Chapter 1

Eight years together, and my boyfriend claimed he was strictly anti-marriage.

Yet while away on a "business trip," he secretly married someone else—and accidentally sent the digital wedding invite to my throwaway account.

Heartbroken, I watched his happily-ever-after from the shadows, walked away, and broke up with him the second I got back.

The scumbag thought I was just throwing a tantrum to force a proposal, even claiming he was willing to "compromise" and marry me.

The day he dragged me to City Hall to prove it, his brand-new wife was waiting right on the steps.

Ding~

A notification chimed from an alternate account I hadn’t logged into in months. Putting down the laundry in my hands, I picked up my phone.

A line of digital text glared back at me: [You are cordially invited to celebrate the wedding of Liam Miller and Chloe Vance...]

The sender was saved as *Prince Charming*.

My stomach dropped through the floor. I couldn't bring myself to tap the link.

I had no idea who Chloe Vance was. But the name Liam Miller had been carved into my soul for eight whole years. I could recognize him with my eyes closed.

Just last night, he was lying right beside me in bed, whispering sweet goodnights against my ear.

Now, reality slammed into me like a brick wall, telling me my Prince Charming was someone else’s husband.

How was I supposed to swallow this?

In the eight years Liam and I had been together, I’d dropped countless hints about marriage. Every single time, he brushed me off, claiming he was anti-marriage and believed paper only ruined pure love.

And now... he had gone behind my back and tied the knot with someone else.

Then what was I?

What the hell were my past eight years?

Hysteria took over. I grabbed the dress shirt I had just ironed for him and ripped it to shreds with my bare hands, tearing at the fabric as if I were ripping him apart.

When my arms gave out, I curled up on the edge of the mattress, sobbing uncontrollably as eight years of memories flashed before my eyes.

I grew up without a real family. The day my alcoholic father beat me and threw me out onto the street was the first day I met Liam.

He was wearing a crisp white shirt, clean-cut and bright, stepping into my broken life like the hero of a romance novel, wrapping me in a warmth I’d never known.

Falling in love felt as natural as breathing. He held umbrellas over my head in pouring rain, wrapped his coat around my shoulders when the wind howled, and blushed furiously while holding my hand in front of our teasing friends.

Those ordinary, quiet days were my salvation.

So when he told me he never wanted to get married, I swallowed my disappointment and stayed faithfully by his side.

Looking back, when I swore I would never leave him, ring or no ring, he must have been laughing his ass off at how pathetic I was.

I was a walking joke—the naive fool who believed sheer devotion could conquer anything.

But I couldn't just let it go without seeing it with my own eyes.

After pulling myself together, I bought the most expensive designer dress I’d ever owned, did my makeup to perfection, and showed up at his wedding venue.

The sickest part? Right before the ceremony began, I received a text from him.

He wrote: [Nora, my business trip is wrapping up. Coming home tomorrow. Craving those homemade cinnamon rolls of yours.]

How thoughtful of him to take time out of his own wedding to keep his side piece pacified. I let out a dry, bitter laugh and didn't reply.

I found an empty seat in a dim corner and watched the entire ceremony unfold, watching my last shred of hope shatter into dust.

He smiled so brightly. There wasn't an ounce of reluctance on his face.

None of the hesitation or conflict he’d always showed whenever marriage was brought up with me.

Any ridiculous impulse I had to storm the aisle and "save" him vanished instantly. I pulled out my phone and sent one final message.

[It’s over. We’re done.]

His reply didn't come until the reception was over.

By then, I was already on my way home. Liam texted back: [Who upset my little princess?]

His tone was completely normal. He didn't take my breakup text seriously at all—just like he’d completely forgotten that I had once created a throwaway account just to leave sweet messages under his profile.

That was how his careless mistake had blown up his entire double life.