Chapter 4

I turned and saw my best friend, Lily Jennings, standing at the entrance to the private room.

She was wearing a delivery raincoat, her hair all windswept, and carrying a bag of iced coffee.

Lily set the coffee on the table and flashed Andrew a sarcastic grin. "Congrats, Mr. Cooper. You got your marriage license with your first crush, had my best friend stand in as your bride, and gave your first crush the bracelet.

"You're so good at scheming."

Michael frowned. "Who are you?"

"I'm Grace's best friend tonight," Lily said, pulling out a chair and sitting right next to me. "Anyone who messes with her today, I'm keeping a list."

Helen slammed her hand on the table, furious. "Grace, what are you thinking, bringing her here? Are you trying to wreck the whole party?"

Lily picked up the stack of receipts and flipped through a couple of pages. "Wreck the party? Mrs. Cooper, your son used Grace's grandma's keepsake to score points with his first crush, and you still expect Grace to keep quiet?

"Honestly, this party was already a mess before anyone else could ruin it."

At the entrance to the private room, the waiter from earlier came in, carrying a bowl of soapy water.

Emily went pale.

Andrew stared me down. "Grace, if you embarrass Emily in front of everyone today, don't dream of your wedding going smoothly."

I reached for the soapy water. "Suit yourself."

Emily dipped her hand into the soapy water, and the bracelet slowly slid off her wrist.

She suddenly said softly, "Andrew, forget it. If Grace wants it, let her have it. It's always been like this for me. Whenever I wanted something, there was always someone ready to say I didn't deserve it."

Andrew froze.

He picked the bracelet out of the water, but instead of handing it to me, he slammed it down on the table. "Happy now?"

I picked up the bracelet and wrapped it in a tissue. "Far from it."

Andrew's eyes grew cold. "What do you mean by that?"

I swept the receipts back into my bag and got to my feet. "See you at the wedding."

*****

Andrew didn't come home that night.

I spent the whole night on the couch, and as soon as dawn broke, I dragged my last suitcase to the door.

As soon as I opened the door, Emily was standing right outside.

She had changed into a light blue dress and was carrying some breakfast takeout. "Grace, can I come in?"

I didn't let her in. "Andrew's not here."

"I know," she said, handing me the breakfast. "I came to see you."

Her eyes landed on the suitcase. "Are you really moving out?"

"Isn't this exactly what you wanted?" I shot back.

Emily lowered her head and smiled. "You really don't like me, do you? Andrew and I registered our marriage, but we never had a wedding. You're still the one he calls his fiancée in front of everyone."

"If you want the official title so badly, you can have it," I said.

She looked up at me. "Grace, don't be stubborn. Andrew can't stand it when women try to threaten him. If you leave, he won't come after you."

"That's exactly what I want," I replied.

Emily set the breakfast down on the shoe cabinet and suddenly reached out to hold my suitcase. "But the wedding can't be called off."

I looked at her.

She said slowly, "I just got back, and everyone knows Andrew threw a welcome party for me. If you call off the wedding now, people will say I'm the mistress."

"Aren't you?" I shot back.

The smile on her face faded. "Grace, don't make it sound so ugly. Deep down, you know exactly who Andrew cares about."

I pushed her hand away. "Move."

Suddenly, she stumbled backward, hit the doorframe, and the breakfast scattered all over the floor.

The next second, Andrew rushed out of the elevator. "Be careful, Emily."

Emily clutched her arm, and tears fell perfectly. "Andrew, don't blame Grace. She's really upset."

Andrew helped her up and turned to look at me.

"I didn't push her," I said.

"I saw her fall right in front of you."

"Did you see her holding onto my suitcase?"

Andrew didn't glance at the suitcase. "Grace, when did you start acting like this?"

Helen stepped out of the elevator, holding something.

She saw the breakfast scattered all over the floor and shrieked. "Grace, have you lost your mind? Emily was being nice, bringing you breakfast, and you went and pushed her?"

The door next door opened, and a woman holding a child poked her head out.

Helen immediately raised her voice. "Hey, everyone, come check this out. The bride-to-be is so jealous of Andrew's childhood friend that she actually dared to push her."

The woman holding the child whispered, "Did she really push her?"

Emily bit her lip. "Mrs. Cooper, please don't say that. It's my fault. I shouldn't have come."

Andrew put his arm around her shoulders, his voice tight with anger. "Apologize."

I suddenly wanted to laugh.

He wanted me to apologize last night, and now he expected me to do the same thing today.

For ten years, his go-to move with me was always demanding an apology.