I wrote 999 love letters to finally win over Stella Gleason, the ice queen of our university. But the day before our wedding, I overheard her complaining to her childhood friend about the typos in them. “It’s like a little kid wrote these. He should’ve just used an AI!” In that instant, I called off the wedding and pulled every last cent of my investment from her family’s company. Stella’s scream was pure panic. “It was just a joke between friends! You’d cancel our wedding over that?” Without a word, I brought up the AI marriage forecast I’d run on us. “You love AI so much? Then take a good long look,” I said, my voice flat. “A ‘catastrophic’ rating. You want that marriage? I wouldn’t touch it. It’s bad luck.” 1 Less than ten minutes after the investment was pulled, Stella kicked open the door to my office. “Kian, can’t you take a joke? Besides, Leo wasn't wrong. Your letters did have typos!” I didn’t even bother to look up. I spoke to my secretary, who had followed her in. “Get the trading desk on the line. I want to pour a hundred million into Gleason’s biggest competitor. Short them into the ground.” Shock bloomed across Stella’s perfect face. “Are you insane? Do you have any idea how much money you’ll lose? Don’t think I won’t call your father right now!” Still trying to use my father against me? A cold smile touched my lips. I turned back to my secretary. “What are you waiting for? If the Gleason Corporation is still standing in an hour, you can clear out your desk.” “Wait!” For the first time, genuine fear flickered in Stella’s eyes. She walked toward me, her head bowed. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, her eyes welling up. “I was wrong. I’ll do anything you want, just… please don’t pull the funding.” I remained silent. She fumbled in her pocket and pulled out a simple, plain silver band. “I made this for you. For our wedding. Please, Kian, don’t be angry.” Her voice was soft, pleading. “The only reason I even noticed the typos was because I read every single word of every letter you sent me. I didn’t mean anything by it.” I waved a hand, dismissing my secretary. Seeing my resolve soften, Stella threw her arms around my neck and planted a quick, wet kiss on my cheek. “I booked a table at that French bistro you love. Let’s go now, we can talk over the final details for the wedding?” I looked into her hopeful eyes, and for a moment, my heart stirred. I was about to speak when the door burst open again. Leo rushed in and dropped to his knees in front of me. “Mr. Hayes, if you’re angry, take it out on me! Don’t you dare bully Stella.” He shot a protective glare at me. “She’s your fiancée, not some dog you can just kick around!” Then he turned to Stella, holding up his hand. On his ring finger was another plain silver band. “It’s a perfect fit, Stella. Thank you. This time, I swear I’ll protect you. I won’t let a bastard like Kian ruin you!” My eyes narrowed. The ring on his finger was a perfect match for the one Stella had just given me. Hers was a man’s ring. Mine was a woman’s. It turns out she was just regifting. And I got the girl’s ring. A wave of nausea washed over me, so strong it almost made me laugh. “Protect her?” I sneered. “Let’s start by calculating the penalty for trespassing in the CEO’s office.” Before I could finish, Stella moved, placing herself between me and Leo. “This is between us, Kian. Don’t drag anyone else into it. I told you, I’ll do whatever you want.” My fiancée, standing against me to protect her lover. I knew why. When the Gleason family went bankrupt years ago, Leo had dropped Stella and fled the country without a second thought. I was the one who stayed by her side. I ignored my board of directors and poured all my resources into her family’s failing company. Now that Gleason Inc. was finally back on its feet, her parents pushed for this marriage, eager to lock me in for good. They wanted my money and resources, no strings attached. And my grandmother… my grandmother had always adored Stella. She’d made it clear that Stella was the only woman she’d ever accept as her granddaughter-in-law. For Nana’s sake, to fulfill her dying wish, I was willing to overlook the money. I thought we would build a life together, that it would all work out. I never imagined Leo’s return would shatter everything. With that thought, my decision was made. My voice was ice. “Fine. You want the wedding to happen? Then from this moment on, you will never speak to him again.” 2 In the end, Stella deleted every one of Leo’s contacts in front of me. She even threw both of the offending silver rings into the trash. Watching Leo stalk out of my office, his face a mask of resentment, I felt a knot of anger in my chest finally loosen. I told my secretary the wedding was back on. After dinner, Stella said she needed her beauty sleep to be at her best for the big day. I didn’t think much of it and drove off to my bachelor party. Halfway through the night, my phone started vibrating nonstop. I pulled it out to see a notification from the security system at our new house. The smart mattress was sending an alert. When we were furnishing the place, I’d gone with the principle that more expensive is always better. The salesman had sold me on this high-tech mattress, boasting that it could track… activity… and would automatically send an alert if it detected any unusual frequencies. We weren't supposed to move in until after the wedding tomorrow. The house should have been empty. A dark premonition washed over me. Ignoring my friends’ protests, I jumped in my car and sped home. The moment I walked in the door, I saw them: a trail of clothes, carelessly discarded on the living room floor. And from the master bedroom, I could hear the soft, unmistakable sounds of a man and a woman. I kicked the bedroom door open. Startled by the crash, Stella screamed, her naked body instinctively shrinking behind Leo. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what they’d been doing. A moment later, her shock turned to outrage. “Kian! Are you spying on me?” I held up my phone, the screen glowing with a red line of alerts. “Is this what you call beauty sleep?” A flicker of guilt crossed her face, but she quickly covered it, pulling the sheets around her as she tried to defend herself. “Leo and I grew up together! We used to sleep in the same bed as kids, we even took baths together! It’s not a big deal.” She pressed on, her voice gaining confidence. “Besides, I just wanted to say a proper goodbye. I promise you, after tonight, we’ll never see each other again.” While she spoke, Leo casually slipped into the silk robe I had bought specifically for my wedding night and sauntered over to me. “Hey, man,” he said, a smug look on his face. “Real love is about letting go, not control. She’s not even officially your wife yet. Tracking her like this? Not cool.” I gave him a look of utter contempt. “Fine,” I said, my voice dangerously calm. “I’ll let go right now. Let’s see if Stella dares to go with you.” At my words, Leo immediately turned and grabbed her hand. “Stella, you just told me you don’t have any feelings for him! Come with me. Please?” I waited, curious myself. Between love and money, what would she choose? After a long, tense moment, Stella slowly pulled her hand away from Leo’s. “You should go,” she said, her voice quiet. “Tomorrow, I’ll be a part of the Hayes family. We can’t see each other anymore.” Leo looked like he was about to argue, but Stella gave him a sharp push. He shot me a venomous look, as if I were some villain who had stolen his maiden fair. As Leo turned to leave, my voice cut through the silence. “Stop.” He froze. “Are you so broke you have to steal my robe? Take it off.” 3 I’d noticed it the moment I walked in. In their haste, they’d torn each other’s clothes to shreds. Stella’s face paled as she realized it too. “Kian, that’s just cruel! You can’t be serious. You’re going to make him walk out of here naked?” “Cruel?” The word was so absurd I almost laughed. “Let’s not forget, Stella, we’re not married yet. This house isn’t yours. You brought a stranger into my private residence in the middle of the night and used my things without permission. How do you think that would play in front of a judge?” Her face flushed with anger, but she couldn’t say a word. Trembling, Leo untied the belt of the robe, his voice laced with false humility. “I’m sorry, Kian. It was my mistake. I shouldn’t have worn your robe.” As the silk fell open, I saw them clearly: the angry red marks and scratches covering his chest. A testament to just how passionate their “goodbye” had been. Before I could say anything else, Stella stepped in front of him, shielding him with her body. “That’s enough, Kian! It’s a stupid robe! Do you have to push things this far?” She reached into her purse, pulled out a couple of crisp hundred-dollar bills, and threw them in my face. “There! I’ve bought it for him. Are you happy now?” The sharp edge of a bill caught my cheek, leaving a thin, stinging line of red. Stella’s voice, now dripping with venom, filled the room. “I never loved you. Not for a second. If your family wasn’t so powerful, do you think I would have ever agreed to this marriage? You’re only marrying me to make your grandmother happy, Kian. So don’t you dare act like you have any right to tell me what to do!” I stared down at the crumpled bills on the floor and let out a cold, empty laugh. She was right. I had no right. I met Leo’s triumphant gaze and offered him a faint, chilling smile. “Do whatever you want.” With that, I turned and walked out. I drove home alone. As soon as I stepped through the door, my phone buzzed with a text from her. [Don’t be late for the wedding tomorrow.] I knew what it was. Her idea of an apology. She’d done things like this before. After sneaking off to meet Leo, she’d come home and make me my favorite pasta. After ditching a family dinner with my parents to see him, she’d send a text offering to pick me up from work. She was too proud to ever truly apologize, so she offered these small, hollow gestures instead. My friends had seen it for what it was. They told me to cut her loose, to let her go. But I kept giving her chances. One after another. I always told myself it was for Nana. My grandmother was getting older, her memory fading. Some days she didn't even recognize me, but she always, always recognized Stella as the woman I was meant to marry. I couldn’t bear to disappoint her. So I allowed it. I allowed Stella’s parents to sell her to me like a prized mare. But there were good times, too. I couldn’t forget them. It was Stella who had proposed to me, in front of all the cameras, declaring to the world that she wanted to be my wife. Whatever happened, I decided, I would see the wedding through. And then, afterward, we would have a final, definitive reckoning. I just never imagined it would come so soon. The next day, I arrived at the venue in my tuxedo, only to be blocked at the entrance by a wall of security guards. They gestured toward a large sign posted by the door. In bold letters, it read: NO DOGS OR KIAN HAYES ALLOWED. 4 For a second, I just stood there, stunned. Then my eyes landed on the giant wedding portrait. Instead of my face next to Stella’s, there was a beaming photo of her and Leo. A bitter laugh escaped my lips. I pulled out my phone and dialed her number. She answered on the second ring, but I cut her off before she could speak. “Is this your idea of a final reckoning?” I demanded. Her voice was calm, almost breezy. “The wedding was always just for show, for your Nana’s sake. And don’t worry, I already had someone pick her up and bring her here.” She paused. “So please, Kian, just let me have this one thing. Let me marry the man I love. I promise, after the ceremony is over, I’ll go to city hall with you and sign the papers.” Then she hung up. My mind snagged on one phrase: I already had someone pick her up. My grandmother was frail. She was kept alive by a cocktail of medications. She couldn't handle being shuffled around like that! Panic seized me. I lunged for the doors, determined to find her, to get an explanation. But the guards were a solid wall, their grip like iron. The next thing I knew, I was being shoved backward, tumbling down the stone steps. A slow, mocking clap echoed from the top of the stairs. Leo stood there, dressed in a custom-tailored tuxedo, looking down at me with pure contempt. “Well, well, Kian. Putting on a little show for us?” he drawled. “Today’s my wedding day, you know. A bit rude to show up empty-handed. You and your grandmother both, tsk tsk.” I ignored his taunts, scrambling to my feet and grabbing him by the collar. “Where is she? Where is my grandmother?” Just then, Stella came running out of the hall, her white wedding gown trailing behind her. Her brow was furrowed in annoyance. “Kian!” she snapped. “You lay one finger on him and I swear…” I didn’t even look at her. My eyes were locked on Leo. “Where is my Nana?” A cruel smirk spread across Leo’s face. He suddenly threw his arms around me, making it look like we were wrestling, and we both tumbled back down the stairs. “Your senile old grandma wouldn’t believe I was the groom,” he whispered in my ear, his voice dripping with malice. “Kept insisting I take her to find Stella. So, I locked her in one of the cars on the street.” He chuckled. “It’s got to be over a hundred degrees today. If you don’t hurry, she might just bake in there.” My heart stopped. With a roar of pure fury, I drove my fist into his face. Then I scrambled away, stumbling toward the line of wedding cars parked along the curb. And there, in the passenger seat of the lead car, I saw her—a small, familiar, fragile silhouette. I pounded on the window, my eyes darting around for a rock, anything to break the glass. “Nana! Can you hear me? Nana!” It was the middle of the day, the sun beating down relentlessly. Inside that sealed metal box, the temperature would be lethal. For someone as frail as my grandmother, every second was critical. I stopped looking for a tool. I raised my fist and slammed it against the window. Again. And again. After a dozen blows, my hand was numb and bleeding, but the glass finally shattered. I reached through the jagged opening, ignoring the shards slicing into my skin, unlocked the door, and gently lifted her out. Her eyes were closed. She didn't respond to my calls. In that moment, I wanted to tear Leo limb from limb. Looking at her face, ashen and still, my vision blurred with tears. “Nana, just hold on. The ambulance is on its way. I’m taking you to the hospital, just hold on!”
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