Chapter 1
Right before the wedding, Spencer Walker's mom Annie Walker, was suddenly diagnosed with breast cancer.
After seven years together, Spencer dropped the bomb on Abrielle Buckley. He was going to marry someone else.
Just because it was Annie's dying wish.
Spencer gazed at his fiancée Abrielle, who was shaking uncontrollably, and let out a weary sigh.
He said, "Abrielle, just trust me, okay? Rosie and I are only having a sham wedding. Once we've fulfilled my mom's last wish, we'll get divorced, and then I'll marry you."
"You don't want me to be branded as unfilial, right?"
Abrielle was shaking, her fingers clenched so tight into her palms it hurt. 'Is this really happening? Am I actually hearing this?' she thought, barely able to process Spencer's words.
She snapped, "Do you really expect me to believe a stamped marriage certificate is fake? Spencer, do you think I'm some clueless kid? I've stuck by you for seven years, and this is what I get?"
Spencer's eyes flickered with emotion, but his expression stayed composed.
He said, "There's no way I can let my mom leave this world with regrets."
"Where does that leave me?" Abrielle's voice shook as she spoke.
She forced a smile, but it was worse than crying, her whole body trembling.
"You said you'd only ever love me, that you'd only ever marry me. So what, marrying Rosie is suddenly going to save your mom's life?" Abrielle choked out, her heart breaking.
"Enough!" Spencer said, his voice low.
He added, "The wedding's in a month. Rosie will be staying at our place for now, so my mom won't suspect anything.
"She'll take the empty south-facing room on the second floor."
Abrielle stared at him, eyes wide with disbelief, her eyes rimmed red.
"You want her to move into our bedroom? Do you even hear yourself right now?" she cried out.
"Don't you get what that room stands for? Can you really look me in the eye and say you don't feel anything for her?"
That master bedroom was supposed to be hers and Spencer's after the wedding. She'd imagined moving in, every detail picked out just for her.
The curtains were that perfect sky blue she loved, the bedspread was covered in her favorite cartoon prints, and even the nightstand was topped with a bunch of her beloved red roses.
Just days ago, they'd been talking about how happy they'd be once they were married. Now, out of nowhere, Spencer wanted to walk down the aisle with someone else? Abrielle's heart twisted. How did everything change so fast?
"Abrielle," Spencer said, lifting his gaze to her.
Spencer's eyes were heavy with disappointment.
"You used to be so reasonable. If you could just get through this month, we'd finally have everyone's blessing and be together for good. Why are you being so unreasonable right now?"
"Honestly, I'm just so disappointed in you," he said.
Abrielle tried to smile, but tears slipped down her cheeks anyway.
Just those two sentences left her speechless, her heart going cold all at once.
Now she finally got it. No matter how she pleaded, Spencer was ready to toss aside everything they'd built over seven years, just to marry Rosie Stewart.
'What could she even say now?' Abrielle thought, numb.
Suddenly, Spencer's phone buzzed in his pocket, slicing right through the heavy silence.
He picked up, and that icy look on his face faded, his whole vibe softening in an instant.
"I'll come get you," he said.
He hung up, brushed past Abrielle's shoulder without so much as a backward glance, and headed out.
"I'm going to bring Rosie over now. You should really think about all this," he added.
Abrielle's fists finally loosened, and she just stood there, her mind going blank.
'Had it really been that long since Spencer last looked at her with any real warmth?' Abrielle thought.
Turns out, without her even realizing, he'd already started giving half his heart to Rosie.
Abrielle wiped away her tears when suddenly her phone lit up with a message from Annie. [Room 99 at Hillcrest Medical. Let's talk.]
Abrielle pushed open the door and found Annie sitting up in bed, ordering the nurse to peel her an apple. She looked the picture of health, no sign of sickness at all.
As soon as Annie saw Abrielle, she shot her a look of pure disdain.
"You know Spencer and Rosie are getting married, right? Let's not drag this out. Just tell me how much you want. Once they've got their marriage certificate, don't ever bother them again," Annie said coldly.
Abrielle tried to smile, but her heart ached.
She'd known from the start that Annie had always looked down on her.
She grew up poor. If she hadn't met Spencer by chance in college, they would've never met at all.
Back then, Spencer fell for her at first sight and spent two years trying to win her over before she finally agreed.
He was the golden boy of Elmville, and she was just a girl from a poor background. Everyone in their circle, including the Walkers themselves, never thought they'd last.
Annie even threatened to cut Spencer off if he insisted on marrying Abrielle.
So their wedding kept getting pushed back and back, until there was no more room to stall. That was when Annie came up with the whole terminal illness excuse.