Chapter 1

I liked telling my fiancé, Don Adrian Black, about every funny little thing that happened to me.

He never once responded, but I never got tired of it.

Not until the night before our wedding, when the NYPD showed up at my door. That was when I found out Adrian had filed a report against me for "severe harassment."

After sitting through a formal warning at the station and getting bailed out by a lawyer, I clutched my nearly shattered heart and wanted to ask him why.

But before I could get a word out, I heard him say, "People should keep a healthy distance from each other. Try to be quieter from now on."

The next second, a message came in from his personal secretary, Chloe.

Adrian pulled out his phone without a moment's hesitation and replied.

That was when I finally saw it. His chat with Chloe was full of back-and-forth messages.

Good mornings and good nights. Black Holdings business and what she'd had for dinner. Dock shipment handoffs and how she was scared to walk home alone.

It finally hit me.

Adrian wasn't incapable of responding. He just never wanted to respond to me.

"I've got something to take care of. I won't be able to see you home."

After we left the station, Adrian kept his head down, typing away. When he spoke to me, he didn't even look up.

I saw clearly that his latest message was from Chloe.

She'd written: "Boss, I'm already at the restaurant waiting for you."

Below it was a selfie. She was smiling playfully, like she knew for certain he'd come.

Adrian replied: "Okay, I'll be there soon. If you're hungry, go ahead and order some dessert first."

After sending the message, he didn't spare me a single glance. He walked straight to the black car parked at the curb.

He walked fast.

By the time I snapped out of it and reached for him, all I caught was a gust of cold air.

Before, I would've called him over and over, whined for him to take me home, pestered him about when he'd be back.

But now I stood at the entrance of the police station, watching in silence as his car pulled away.

Because I suddenly remembered the female officer who'd given me the warning. After learning about my relationship with Adrian, her stern expression had softened into something close to pity.

She'd said, "No matter whose fiancée you are, don't bet your entire life on one man. Learning to love yourself matters more than waiting for someone to look back."

Before the talk, she'd seen my chat history with Adrian.

The entire screen was me talking to myself.

I'd asked him what time he was coming home, whether he'd eaten, how business was going.

I'd told him I saw a dog steal a bread roll at a coffee shop, told him I went with Mia to see a movie that was terrible but hilarious, told him my dad had spent half the day yelling at his bodyguard again.

Not a single reply from him.

At the time, I hadn't thought much of it.

I'd assumed Adrian saw everything. He just wasn't the type to text back.

It wasn't until just now that I understood.

He was perfectly capable of responding to everything. The person he wanted to respond to just wasn't me.

I stared down the street until his car was long gone. My eyes burned and my chest was so tight I could barely breathe.

That was when my mom called.

"Emma, your custom wedding dress arrived at the shop. When are you and Adrian free to go try it on?"

My throat locked up. "Mom, I don't want to marry Adrian anymore."

The other end went silent for a second.

"What? Emma, what happened?"

My mom's voice was pure shock.

After all, for as long as anyone could remember, I was the one who clung to Adrian. I'd even declared in front of both families that I would marry Adrian Black or no one at all.

"Let me just... take a breath. I'll tell you everything when I get home, okay?"

She heard the tears in my voice and said immediately, "Okay. Just come home first. We'll talk when you're here."

After I hung up, the tears came and wouldn't stop.

Before, even when Adrian told me to get lost with ice on his face, even when he called me a nuisance he couldn't shake, I'd never cried this hard.

I couldn't make sense of it.

If Adrian didn't like me, why was he with me?

Why did he propose?

Why did he give me hope, only to crush it with his own hands?