Chapter 1One minute before I said "I do," Theon leaned in. "Babe, riddle time."
"Like mother, like daughter. So what does a mistress raise?"
Calming my nerves? So sweet.
"Another mistress."
He smirked. "Smart. You'll be perfect for it."
I froze.
"WHAT?"
Theon ripped off my veil.
"Yara's been spoiled her whole life. Not the side piece."
"You're easy. Can handle people talking shit."
Yara Hart—MY STEPSISTER.
I grabbed my dress, hands shaking.
"I'M NOBODY'S MISTRESS. EVER."
He actually laughed. "Lorelei, stop being dramatic."
"Your mom did it. So can you."
"It's just a title change. When you're horny, I'll still fuck you."
Even HE was using those rumors against me.
Suddenly, I felt weirdly calm.
"Theon fucking Blake, I don't want you either. Ever."
...
I looked at him.
"Theon, you know exactly WHAT I'm afraid of."
He hesitated.
Then dropped his voice.
"That's why I didn't actually humiliate you."
"You get the wedding. You get the dignity."
"No one outside will know."
I almost laughed.
So in his mind, as long as no one knew, I wasn't dirty.
The wedding planner knocked and walked in.
"Mr. Blake, Miss Morgan, bridal bag's here. The cars are waiting."
The zipper wasn't closed. A paper slipped out.
Marriage license appointment.
Names: Theon Blake, Yara Hart.
Time: right before the wedding.
My best friend Juniper snatched it, eyes burning.
"You bastard shoved YOUR appointment slip in Lorelei's bridal bag?"
Theon glanced at it.
"My assistant mixed them up."
I stared at him.
"So it's REAL?!"
Right the, his phone rang.
The screen lit up—Yara.
In the video, Yara stood under a magnolia tree in my dead mom's yard.
She wore a white dress, holding a pregnancy test report, eyes red.
"Theon, will sister be mad?"
"But you said it's quiet here. We could use it as the baby's room."
My head exploded.
I looked at Theon.
"You let this slut into my mom's house?"
Theon hung up. His voice softened.
"Yara just got pregnant. She's emotional."
"That's my mom's house!"
"I know."
He tried to soothe me like always.
"I'll buy you a better one later."
Juniper rushed over.
"Are you fucking serious? You let your mistress move into Lorelei's dead mom's house?"
Theon's face darkened.
"Enough."
"Lorelei, the venue's packed. The media's here."
"Do me this favor."
"Tonight I'll come home and get on my knees. Make it up to you."
I didn't answer. Reached down to take off the ring.
The second I touched it, he grabbed my wrist.
"Don't."
"You'll regret it."
The wedding car honked outside.
Theon adjusted my veil and scooped me up.
In his arms, I suddenly remembered something from a long time ago.
Grandma sent someone to find me.
It was right after Theon and I got engaged.
She said: "Lorelei, I've arranged a match for you."
"I'm not forcing you. Just leaving you a way out."
Back then, I laughed it off.
"Grandma, I have a home now."
Now I realize—you shouldn't burn your bridges too early.
I pulled out my phone.
Before the car started, typed out a message.
Sent.
Tucked the phone back.
Theon looked down at me.
"What are you looking at?"
I locked the screen and asked quietly.
"Theon, you really think I can't leave you?"
He smirked.
"Not think."
"Know."
Chapter 2
The wedding car stopped at the hotel entrance.
Theon got out first, turned around and reached for me.
I didn't move.
He didn't push. Just bent down to fix my dress.
Held his hand over the car door edge so I wouldn't hit my head.
Cameras went wild.
Someone gushed: "Mr. Blake is so sweet!"
Theon looked up at me and smiled.
"Hear that? Everyone knows I spoil you."
I met his eyes.
"They don't know you're about to marry someone else."
A reporter was live-streaming us.
"Mr. Blake has personally escorted the bride."
"The wedding of the century is about to begin."
Mid-sentence, a reporter glanced at his phone.
Next second, shoved a mic in Theon's face.
"Mr. Blake, there's an anonymous tip that your marriage license appointment today ISN'T with Miss Morgan."
"But her sister, Yara Hart."
"Is that true?"
Dead silence.
More reporters rushed in.
"Are you ditching the wedding to go to the courthouse?"
"Who's actually the bride today?"
Theon's grip on my hand tightened.
He looked at the cameras. Still calm.
"Private matter. I'll respond later."
No denial.
The "doting fiancé" livestream instantly turned into a joke.
Then his phone buzzed.
Yara's voice, crying.
"Theon, our appointment is about to expire."
He lowered his head and fixed my veil carefully.
"Lorelei, go inside first."
Then he let go, turned, and got into another car.
Reporters exploded.
"Mr. Blake actually left!"
"Miss Morgan, any comment?"
Flashbulbs slammed into my face. I said nothing.
Juniper held me up, fingers shaking.
"Lorelei, I recorded everything."
I glanced at her.
Her eyes were red, but she still forced a smile.
"Don't be scared."
Mrs. Blake came out fast and took my arm.
"Theon had urgent business."
"Lorelei, let's get you inside to rest."
The second the lounge door closed, her smile vanished.
I looked at her.
"You knew he was going to get the license?"
Mrs. Blake adjusted her jade necklace.
"Yara's carrying the Blake heir."
"She gets the title. You get the dignity."
"People will still call you Mrs. Blake. No one's gonna correct them."
I let out a quiet laugh.
"A fake Mrs. Blake?"
"Does it matter if it's fake?"
The door opened again.
Dad and my stepmother Odette walked in.
The moment he saw me, his face darkened.
"Who are you making that face at?"
I asked.
"Dad, did you know Yara was marrying Theon today?"
Odette sighed.
"Yara's been insecure her whole life."
"You're her older sister. Just let her have this one."
Juniper snapped.
"Let her have what? Her husband? Her marriage certificate?"
Dad barked.
"Lorelei Morgan, control your people!"
Then he slammed two documents on the table.
One was a funding renewal agreement between Blake Corp and the Hart family.
The other was a mortgage contract on Mom's old house.
"The Hart family's cash is still controlled by the Blakes."
"Your mother's old house is on the collateral list."
"You make a scene today, the bank takes it tomorrow."
"Her photos, her things, the magnolia tree—none of it survives."
My fingers went numb.
My phone buzzed. Voice message from Theon.
"Lorelei, Yara's in bad shape."
"I'm gonna take her to get the license first."
"Don't worry. You'll still get your wedding."
"When I get back, I'll put the ring on you myself."
At the end of the message, Yara's soft voice.
"Theon, it's our turn."
I stared at the screen.
Few seconds later, typed one word.
[Okay.]
Everyone relaxed.
I lowered my head and sent three photos to my lawyer.
The marriage license appointment slip.
The mortgage contract.
And Theon's voice message.
The second it send, I remembered what Grandma once told me.
"Lorelei, don't be afraid to ask for help."
"Someone who really loves you won't wait for you to kneel before they reach out.
Back then, I didn't get it.
I thought Theon was that one.
But now, he was reaching for happiness—with another woman.
Chapter 3
12:10.
The ballroom screen suddenly went black.
It had been playing a video of me and Theon. Seven years together.
On screen, he sat with me under the magnolia tree.
"Lorelei, I'll give you a home."
Next second, the screen flickered.
Cut to a marriage certificate.
Groom: Theon Blake.
Bride: Yara Hart.
The room erupted.
The AV guy frantically hit buttons on the console.
The screen wouldn't switch back.
At the same time, Yara's Instagram popped up on the projection.
Location: NYC City Clerk.
Caption: [From Miss to Mrs. ??]
Comments started flooding in.
[The true lover gets the certificate.]
[Some girls wear expensive wedding dresses just to be the backup.]
The ballroom got louder.
"Did the groom actually marry the sister?"
"Then what's the one in the wedding dress?"
"They were just showing seven years of love, now it's a marriage certificate. Humiliating."
The MC came over for the third time.
"Mrs. Blake, we can't wait anymore."
"Media's asking if the groom ditched the wedding."
My phone rang. Theon.
"Lorelei, I'm on my way back. Almost there."
I stared at the glaring certificate on screen.
"You got the license?"
He paused.
"Yeah."
I asked again: "Does it look good?"
Long silence.
"Lorelei, don't do this."
"I know you're hurt."
"But Yara almost passed out just now."
"She said if she didn't get that certificate today, she'd never be able to show her face again."
I laughed bitterly.
"What about me?"
"Can I show my face right now?"
The line went quiet.
Then he said: "You're stronger than her."
There it was AGAIN.
You're stronger.
So you deserve to take it.
I closed my eyes.
"Theon, remember what you promised me after my mom died?"
His breathing got lighter.
"You said anyone who ever called me a mistress would pay for it."
"Now the one hurting me is YOU."
After a long pause, he finally said quietly.
"Lorelei, I'm not abandoning you."
"After today, you get the villa downtown. Five percent of company shares."
"This is the best solution."
I sneered.
"Best for who?"
His tone finally turned cold.
"Yara just became my wife."
"I have to protect her."
Wife.
That word from his mouth cut deeper than anything.
I hung up.
Noise outside.
"Mr. Blake's back!"
"Miss Hart's here too!"
The door opened.
Theon walked in, still wearing the groom's boutonniere.
Yara peeked out from behind him.
White dress. Marriage certificate in her hand.
"Sis, you'll bless us, right?"
Theon glanced at me.
His eyes held exhaustion, warning, and a hint of guilt.
Yara walked straight onto the stage.
"Everyone, I'm sorry. This is all my fault."
"But I'm pregnant."
"My baby can't grow up without a father."
Gasps from the crowd.
She turned to me, voice soft and almost innocent.
"Lorelei, I'm not trying to steal your wedding."
"I just want a title."
"Your mom never had one. People trashed her for years."
"That's why she jumped off that building."
"You should understand me better than anyone."
"Why are you calling me a mistress too?"
That last sentence snapped something inside me.
I rushed the stage and raised my hand to slap her.
Theon caught my wrist first.
Next second.
SLAP.
His hand hit my face.
The hall went dead silent.
Yara hid in Theon's arms, sobbing quietly.
Theon's hand froze mid-air. Flash of regret in his eyes.
But then he lowered his voice.
"Lorelei, stop being stubborn."
"It hurts me too."
I slowly turned my face back toward him.
"It hurts you, so you slap me in front of everyone?"
His fingers curled.
"I hit you so they wouldn't say something worse."
Before I could even laugh, Yara's tears fell harder.
Her eyes landed on my wedding dress.
"That dress looks so beautiful on you."
"But I'll probably never get to wear a wedding dress of my own."
Theon followed her gaze to me.
In that instant, a ridiculous premonition hit me.
I stepped back.
"Theon, what are you doing?!"
