Chapter 1

My aunt, Rosa Mason, spent her whole life trying to take everything from my mother.

When they were kids, Rosa fought to get into a better school. Later, she stole my mom's boyfriend.

She even talked my mother into giving up a house she really wanted, saying, "You always have good taste."

Now, Rosa showed up with my cousin Kara Mason, trying to steal my fiancé.

But they didn't know my fiancé was a real scumbag.

*****

The door was flung open, and Rosa swaggered in. Kara trailed behind her, all dolled up.

Rosa plopped herself down on the couch, crossed her legs, and immediately started grilling my mom. "So, what's the deal with Natalie Reed's fiancé? Tell me about him."

My heart skipped a beat. I grabbed my mom's sleeve and shot her a desperate look, hoping she'd get the hint.

But my mom had always been soft, and Rosa's bossy attitude totally threw her off.

Before she could think, she blurted out everything. "He's 6 feet tall, 160 pounds, a grad student at one of the top universities in the country, and comes from one of the richest families in the city."

Kara's eyes lit up, and she beamed like a fangirl. "He's really that amazing?"

Rosa couldn't stop grinning. She patted Kara's hand and turned to me with all the confidence in the world. "Natalie, let Kara have your fiancé. She's young and vibrant. They'd make a way better couple."

"He's my fiancé," I said, gripping my glass hard and staring at her in disbelief.

"What do you mean 'yours'?" Rosa lifted her chin, her face full of disdain. "You're so dull. You could never make a man stay for you. Kara's young, knows how to talk, and knows how to win a man's heart."

Kara chimed in instantly, shooting me a contemptuous glance. "Yeah. Natalie, you don't know the first thing about men. Samuel's so amazing. He and I are a match made in heaven."

Samuel Grant was my fiancé, but Kara already switched to calling him by his first name, like he belonged to her.

I clenched my fists so tight that my nails dug into my palms. When I was about to fire back, my mom grabbed my wrist, holding me in place.

She said timidly, her voice barely above a whisper. "Rosa, that's Natalie's fiancé."

"What's the big deal?" Rosa sneered, her eyes dripping with contempt. "You know exactly what Natalie's like. You really think she can hold on to a guy like that? Why wait for her to get dumped? Might as well let Kara have him."

Kara instantly cozied up to Rosa, looping her arm through hers, her eyes full of smug satisfaction. "Come on, Natalie. Do me a favor. Samuel's incredible. You were never in his league to begin with."

They said that as if it was okay to take someone else's fiancé.

Ever since we were kids, if Rosa wanted something my mom had, she always got it. Now it was my turn. They thought I was weak, easy to push around, and figured I'd keep backing down, like my mom always did.

I stood there quietly, no tears, no drama, no protest. In their eyes, that meant I was agreeing, or maybe too scared to fight back.

Seeing me stay quiet, Rosa grew more assertive. "Samuel's got everything going for him. If Kara marries him, she can support your family, too. Don't be foolish."

I saw the weakness in my mom's eyes, and a cold chill slowly crept through me.

I stared straight at my mom, whose eyes were avoiding mine, and forced out every word with a clenched jaw. "How many times have we given in over these twenty years?

"You gave up your chance at school, your first love, and the house you wanted. Half your life was wasted because of Rosa. And now, you want me to give away my future too?"

My mom's face turned ashen, and for a long moment, she couldn't say a word.

A cold chill swept through me, and all those old memories I'd tried to bury came rushing back.

Rosa had been snatching things from my mom ever since they were kids.

My mom always said, "I'm the elder sister, and I raised her, so I should let her have whatever she wants."

And my grandma, Margaret Mills, always favored Rosa. After all these years, my mom's habit of giving in became second nature, and Rosa kept pushing her luck, like it was her birthright.

Rosa always took whatever she wanted from my mom, and now Kara was copying her mom's ways, always trying to take what was mine.

When I was ten, my dad gave me a white dress with a lace hem and pearl buttons. I loved it so much that I never wanted to take it off, sleeping with it at night. If it got a little dusty, my heart ached.

Then Kara came over, cried, and whined until she got her way and took that dress from me.

My mom kept nagging me, repeating herself over and over. "Natalie, you're the elder cousin. You need to be mature."

I cried and begged her again and again, but all she ever said was that same line.

In the end, I could only stand there and watch as Rosa roughly ripped the dress off me and forced it onto Kara.

Kara, drowning in a dress that didn't fit her, made a smug face at me. That moment has haunted me for years.

From the time we were little, Kara would grab my toys, snatch my awards, and raid my money.

It didn't matter if I wanted to or not. I always had to give in. My whole childhood was one endless cycle of getting things taken from me and having to settle for less.

Then, Samuel came back home.

As soon as he walked in, his gaze locked onto Kara, like he couldn't tear himself away.

After a while, he finally gave me a quick, casual look and said, "We've got visitors? Why didn't you give me a heads-up?"

I shot him a cold look. "They're my aunt and cousin."

He went, "Oh," completely ignoring me. He headed to the kitchen, washed some cherries, and brought them straight to Kara, giving her a warm smile. "Try these. Freshly bought."

I had to beg him for ages before he finally, grudgingly, bought those cherries for me.

Now, he was handing them over to Kara, trying to win her over with the very thing I had pleaded for.

Kara bit into a cherry, giving me a taunting look. "Samuel, I want some mangoes next."

Rosa chimed in immediately. "Lucky Natalie. Anything she wants, someone's right there to buy it for her."

Samuel, quick as a flash, pulled out his phone and placed the order without missing a beat.

Kara smugly wrapped her arm around Samuel, putting on her cutest act. "Samuel, you're so good to me. Natalie doesn't want me here."

Samuel shot me a sharp frown, his tone full of blame. "Natalie, Kara's visiting. What's with the attitude?"

His favoritism was blatant.

Seeing how close they were getting and hearing him scold me like it was nothing, my bestie Kaylee's warning from a few days ago came rushing back to me. "Natalie, your fiancé is unreliable. Don't get played by him."