Chapter 1

Tears dripped onto the back of my hand, jolting me back to reality.

I then looked down at the camera in my hands. It was meant to capture the happiest moments of my life, but now it felt like a cruel joke.

The door suddenly opened, and Silas Shaw froze the moment he saw me.

"Chally, what are you doing here?

"And why are you crying? Is it... is it because you're so excited about marrying me?"

I could sense the doubt and hesitation in Silas's voice, and a wave of deep disgust rose from within me.

"Silas, I'll ask you one thing. Do you truly want to marry me?"

Silas was momentarily stunned, but soon, his familiar impatience resurfaced.

"The wedding's about to start. Why are you asking such a question now?”

"Chaldene Simpson, can't you put away your spoiled attitude for once? If you keep this up, we might as well not get married."

Each word pierced my heart like a knife, but I laughed anyway. Even now, he would not say a single word to comfort me.

Was I really nothing more than an insignificant woman to Silas?

"Then let's not get married." I ripped off my veil and threw it to the ground.

Afterward, I yanked the ring off my finger and hurled it at his face. "Silas, the wedding is off."

Before he could say another word, I grabbed my gown and bolted out of the room. I jumped into a car and, as soon as I closed the door, broke down into uncontrollable sobs.

I knew exactly who Nora was.

Nora Lawson was the woman Silas once loved, but could never have.

Silas had fought, skipped classes, and even risked his life in a near-fatal car accident while chasing after Nora when she moved abroad.

In the seven years we were together, I had never once heard him mention Nora's name.

I thought he had let go of her, but it turned out they had rekindled their relationship in secret and even had a baby together.

Then, in order to give that child a respectable identity, Silas had come up with the idea of marrying me as a front.

In this entire charade, I had been foolishly overjoyed, thinking my years of devotion had finally paid off.

Silas knew how much I had dreamed of my wedding and how deeply I had longed for a child of my own, but he still cruelly turned all of it into poisoned candy, tempting me to swallow it whole.

My phone kept ringing with calls. When I glanced at the screen, I saw that everyone was trying to reach me.

My father, my mother, my best friend—and most obviously, Silas.

Without hesitation, I rejected Silas's call and blocked his number. Just as I finished, a message from my mother popped up.

"Chally, your father and I trust that you're not acting out of impulse. We'll handle things here. When you've calmed down, we'll talk it all through.”

"However, please, I beg you, don't do anything reckless."

As I read her words, the tears I had been holding back came streaming down once more.