Chapter 3

3: 3

That night, I never once closed my eyes.

I lay in bed staring at the ceiling.

I ran through every possible thing that could go wrong today.

Every step, played out again and again, until nothing could slip.

Seven years of love, and all it bought me was a carefully built lie.

I owed him a show in return. One he'd never forget as long as he lived.

I lay there with my eyes open, and outside the window the sky slowly turned pale.

I got up, climbed out of bed, and walked straight into the bathroom.

I splashed cold water against my face.

The face in the mirror was pale, the eyes so dark they were almost frightening.

No eyes red from crying. Just a heart gone hard.

From now on, my tears were only for people who deserved them.

The knock came right on time.

I pulled the door open, and Tania was standing there.

Her makeup was flawless, her whole outfit soft and pink.

She smiled the moment she saw me, as if nothing had happened at all.

She waved and offered her congratulations.

"Aileen, congratulations!"

"You finally get to be with Nigel for the rest of your life."

She said it with such sincerity, not a flush on her face, not a flicker in her pulse.

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes last night,

I probably would have believed every ounce of this best-friend act.

I tugged at the corner of my mouth and stepped aside to let her in.

"Sit. There's still plenty of time."

She lifted her skirt and walked in, looking around the room.

Her gaze landed on the bridal gown at the head of the bed, and the envy at the corners of her eyes couldn't quite hide.

I saw all of it. I had no intention of calling it out.

When a dog bites you, you don't bite it back.

What I wanted was for her to fall, principal and interest all at once.

To fall until she was shattered, and could never get up again.

Not long after she sat down, the floor below erupted.

All the soon-to-be relatives had arrived, aunts and cousins by the dozen.

Firecrackers, cheering, the whole villa in an uproar.

Nigel came up carrying flowers, the wedding party behind him.

He smiled the moment he saw me, still gazing at me with all that tenderness.

The crowd escorted me downstairs in a noisy swarm.

When we got into the wedding car, Nigel sat right beside me.

He held my hand the entire way, playing his devotion to the hilt.

I knew this was the last of his fake tenderness.

The car rolled along smoothly. Then, out of nowhere, I spoke.

"Nigel, if I ran away from the wedding, what would you do?"

He clearly froze for a second, something strange flickering through his eyes.

Then he slipped back into that same tender look.

"Sweetheart, that's not a funny joke."

His tone carried reproach, but I saw it plainly.

The corner of his mouth couldn't help lifting, just a fraction.

Delight. Secret delight.

He'd love nothing more than for me to run, so he could swap out the bride and make it all look natural.

And pin every bit of the filth on me.

I sneered inside, but on the surface I answered without a ripple.

"Just asking. Look how nervous you got."

He tightened his grip on my hand. "Of course I'm nervous. I can't lose you."

Beautifully said. I almost believed it.

The wedding car slowly pulled up to the hotel entrance.

They were calling it the wedding of the century, and it wasn't the slightest exaggeration.

The moment I stepped out, I saw the reporters packed around the doors.

Lenses long and short pointed at us, flashbulbs firing in one blinding wall of light.

Every outlet had come. The turnout was bigger than I'd expected.

Nigel's brow knit together instantly.

His voice edged with impatience and irritation.

"Who let them in?"

"Is security just here to eat?"

He'd planned to slip out quietly, without too much noise.

Afraid that if it got loud, the Farleys would catch on and come after him.

I spoke up beside him, light as air.

"I arranged it."

Nigel's head snapped toward me, his face full of surprise.

"Sweetheart, don't you hate having your privacy exposed?"

He'd only dared to set his trap so recklessly because he knew I kept a low profile.

I lifted my eyes to the dense wall of lenses.

The corner of my mouth curved into a faint smile.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing."

"Big and lively, with something to remember it by. What's wrong with that?"

He blanked for two seconds, then quickly put on a smile.

He reached out, slid an arm around my waist, and went along with it.

"You're right. Whatever you want."

"In a bit we'll stand at the center of the stage and let everyone witness our wedding."

"A moment like that really is worth keeping."

He thought he had the whole thing under control.

Thought it was just a girl's silly wish to have one glorious day.

He was already scheming over the scenes to come.

Maybe he could even ride this circus for a wave of publicity.

I leaned into his arms and smiled along with him.

But inside I was cold as ice.

Something to remember it by?

Yes. Of course I'll keep it, and keep it well.

In a little while there'll be so many lenses recording the show.

Enough to leave this pair of dogs disgraced, with no day to ever rise again.

As for the two of us, who's really playing whom—

You'll find out soon enough.