Chapter 1
I caught my fiancé kissing another woman twenty minutes before I was supposed to walk down the aisle.
And if that had been the worst thing I discovered that morning, I might have recovered much sooner.
But the cream-colored envelope that fell from his jacket was about to expose a betrayal that had begun long before our wedding day.
My name is Nia Bennett.
I was twenty-eight years old, wearing a white lace wedding gown that had taken six months to make, when I pushed open the door to the bridal suite's private bedroom.
I wasn't supposed to be there.
I had only returned because I couldn't find the pearl earrings my late mother had left me.
Instead, I found Marcus.
My fiancé.
My best friend of four years.
The man who had promised to love me through every season of our lives.
His hands were wrapped around Vanessa Carter's waist.
And his mouth was pressed against hers.
For one terrible second, my brain refused to understand what I was seeing.
Then the bouquet slipped against my hip.
"MARCUS?!"
They separated so quickly that Vanessa stumbled backward against the window.
Marcus turned toward me.
His face went pale.
"Nia!"
I couldn't breathe.
Vanessa stared at me with wide eyes.
Her champagne-colored dress was wrinkled where Marcus had been holding her.
She was supposed to be one of my closest friends.
She had helped me choose my wedding invitations.
She had organized my bridal shower.
Three nights earlier, she had sat beside me while I cried happy tears about marrying Marcus.
Now she was standing in his arms.
In my bridal suite.
On my wedding day.
I heard footsteps behind me.
My father appeared in the doorway.
Arthur Bennett.
Sixty-two years old.
Silver hair.
Dark navy suit.
A man who had built his life around protecting the people he loved.
He looked past my shoulder.
And stopped.
I had never seen my father's face change like that.
His jaw tightened.
His eyes narrowed.
But he didn't speak.
Not yet.
Marcus stepped toward me.
"Baby, please."
I stumbled backward.
"Don't."
He lifted both hands.
"It's not what it looks like."
I stared at him.
Those words were almost insulting.
I had seen his mouth on hers.
His hands around her.
The way neither of them had heard me approaching.
"What exactly am I supposed to think?"
My voice cracked.
"On our wedding day?"
Marcus dragged a hand across his face.
"Just let me explain."
Vanessa moved behind him.
As though he could protect her from the consequences of what they'd done.
That hurt almost as much as the kiss.
Because he was still choosing her.
Even now.
My father stepped between us.
"Don't touch my daughter."
His voice was low.
Marcus straightened.
"Mr. Bennett, this is between me and Nia."
Dad didn't move.
"You made it my business when you betrayed her."
Marcus glanced toward me.
"Nia, tell your father to give us some space."
I almost laughed.
He had been caught kissing another woman.
And somehow, he was still giving orders.
I tightened my grip around my white roses.
Then I looked directly at Vanessa.
"How long?"
She lowered her eyes.
"Please, Nia."
"How long?"
Marcus interrupted.
"It was a mistake."
I turned toward him.
"A mistake is forgetting the rings."
My voice rose.
"A mistake is showing up late."
Tears burned down my cheeks.
"Kissing my friend twenty minutes before our wedding is a choice."
Vanessa began crying.
I couldn't believe it.
She was crying.
As though someone had hurt her.
"Please don't do this," she whispered.
I stared at her.
"Don't do what?"
She didn't answer.
"Tell the truth?"
Marcus grabbed the back of a chair.
"Everybody needs to calm down."
Dad took a slow breath.
"No, Marcus. You need to stop speaking to my daughter like she's causing the problem."
Marcus sank into the chair.
He pressed both hands against his forehead.
For the first time, he looked frightened.
Not sorry.
Frightened.
I noticed the difference immediately.
He kept looking toward the bedroom door.
Then toward Vanessa.
Then at the clock.
As though something worse than losing me was about to happen.
"Marcus," I whispered.
He looked up.
"What are you hiding?"
"Nothing."
Vanessa shook her head.
I saw it.
A tiny movement.
But unmistakable.
Marcus noticed too.
"Vanessa, stop."
My stomach tightened.
"What is going on?"
He stood abruptly.
As he moved, something slipped from inside his tuxedo jacket.
A cream-colored envelope.
It struck the wooden floor near my shoes.
Nobody moved.
Then Vanessa made a strange sound.
Not a scream.
A gasp.
The kind someone makes when they realize a secret is no longer safe.
"Marcus."
He looked down.
His face drained.
Vanessa's voice trembled.
"Don't let her open that."
I stared at the envelope.
It was expensive stationery.
Thick paper.
A sealed flap.
And across the front, written in familiar black ink, was my name.
Nia Bennett.
My heart started pounding.
"Why is my name on that?"
Marcus stepped forward.
"Nia, wait."
Dad blocked him.
"Stay where you are."
I bent down.
My wedding dress pooled around my knees.
My fingers shook as I picked up the envelope.
It felt heavier than ordinary paper.
There were several pages inside.
Maybe photographs.
Maybe documents.
I couldn't tell.
Marcus took another step.
"Nia, please. I need to explain before you read that."
I looked at him.
"Then explain."
His mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
Vanessa covered her face.
Dad stood beside me.
I could hear the wedding orchestra beginning another song beyond the suite.
Somewhere downstairs, two hundred guests were taking their seats.
My grandmother was probably smiling over the flower arrangements.
My cousins were preparing to throw rose petals.
My wedding planner was checking the aisle.
Everything was continuing as though my life hadn't just shattered.
I looked down at the envelope.
Then back at Marcus.
"Whatever this is, you should have told me before today."
He whispered, "I was going to."
"When?"
He didn't answer.
Vanessa stepped forward.
"Nia, listen to me."
I turned.
Her eyes were full of terror.
"If you read that, the wedding is over."
I stared at her.
Then something inside me became perfectly still.
The wedding was already over.
I just hadn't told the guests yet.
I slid my finger beneath the sealed flap.
Marcus lunged forward.
"Nia, don't!"
Dad caught him by the chest and forced him backward.
"Enough."
The envelope opened.
I reached inside.
And pulled out the first page.
At the top was the name of my family's company.
Bennett Heritage Holdings.
My stomach tightened.
Beneath it was a financial agreement.
And at the bottom of the page was a signature.
My signature.
Except I had never signed it.
I stared at the paper.
Then at the man I had almost married.
"Marcus," I whispered.
May you like
"What have you done?"
And the way he looked at me told me the kiss was only the beginning.
