Chapter 1

The night before we were supposed to get our marriage license, my fiancé Edward's intern posted a photo of them holding hands on her social media.

It read: [It's destined to be you.]

I left a comment to congratulate them. The photo was deleted immediately.

Soon after, Edward called. I could hear the intern sobbing in the background as he angrily accused me of being unreasonable, warning me to stop making trouble, or else he'd call off the marriage.

After that, both of them changed their profile pictures to that same hand-holding photo.

In the past, I would've stormed into Edward's company, demanded he fire the intern, and forced him to explain himself.

It would've ended in chaos, and he would've resented me even more.

But this time, I was tired.

*****

I first noticed a strange vibe between Edward Grant and Sophie Carter on my birthday.

To celebrate both my birthday and the anniversary of us being together, his friend booked a restaurant for us.

Back then, it took him nearly a year to finally win me over.

On my birthday, he showed up with a bouquet, practically bursting with excitement, and asked if I'd be his girlfriend.

I already had feelings for Edward. The patience and gentleness he showed during his pursuit made me fall for him completely.

So, I was happy to imagine spending all my days with him.

He spoiled me to the extreme. His whole world revolved around me, as if I were the only thing he could see.

Back then, if we didn't meet for even a day, he'd call me up, acting all cute and needy.

I honestly enjoyed how clingy he was; it made me feel special.

Because, in some way, I really did feel like I was loved.

When I arrived at the restaurant, Edward still hadn't shown up.

I knew his work was always crazy busy, so it was totally understandable that he was running late.

"Hey, Emily, long time no see. I saw on Edward's social media that you two went to Tibeland. How was it?" one of his friends asked.

My heart skipped a beat when I heard that.

Tibeland?

When did we ever go to Tibeland?

Why didn't I remember that?

I'd been busy running my flower shop.

Since it was opened, I had to take care of everything myself.

Sometimes I'd ask Edward for advice.

But he was always so busy, and I didn't want to bother him too much.

"When did you see that on his social media?" I kept my tone neutral as I asked.

His friend seemed totally clueless. "Last week. I hung out with Edward, and I asked about you. He said you'd been feeling a bit tired lately, so you weren't going out much."

As I listened, I looked down and smirked coldly.

Edward had clearly told me last week he was heading out of state for a business trip.

He said he'd be so busy he'd barely have time to text me.

Meanwhile, I'd been at home all week, busy fixing up the flower shop.

"Yeah, I've been pretty tired lately." I smiled and went along with it.

I didn't want to embarrass Edward in front of everyone or make him awkward.

I'd get to the bottom of this with him later.

Before I could ask anything else, the restaurant doors swung open.

I saw Edward walk in with a girl.

I'd never seen this young woman before.

And Edward had never mentioned her to me.

Noticing my confused look, Edward walked over and handed me a gift box.

"This is my intern secretary. Since I have some work stuff later, I brought her along," Edward said.

Then he urged me to open the box. "I picked up this pink diamond not long ago. Thought it'd look great on you."

I couldn't help but notice Sophie was giving off a pretty hostile vibe toward me.

I furrowed my brows, but didn't say anything. "I really like it. Thanks."

"Come on, why are you acting all polite with me?"

After Edward sat down, all the seats were taken, so he asked the waiter to add a seat for his secretary. "Let me introduce you. This is Sophie Carter, my new secretary."

I could tell Edward was way gentler with Sophie than he ever was with me.

"Mr. Grant, I really can't drink," Sophie said, sounding a little shy. They were sitting really close together.

Honestly, it felt like Sophie was acting more like his girlfriend than me, even though I was supposed to be the official one.

"It's fine. You don't have to drink at a dinner like this," Edward said.

But still, this was my birthday dinner. Even if it was a small group of close friends, Edward should be paying more attention to me.

After all, it had been ages since we'd last seen each other.

Besides, it was my birthday, and I was supposed to be his actual girlfriend.

Was he seriously not worried I'd get mad, getting all chummy with his intern right in front of me, even though I was supposed to be his actual girlfriend?

One of Edward's friends seemed to notice something was off.

He quickly raised his glass. "Come on, we're all friends here. There's no need to be so stiff. Let me propose a toast to Edward and Emily."

I politely picked up my glass, gave a small smile, and stood up.

After all, he was wishing me a happy birthday. I didn't want to embarrass him or make things awkward.

I was not much of a drinker myself.

Edward frowned, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he kept quiet.

Just as I was about to clink glasses, Sophie spoke up, "Edward still has a contract to discuss tonight, so he shouldn't be drinking."

Watching Edward get stopped right in front of me, I felt my pride take a hit.

I knew Edward could drink anyone under the table.

One drink wouldn't have hurt him at all.

And I was the real girlfriend here. What was this girl's deal, jumping in before I even said anything?

Edward's friend looked a bit awkward and quietly set his glass down. "Oh, really? I didn't know. My bad."

Sophie smiled and said, "It's fine. How about this? I'll drink for Edward, to apologize to everyone."

What gave her the right to drink for my boyfriend?

"Edward, it's my birthday. Can't you share a drink with me?" I spoke up, timing it perfectly.

This was my night.

Why did someone always have to steal my spotlight?

"Ms. Lane, he really can't drink. How about I do it for him?" Sophie said, flashing me a smile.

I frowned.

She knew my last name was Lane, so she definitely knew who I was. Yet here she was, boldly standing up for my boyfriend right in front of me.

Was she trying to provoke me?

"Sophie, if you can't drink, let it go." As soon as Sophie tried to take a sip, Edward immediately reached out and stopped her.

Honestly, I was at a loss for words.

"In that case, let's skip the drinks." I set my glass down right away.

"Emily, don't be so immature. Sophie really can't drink, so don't make a fuss," Edward said, sounding annoyed.

Hearing Edward call me out like that, I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

Was I immature? Seriously?

Wasn't this supposed to be my birthday?

And on top of that, I still hadn't even confronted him about the whole Tibeland trip from last week.

Who did he go with?

"Ms. Lane, why don't we add each other on WhatsApp? Edward's been swamped lately, so if you can't reach him, just hit me up," Sophie offered, her tone almost too friendly.

It was obvious: whenever Sophie was around, Edward couldn't take his eyes off her.

What the hell was going on?