Chapter 1

The second Emily White, my fiancé Alex Carter's childhood best friend, walked into the engagement ceremony in her white dress, I knew she was nothing but trouble.

She sauntered over to me with a sickeningly sweet smile and a cloying tone. "Hey, Julia. Look at your dress. I thought the waist was way too big on me, so Alex told me, 'Give it to Julia.' Wow, it fits perfectly."

Her words sounded casual, yet they cut deep, sharp and venomous.

I left the engagement party the second it ended, packing my bags and walking out without a single backward glance. I couldn't stand to stay there one second longer.

Later, Alex apologized softly and spent three whole months trying to win me back. To make up for hurting me, he even scored tickets to my favorite singer Jason Lane's concert and planned a pre-wedding trip for us.

One minute before the train pulled in, he suddenly sent me a message: [Guess what surprise I've got for you? Get it right, and you'll get a reward.]

I was all excited, firing off guess after guess.

But when the crowd at the exit finally cleared, my smile froze on my face. There was Alex, standing side by side with Emily. Turned out, his so-called surprise was a carefully planned trio trip.

*****

I let out a bitter, helpless laugh.

Before I could get a word out to question them, Alex explained first, "Julia, Emily came here specifically to apologize to you. She's been going through a lot lately, so we thought this trip would help her clear her head."

Emily kept her gaze lowered, putting on a timid act. "Julia, I'm so sorry. Raya told Alex to take me out to get some fresh air. I never meant to crash your trip with Alex."

Raya Carter was Alex's mom, and she'd never been satisfied with me to begin with.

Watching Emily put on her usual sickly sweet act made my stomach churn. As a woman, I could easily see through every last one of her calculating little expressions.

But when I looked up, Alex was frowning at me, as if he expected me to go along with it. Typical. Guys always fell for this kind of act.

I swallowed my anger and forced a smile. "Sure, the more, the merrier."

But inside, I was laughing coldly. Alex had already told me he was planning to propose at Jason Lane's concert, with Jason himself as our witness. One more person tagging along wouldn't change a thing. Maybe it's time someone got a reality check.

At that moment, I had no idea that the showdown I thought would finally put them in their place would end up being the wake-up call I needed.

*****

I'd barely settled into my seat on the train to Brightion when I heard a soft cough from behind me.

Alex's voice followed right after. "Julia, Emily's got bad motion sickness and still feels queasy. Can you swap seats with her?" Before I could answer, he'd already sat Emily down in my spot.

Emily clutched her chest, playing weak. "Thanks, Julia. Alex always says you're the best woman in the world. Now I see why."

The malice in her eyes was obvious, and I wasn't about to let her get away with it. I was about to call her out when I saw Alex reach into his pocket and pull out a peppermint candy.

That was the candy I'd specially stocked for him. Whenever he pulled late nights at work and felt nauseous, one piece would always perk him right back up. But without hesitation, he tore open the wrapper and handed it straight to Emily.

My chest tightened sharply. Every bit of eager joy I'd felt the day before vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving nothing but hollow disappointment.

I kept my eyes down, didn't say a word, and headed straight for Emily's old seat.

Her seat was smack in the middle of the row. No wonder she'd wanted to switch.

To my left, a woman was snoring loud enough to rattle the whole train. To my right, a guy kept bouncing his leg nonstop, and his sweat smell was so strong it was almost overwhelming.

To make matters worse, a kid sitting behind me kept kicking the back of my seat every few seconds.

I clenched my fists, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alex ahead to the side, putting headphones on Emily. They were sharing one set, their heads touching. They whispered to each other, completely wrapped up in their own little world.

For a moment, I went dizzy.