthew didn't say a word, finishing his drink in one go.

Grace leaned in and whispered something to him, and he broke into a smile right away.

Everyone could see the little spark between them.

Someone joked, "Mr. Quinn, you used to love sneaking off to chat with Grace back in the day. Still whispering secrets with her now? What are you two hiding from the rest of us?"

Grace's ears flushed crimson as she turned sideways, trying to hide behind Matthew's coat.

Matthew pulled her protectively behind him, a half-smile on his lips, half denying, half admitting it.

"Don't tease her, guys. Grace is really shy," he said.

The whole room burst out laughing.

For a moment, it felt like I was back in high school.

Back then, the center of everyone's attention was Matthew and Grace.

Seven years later, it was still them.

As for me, I was always overlooked, always in the background.

I drained the orange juice, the sourness going straight to my heart.

It almost brought tears to my eyes.

Right after graduation, Grace left the country.

It was also that summer when Matthew and I started dating.

At every class reunion, Matthew never sat next to me. Whenever he had to talk to me, he'd always call me politely as if we were not familiar at all.

I had confronted him about why he never wanted to go public with us.

He said he didn't want the drama, didn't want our classmates gossiping, and always had some excuse or another.

Every year, our classmates would tease Matthew for staying single, saying he was keeping himself pure for Grace.

Matthew always laughed it off, never bothering to explain.

I always thought he didn't want any trouble.

But in the end, he was terrified Grace would ever find out about us.

To him, I was never the girl he'd make official.

I unlocked my phone and saw a flood of messages from Matthew, at least a dozen.

He was ordering me not to say anything in front of everyone.

Matthew started off with calm instructions, but by the end, he was practically snapping at me.

Reading them, that sour ache in my chest hit me all over again, like the orange juice.

If I had known it would leave such a bitter aftertaste, I never would've touched it.

With practiced ease, I scrolled past all of Matthew's messages and tapped into my mom's chat to reassure her. [Mom, don't worry. I promise I'll be married before Dad's surgery.]