Chapter 1

I stared at the screen in a daze, watching Joel Whitaker, all suited up.

My coworker elbowed me and whispered excitedly, "Wow, this guy really went all out! Renting this screen for New Year’s Eve? The price for just half an hour is at least a hundred grand!"

“I heard he reserved this spot with the marketing team a month ago. Talk about dedication!”

However, I found it all hard to believe. He told me he was going out of town for a business trip tonight and wouldn’t be back until next month. Yet, here he was, standing in front of my family-funded scholarship student, Esther Jones, looking at her with the kind of affection you’d expect from a lovesick puppy.

I’d told Joel before that I worked at a shopping mall, but the funny thing was, he never asked which one. I guess he just didn’t care enough to know.

With just five minutes left before midnight, the countdown to the new year, Joel suddenly dropped to one knee on the big screen. He held out a massive diamond ring and shouted with all his might, "Esther! Marry me!"

The mall lights brightened in an instant, and colorful balloons floated down like snowflakes while the surrounding crowd erupted in cheers.

The irony? I was the one who stayed up for nights drafting that very proposal plan. I had known there would be a grand proposal tonight, but never in my wildest dreams did I think it would feature my boyfriend of six years.

Esther covered her mouth, her eyes sparkling with tears under the lights. She looked like a damsel straight out of a romance movie.

"Joel… What am I going to do with you?" she said softly.

The crowd started chanting, "Say yes! Say yes!"

My coworker looked at them with envy, gossiping in a hushed tone. "I heard that girl is the daughter of the mall’s CEO. A rich guy and a rich girl—they’re a perfect match!"

The daughter of the mall’s CEO? How did I never know I had a sister?

As Esther stood there stunned, Joel got up and gently slid the ring onto her finger. “Esther, I’ve been planning this for a long time. You’re the only one worthy of this ring.”

The camera zoomed in on the ring, and I felt like all the air had been sucked from my lungs. That ring… was the one my father had won at an auction last month and gifted to me.

Joel… How could he? How could he steal my ring to propose to another woman?

Esther was so overwhelmed she could barely speak. “I never imagined… you’d propose to me here… This is where the Joneses’ business started. My dad is going to be so happy when he finds out.

“Five years together, and finally… we’ve made it,” she said emotionally.

How ridiculous. Six years with me, and they’d been cheating for five.

At that moment, a chill ran down my spine. They had hidden it well enough.

After the proposal was a success, the mall staff followed the original plan and fired off the confetti cannons. With a loud bang, Esther squealed and jumped into Joel’s arms.

They then shared a deep, passionate kiss in the middle of the crowd’s envious stares, completely oblivious to the world around them. As the clock struck midnight, fireworks burst into the sky behind them.

The mall’s speakers chimed in, “Congratulations to the happy couple for winning the Best Couple Award! Enjoy a five-day, four-night luxury honeymoon trip worth fifty thousand dollars!”

I took a deep breath and turned to my coworker. “I’ll go give them their prize.”

I grabbed the prize voucher and walked over to the two of them. They were still lost in each other’s eyes, completely unaware of my presence.

Coldly, I said, "Congratulations, Mr. Whitaker."