Chapter 2

When I arrived, the wedding reception was at its peak.

Garrison had his arm around Giselle's waist, kissing her over and over again in front of everyone.

Flower petals filled the air, mixing with deafening cheers.

Reporters surrounded them, cameras raised as flashes clicked non-stop. With the Stratton and Wentworth families throwing a wedding, the media had been following it for three months.

The moment I appeared, all of it stopped.

A few reporters shoved microphones in my face. "Dr. Barlow, how does it feel that your sister married your father's best friend?"

The surroundings went completely silent.

Everyone's eyes landed on me.

There was bewilderment, shock, disdain, and even gloating.

Giselle pushed a stunned Garrison aside and walked toward me with a smile.

"Vesper, not only are you late, but you also stole everyone's attention the moment you showed up..."

Looking at the smile on her face, I suddenly didn't want to hold back anymore.

I didn't answer her. Instead, I threw a question back. "But Garrison's bride was supposed to be me."

"You two have been together for seven years, but we've been together for ten."

"You knew exactly what my relationship with him was, yet you still inserted yourself into it. Did you get a kick out of climbing into your own sister's fiancé's bed?"

When I was eighteen, I got drunk and confessed my feelings to Garrison. He was thirty-one that year, my dad's best friend. I thought he would lecture me, but he held my hand and told me,

"Me too. Grow up fast. In ten years, I'll marry you."

On my twenty-eighth birthday, he carried me on his back to the old oak tree outside the Wentworth Medical Center. In front of all my colleagues, he slipped a ring onto my ring finger and asked me,

"Vesper, the ring and the wedding dress are ready. Will you marry me?"

Crying, I nodded desperately. From that day on, I waited day and night to be his bride.

Later, Stratton Defense got hit with a federal contract fraud investigation. Their accounts were frozen, and everyone in the Wentworth family stayed far away. I was the one who transferred all my savings to him, helping him survive those few months.

He was incredibly moved. Holding his hand over his heart, he swore to me,

"I, Garrison, will only love Vesper in this life. I won't change until the day I die."

Eventually, the investigation was dropped, and the company regained its footing. The day he took over as CEO, the Wentworth family all showed up, teasing me,

"Garrison, Vesper has waited for you for so long. When are you taking her home as your wife?"

Holding a ring, he got down on one knee.

"Vesper, on our tenth anniversary, we'll go to the county clerk's office and file our marriage license paperwork."

But on the day of our anniversary, he brought the Wentworth family together, kept me in the dark, and married Giselle.

My only biological brother even urged me to give them my best wishes.

The moment I finished speaking, Garrison rushed in front of Giselle, shielding her behind him.

My friends, my brother, and even my mother all stood by their side.

As if I were the one who had ruined everything.

Giselle let out a whimper and started sobbing. "Vesper, love itself isn't right or wrong. The only mistake is that he fell in love with me. If you have to blame someone, just blame me..."

Garrison covered her mouth with his hand, glaring at me with sharp eyes.

"Vesper, don't scare her."

"I broke my promise. I loved you, but I fell in love with Giselle too. I tried, but I couldn't control it. Don't blame her. If you want to blame someone, blame me."

A flash of smugness crossed Giselle's eyes as she looked down at me condescendingly.

"Vesper, Garrison and I are already legally married anyway. Mom and Corbin both know. If you really feel wronged, we can discuss a number. Sign a non-disclosure agreement, and the money will hit your account immediately."

Compensation?

Were my three thousand six hundred and fifty days of waiting and sacrifices only worth the bit of money coming out of her mouth?

I was just about to refuse when my brother, Corbin, shoved me aside and said self-righteously,

"Vesper, that's enough. Who he is with is his business. If you still consider yourself a part of this family, then don't humiliate all of us here."

"Don't take this to the reporters; it'll embarrass our entire family. If she's willing to give you money, just take it and don't do anything stupid. When you were brought back to this family years ago, you took that money fast enough, didn't you?"

It felt like a hand reached into my chest and gutted me.

The pain was so intense I couldn't say a single word.

I hadn't kept a single cent of that money. I used all of it to pay for my dad's rehab fees. But coming from his mouth, I became someone greedy for wealth.

Seeing my silence, my mother cleared her throat.

"Vesper, you are my daughter, but so is Giselle. This marriage binds the resources of the Stratton and Wentworth families—the trusts, the foundation seats, the collaborations for years to come. It isn't up to you to decide who gets to sit in that position."

"Vesper, just accept it. He truly loves Giselle, otherwise he wouldn't have picked the day you two were supposed to file your marriage paperwork to marry her. Besides—can you afford the yearly expenses of your dad's rehab center on your own?"

My brother, my mother, those relatives, and even the reporters with their cameras raised, all stood by their side.

Accusing me, one after another.

As if I were the one who cheated. As if I were the one who seduced someone else's husband.

Meeting those cold faces one by one, I thought of my dad lying in the rehab center, kept alive by that machine.

The fight in my chest slowly dissipated.

After a long time, my lips moved.

"Fine. I'm done fighting."