“Honey, do I look okay in our marriage certificate photo?”
That message popped up on Amelia Reid’s screen, along with a photo.
One glance, and her whole world tilted.
It was from Isla Paddison—a close friend. And the man standing next to Isla in the photo, wearing a suit and holding a red booklet, was none other than Ethan Bennett. Amelia’s boyfriend of five years.
Almost immediately, the message and photo vanished from the chat. All that remained was Isla’s follow-up: “Oops, sorry Amelia, wrong person. You didn’t see that, right?”
The photo was gone, yeah. But the image of it might as well be burned into Amelia’s eyes. The marriage certificate? Dated two days ago. Her birthday, and the five-year anniversary of her relationship with Ethan. He'd told her he was swamped and couldn't make it. Yet that same day, he had tied the knot with her best friend.
She knew Ethan was out drinking with some guys at a club that night, so she went straight there. She needed answers.
She was at the door of the private room when she caught the laughter and banter—nothing warm about it.
“Ethan, didn’t you have a girlfriend you've been with for five years? And now you're suddenly married to someone else without telling her? Bit low, man.”
“Yeah, and I heard she’s hot too. Major waste.”
Then came a voice Amelia knew all too well—Ethan’s.
“My mom’s married into the Bennetts now. I’m no longer some bastard kid. That Amelia Reid? She’s just a poor girl from nowhere. She’s not fit for me anymore. And don’t let her find out yet, she’ll just make a scene.”
“How long’ve you been with Isla? That came out of nowhere.” one of the guys asked.
Ethan chuckled. “She got into my bed three years ago. And she got close to Amelia for me. The Paddison family’s loaded. I’m still not secure in the Bennett family—my dad's got another son, remember? Marrying Isla means I’ve got the Paddisons backing me. That puts everything in my hands.”
From outside the door, Amelia heard every word crystal clear.
She felt like she got punched in the gut and the air got knocked out of her. The Ethan she knew all these years? Gone. This person was a stranger.
They’d known each other forever. Back then, Ethan was insecure and quiet—always hiding in her shadow. Just last month, his mom finally married into the Bennett family, and suddenly Ethan was no longer a nobody—he’d become their precious young master.
With the title came betrayal. He turned around and married someone else, all for power.
And everyone in that room laughed about it. Like she was some joke.
“She’s got feelings for me, sure,” Ethan said casually. “But that’s not enough. I need someone who can give me status. I didn’t want to break up with her just yet though. She’s pretty clueless. Shouldn’t figure it out. I even got her a gift for her birthday. She’s easy to pacify.”
He hadn’t finished speaking when the door slammed open.
Heads turned. Everyone stared.
Amelia walked in, face pale but steady.
“Amelia? What— What are you doing here?” Ethan stuttered, clearly rattled. Who knows how much she'd heard?
“Wait—just let me explain. It’s not what you heard—”
Before he could finish that sentence, Amelia grabbed a bottle off the table.
Crash.
The glass shattered across his head, and blood streamed down his face. Ethan screamed in pain."Amelia, you're out of your mind!" Ethan had never seen her this unhinged.
"Go to hell, you jerk!" Amelia shot back, eyes filled with rage. "From now on, we're done—totally over."
She spun on her heel and walked away without so much as a glance back. Cool, decisive—like everything hadn't just been torn apart.
Five years together, and it all ended like this. Might as well have fed that relationship to the dogs.
She never thought stories like those old hometown tragedies really happened—until it happened to her. First thing after surfacing? She chopped off her supposed soulmate.
Amelia had believed things with Ethan were solid. He always told her a girl should respect herself, that they should wait till marriage… and yet the whole time, he’d been with Isla behind her back for three years.
She had planned to come clean about who she really was—her family wasn’t broke, far from it. Her grandpa just liked the quiet life out in the countryside.
But now? There's no point.
Five years meant something, even if he didn't think so. And right now, it stung like hell. Amelia stormed into a private lounge next door and ordered a ridiculous amount of booze.
Glass after glass, she drank till she couldn't feel anymore.
Bastard. Lying, cheating bastard.
Ethan had been messing around with Isla the whole time—lying straight to her face. If he could cheat, why couldn’t she go find someone, too?
Wasted and staggering, Amelia wandered out of the lounge, only to catch sight of a man sitting downstairs—cool, aloof, utterly out of place in the noise.
The lights in the club were dim, but he still stood out. He sat there, legs casually crossed, a glass of amber whiskey in his hand, idly tracing the rim with his fingertip. His face was shadowed and unreadable.
The side-light hit just right, sculpting the sharp lines of his nose and brow. His features were icy, distant. His eyes were deep and impassive—like if he looked your way, there’d be nowhere to hide.
Amelia froze for a beat—that face, it bore a faint resemblance to Ethan. Only, this one was sharper, more attractive, exuding a pressure that made Ethan seem almost small.
He didn’t seem affected by the noise at all, as if the whole world had nothing to do with him.
She knew who he was—Ethan’s older half-brother, Nicholas Bennett.
Whether it was the alcohol or sheer spite, Amelia marched up to him boldly and threw her arms around his waist. The scent of liquor clung to her like a second skin.
"Hey, handsome... you up for something fun?"
People nearby sucked in a breath, expecting Nicholas to toss her off instantly. But instead, he wrapped both hands around her waist, his tone flat and cold.
"You’re mistaking me for someone else… sister-in-law."
The 'sister-in-law' part practically dripped ice.
But Amelia acted like she didn’t hear it. She reached up, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him. "No mistake—I came for you, big bro~"
That 'big bro' was smooth as silk—dangerously so.
The others awkwardly turned away, muttering flimsy excuses to leave ASAP.
Amelia’s kiss was messy—no finesse at all. Hard to believe she'd dated someone for five years.
Nicholas's expression twisted slightly, a flicker of curiosity in his narrowed eyes.
He let her tease him. "So, my little brother couldn’t satisfy you?"
Amelia, slurring and completely slumped in his hold, exhaled heavily. "I dumped him. If you’re not interested, guess I’ll find someone else."
She wasn’t going to force anything—she knew that.
She started to pull back—only for a strong arm to suddenly tighten around her waist, yanking her flush against him like she was his territory now. Then, without a word, he lifted her with ease and marched straight toward the private suite upstairs.
"Too late to go looking now."
