Chapter 1
Garrett Croft and I—Isabella Moyer—had our third wedding. My sister, Hannah Moyer, planned all of them.
The first time, Hannah sent me the wrong address.
I spent 3 hours looking for the place in my wedding dress in the pouring rain. By the time I got there, it was over.
I was shaking from the cold.
Garrett rushed up and said accusingly, "Where were you? It was our wedding day. Hannah was crying her eyes out looking for you!"
The second time, she made us draw lots.
Draw 1, and we got married. Draw 2, and the timing wasn't right.
Garrett drew 2, so the wedding was put on hold.
I was shaking with anger. But my parents and my brother, Harvey Moyer, teary-eyed, tried to calm me down. "Hannah didn't mean it."
Until today, I thought Garrett and I would finally make it.
But halfway through the ceremony, private photos of me flashed onto the big screen.
The room burst into laughter and whispers.
Garrett's buddy held his phone in my face, snapping pictures and whistling. "Wow, Isabella acts all innocent, but she's wild in private! Send this to the group—let everyone get an eyeful!"
Harvey pointed at me and yelled, "Shameless! A disgrace to our family!"
Garrett pretended to be panicked. "I invited investors here today. How are we supposed to fix this now?"
Then, my parents walked Hannah out in a custom designer wedding dress.
Garrett said as if it were the most natural thing, "This time, Hannah will just have to step in."
I looked at the dress—one that had to be ordered 3 months in advance—and said nothing.
This wasn't an accident. It had been planned all along.
I suddenly laughed and dialed 911. "Hello, I want to report someone spreading obscene material."
Garrett's face changed. He rushed over to grab my phone.
I spoke fast, afraid I'd miss my chance to report it, "Officer, my address is..."
But before I could finish, he kicked the phone out of my hand.
The screen shattered. I stared at Garrett. "What are you doing?"
Garrett frowned, his voice impatient. "I should be asking you that. Look what you've done to a perfectly good wedding!"
I looked up at him, my voice rising. "I ruined the wedding? You're the ones who set me up to humiliate me!"
Hannah smirked. Then she ran at me. "Isabella! Stop making a scene, okay? Garrett's business partners are about to arrive. Do you want to ruin him?"
The next second, a yank ripped my wedding dress strap. The fabric slid down.
Humiliation washed over me.
I bit my lip hard. Before I could pull the dress back up, Hannah covered her mouth in fake shock and screamed, "Isabella! Why did you take off your dress? Even if you don't want Garrett and me to... you can't degrade yourself like this!"
Garrett's eyes swept over me as I tried to cover myself. Disgust flickered in them.
He said, "Isabella, do you have to embarrass yourself in public? Put your clothes back on!"
Everyone raised their phones and took pictures from every angle.
They whispered.
"Damn, this bride's body is insane."
"This view is making me nosebleed. Better than p**n!"
"Lucky groom—two brides for one!"
I clutched the fabric to my chest, curled up, and screamed, "Stop! Stop taking pictures!"
No one stopped.
Just then, the business partners' voices grew closer.
"Mr. Croft is getting married today. We have to show our support."
"Yeah, I really want to see the bride."
Garrett finally realized something was wrong. "Stop it, everyone!"
He grabbed a jacket and put it over me. Then he said coldly to the guests, "If any of today's photos get out, don't blame me for what happens."
Then he led me to the family table off to the side, his eyes fixed on me. "Stay put and behave. Don't ruin the wedding again."
My eyes were red, my hands shaking. I couldn't speak.
I tried to stand and leave, but my mom pushed me back down. "Hannah's getting married today. You're staying here. Don't even think about leaving."
She held me down, and I watched the ridiculous wedding.
Just then, Hannah came over with a box of wedding candy.
She picked one out and handed it to me with a smile. "Isabella, have one for good luck."
I didn't take it.
Garrett looked at me, annoyed. "Hannah was just being nice. Why can't you appreciate it?"
The guests' stares pricked at my back.
Garrett looked impatient, as if refusing made me a terrible person.
Numbly, I took the candy and put it in my mouth.
It was spicy!
Chili extract mixed with some cheap irritant scraped my throat raw.
I held my throat, my voice almost gone. "I can't eat this. It's—it's bad for my voice."
Garrett looked down at me. "Hannah was nice enough to share. Everyone else can eat it—why are you being so dramatic? Isabella, who are you pretending to be pitiful for?"
I froze. It felt like my blood stopped.
I was a musical theater actress.
The old Garrett valued my voice more than his own life.
He never let me touch anything spicy.
And even when I got mad and said I wanted spicy food, he'd just coax me gently. "Isabella, you make your living with your voice. Be good—no matter how much you crave it, you can't have this."
But now he thought I was being dramatic.
I swallowed the sharp pain in my throat and held back tears.
Garrett had changed.
I didn't want him anymore.
