Chapter 1

During our wedding shoot, my fiance, Ethan Carter, handed me the wedding dress he'd prepared.

"I had this custom-made just for you. Put it on for the photos," he said.

But when I tried to slip it on, I realized it was way too small. I couldn't even zip it up.

Ethan yelled that I embarrassed him, snatched the dress, and stormed off.

I held back my shame and finished the rest of the photo session.

When I got home, I saw Ethan's first and purest love, Jessica Monroe, standing in my living room, wearing that wedding dress.

Ethan was holding her like she was the center of his universe, practically pouring his heart out.

"Jessie, you always dreamed of having a unique wedding dress. I designed this one just for you," he said.

Hearing those words, I slid the engagement ring off my finger and chucked it straight into the trash.

And right then, I decided those seven years I'd spent with him were going in the trash, too.

*****

I stood outside the door, staring at Ethan and Jessica tangled together in a heated kiss, as if I was nothing but a ghost on the other side of the glass.

My palms stung from how hard I was clenching my fists.

When I finally loosened my grip, I saw several nails bent back and bleeding, broken so harshly that they'd split the skin beneath.

I'd had these nails done just for today's wedding shoot.

Thinking about it, maybe it was good they broke. I never cared for these gaudy nails anyway. They were always for Ethan, never for me.

No, to be honest, it was always Jessica—his precious true love—whose tastes he cared about.

I loved Ethan like a fool for seven years straight.

He was usually cold and proud, but with me, he was gentle and patient during those seven years.

He had ignored every woman who tried to get his attention, acting like I was the only one who mattered.

I was so naive, actually believing our love would last forever.

But today, everything changed.

At the wedding shoot, Ethan suddenly replaced the dress I'd lovingly picked out with another one.

He handed me a brand-new dress, saying it was custom-made just for me.

I couldn't figure out what he was thinking, but I went along with it anyway.

Honestly, I never saw it coming. The dress was way too small. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get the zipper up.

The next moment, Ethan went off on me in front of everyone, called me as fat as a cow, and told me to lose some weight. He said I shouldn't even think about getting married till I could squeeze into that dress.

Then he snatched the dress and walked out without a word, not even glancing back.

I somehow pulled myself together and finished the mess he left behind.

By the time I dragged myself home, I ran straight into the last person I ever wanted to see—Jessica Monroe.

Her mom wrecked my parents' marriage years ago, leading to their divorce. It left my own mom so broken that she ended up committing suicide.

And now, Jessica was wrecking my wedding, too.

Ethan knew exactly how much bad blood there was between me and Jessica, but he still threw it all away for her like it meant nothing.

It finally hit me—no matter what I did, I could never win his heart. I was done trying.

Inside, their passionate kiss finally ended, and they wrapped themselves around each other, exchanging sweet, intimate words.

"Jessie, you know if you ever needed me, I'd drop it all and be right there by your side," Ethan murmured softly.

Jessica giggled wickedly, her tone dripping with disdain, "Oh, I know. You're only with that mental case because she's my sister. You just wanted to get under my skin, didn't you?

"Admit it, you were just waiting for me to swoop in and win you back, weren't you?"

Ethan didn't respond. He simply let out a heavy sigh and hugged her even tighter.

He whispered, "I'd always go after you, be the one chasing. If you ever left, I'd drop everything and run after you, no questions asked."

Ethan always claimed he wasn't the type to chase after anyone. Turns out, he just never wanted to chase after me.

I took a deep breath and slowly pushed open the door.

When Ethan saw me, his face instantly drained of color.

He immediately pushed Jessica out of his arms without thinking.

"Jessie suddenly felt sick, so I let her rest here for a while," he stammered, scrambling to explain.

He added, "Come on, she's your sister. Can't you just let everything go and not hold onto the past?"

Whenever Jessica came into the picture, Ethan, usually the picture of calm, started acting all panicked and flustered.

He kept hiding her behind him, like he thought I was about to jump her and rip her apart on the spot.

A wave of nausea hit me. What was I to him, really?

All the pain I'd suffered and my mom's death—he just shrugged it off as "the past", like none of it ever even mattered?

Jessica peeked out from behind Ethan and flashed me a smug little smirk.

Blood dripped from my palm where my nails had dug in, leaving drops spattered on the floor.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I practically shoved Ethan out of the way and, before he could stop me, yanked Jessica by the hair.

Her face was all fake innocence, but the sly, taunting smile curling at her lips was pure trouble—exactly the same look her mother had given.

I slapped her as hard as I could, fueled by every ounce of rage in my body.

I roared, "She's nothing close to my sister. She's just some bastard baggage, the spawn of a homewrecker and whatever stray guy her mom hooked up with!"

Jessica spat out some bloody saliva and burst into loud, dramatic tears.

Ethan finally snapped out of it and rushed to scoop Jessica into his arms, glaring at me like I'd lost my mind.

"Sharon, are you out of your mind? How dare you hit her? Apologize to Jessie, right now," he shouted.

He clung to Jessica, anxiously checking her face, his eyes brimming with worry and fierce protectiveness.

I stared at the two of them clinging to each other and couldn't help but laugh. How utterly pathetic this all was.

Sure, I'd been out of my mind for 20 years.