Chapter 1

My husband filed a PTO request for his wedding. And the bride isn't me.

Good thing I joined his company as HR behind his back. Or I never would've found out about this sweet little surprise.

I click to see the details.

Applicant: Henry Mitchell. Co-applicant: Vivian Brooks.

I pull up Vivian's employee file. Sweet face. Twenty-four. Job title: Henry's personal secretary.

I find her on Instagram. Her account is public. Her most recent post, from yesterday, is a wedding photo. Henry in a white suit, his arm wrapped around her waist, smiling like he means it.

My finger hovers over the "Approve" button on the request.

Click.

Enjoy your wedding, Henry. I signed off on it myself.

…

A message pops up in the company group chat. It's Vivian.

She's posted a digital wedding invitation. Below it — the same photo she put on her Instagram yesterday.

The chat explodes.

I scroll through them with a blank face. Each message hits me like a slap. My chest gets tighter and tighter.

Then the HR door swings open.

Vivian walks in carrying a tray of wrapped chocolates, beaming.

"Ladies, come celebrate with me!"

Her voice is sugar-sweet. The happiness on her face isn't something you can fake.

Everyone crowds around her, laughing, grabbing handfuls of chocolates.

She works her way down the row and stops at my desk last.

I don't reach for any. So she sets a handful of chocolates down on my keyboard herself. Like there's no question whether I'll take it.

"Avery, you have to come. Promise me."

I look up at her glowing face.

"Congratulations."

I pick up a chocolate, peel back the foil, and pop it in my mouth.

Sweet.

"Vivian, that bracelet is stunning. Did Henry get it for you??" One of the girls points at her wrist.

Vivian laughs, embarrassed, touching the diamond bracelet.

"Yeah. He says my skin's too pale not to wear something that sparkles."

I stare at the bracelet.

The chocolate in my mouth turns bitter.

That bracelet was Henry's first-anniversary gift to me.

Three months ago, Henry told me he was going on a business trip. When he came back, he said the bracelet had slipped off somewhere. He felt awful about it. Promised me he'd replace it with something better.

The bracelet wasn't lost.

He gave it to her.

Vivian lifts her hand higher. The diamond on her ring finger catches the light.

"Henry designed the ring himself. Look, see how the petals curl? Isn't it the most unique thing?"

The girls gasp.

"Henry is so romantic!"

"A man like that? You don't find them anymore!"

I once told Henry I wanted a one-of-a-kind ring.

But he said, "We're already married. What's with all that cheesy stuff?"

Vivian's cheeks flush pink. She keeps going.

"Henry's so busy, but he still remembers to pick up cinnamon rolls from my favorite bakery. Always fresh out of the oven."

That bakery is downstairs from our apartment.

I asked Henry a hundred times to grab some on his way home.

He always snapped at me. "That's so far. Why would I go all the way over there?"

The bakery is in the opposite direction from where Vivian lives.

He wasn't avoiding the detour. He was avoiding doing it for me.

"Henry says once we're married, he's putting me in charge of all the finances. Every cent."

Three days into my marriage, I handed over my paycheck.

Henry said a man should manage the money. That's what keeps a household stable.

I look at this glowing girl in front of me. The sweeter she sounds, the harder I breathe.

"Avery? You're so quiet."

I force my lips into a smile.

"He really loves you. You two are going to be so happy."