Chapter 1

On the day we were supposed to get married,my fiancé,Ethan Walker,went behind my back and legally married Claire Bennett.

His friend tried to talk him out of it over the phone.

“What about Erin?”

“You’ve been together for seven years,and now you’re marrying someone else?”

Ethan was silent for a long time before saying softly,“Erin will understand.

“Claire’s father only has a few days left.We’re just signing some papers and having a ceremony.I’ll file for divorce after he’s gone.”

His friend still hesitated.“But she’s waited seven years for you.”

Ethan smiled.

“That’s exactly why I know she won’t leave me just because I make her wait one more month.”

I stood frozen around the corner,still clutching the wedding chocolates I had brought for the staff.

I did not go in to confront him.I did not cry and beg him to come back.

I simply canceled our appointment and walked away.

He married another woman on the day he was supposed to marry me.

Then I no longer wanted this marriage.

...

The clerk looked at me several times when I canceled.

“Are you sure you want to withdraw the application?You waited almost six weeks for this appointment.”

I nodded.

My phone buzzed with a message from Ethan.

[There’s an emergency at the construction site.We’ll have to postpone our wedding for a few days.Don’t be mad.I’ll explain tonight.]

I stared at the message for a long time,then shoved the wedding chocolates into my bag and left the building.

I still had classes that afternoon.

I went back to school and taught my second graders as usual.

During reading class,we read a story about a young bird leaving its nest for the first time.One of the children raised her hand.

“Ms.Miller,did it finally fly away by itself?”

I held the chalk and took several seconds to answer.

“It did.”

“Wasn’t it afraid of falling?”

I smiled.“It was.But it still had to learn to spread its wings.”

After class,several colleagues gathered around me in the teachers’lounge and laughingly asked why I had not taken the day off.

“Weren’t you getting married today?Didn’t Ethan come pick you up?”

“Where are the wedding chocolates?Don’t hide them from us.”

I took the bag from my purse and passed it around.

Some of the chocolates had melted and stuck to their wrappers.

My colleagues teased me.“Looks like your marriage is going to be just like this chocolate—sweet enough to melt.”

I laughed with them.

None of them knew that the man I was supposed to marry had just become someone else’s husband.

Ethan called that evening.

“Erin,have you eaten?”

I could hear hospital announcements in the background and a woman crying softly.

I did not expose his lie.

“No.”

“I’m really sorry about today.Something happened with Claire.Her father’s condition is bad,and he’s confused.He keeps worrying that no one will take care of her.”

I sat alone in the empty classroom,watching the lights come on across the playground.

“So you married her today?”

Silence filled the line.

After a long time,Ethan lowered his voice.“You know?”

“Yes.”

He actually sounded relieved.“Erin,it’s only a formality.Professor Bennett paid for my education.Without him,I wouldn’t even have finished high school.This is his last wish.I couldn’t refuse him.”

“So you used our marriage to repay a debt?”

“Don’t put it like that.”

His voice grew urgent.“You know who I love.There’s nothing between Claire and me.As soon as Professor Bennett passes away,I’ll have a lawyer handle the divorce.One month at most,and then you and I can get married.”

One month at most.

He spoke as if he had bought the wrong item and could simply return it before buying the right one.

“Would it have been so hard to tell me beforehand?”

“I was afraid you’d overthink it.”

“You did it anyway.Why worry about what I’d think?”

Ethan rubbed his brow wearily,his voice hoarse.

“Erin,I already have enough to deal with today.Professor Bennett is still being resuscitated,and Claire can’t handle everything alone.I know you’ve been hurt.I’ll make it up to you later,okay?”

He had married another woman,yet he believed being a little nicer to me afterward would make everything go away.

But I had never wanted compensation.

I hung up.

Ten minutes later,a new post appeared on my feed.

Claire had uploaded a photo.

Beside the hospital bed,her slender hand rested over Ethan’s,the corner of their marriage certificate visible between her fingers.

Her caption read:[Thank you for finally putting Dad’s mind at ease.]

Our mutual friends flooded the comments.

[Congratulations?Is this the official announcement?]

[Claire finally has someone to take care of her.]

[You’re a good man,Ethan.Professor Bennett was right about you.]

Ethan liked the post too.

Maybe he only meant to comfort Claire.

But to every mutual friend who saw it,that like was as good as publicly acknowledging the marriage.

I stared at the screen until my eyes ached.