"Dean, enough!" Dad barked, his voice slicing through the thick tension in the ballroom. His eyebrows arched so high I thought a vein might burst in his forehead.

For a second, I worried he'd get a stroke right here in front of everyone.

But even his thunder didn't stop the storm that was brewing.Something had Chloe trembling in her heeIs, something had my father threatening Dean's life in front of the entire guest list. My pulse raced as I wondered-what secret was lurking under all this shouting?

"Well, if you have something to say, better say it and.get it over with.Dean," Alyssa's voice rang out as she appeared from the edge of the crowd,stepping into the line of fire like some referee who didn't know the fight she was about to step into.

Dean spun, his movements jerky, like an intoxicated man trying to steady himself. His eyes found mine. Roman's arm tightened protectively around me, anchoring me to his chest. I could feel the tension rolling off him,sharp and dangerous.

"Oh, believe me, I do have a lot to say." Dean's smile was sharp, bitter."Why don't we start with the reason for our break-up, Sav? Don't you want to know who was behind it?"

The floor seemed to vanish beneath me. My throat went dry. The reason for our break-up? What was he about to-

"Dean! Shut up!" Chloe screeched, her shrill voice cracking like glass aguinst murble.

"Let my son speak," Dean's mother cut in, calm and collected,shutting Chloe down with one deadly glance."Go on,son."

Dean looked at his mother like she'd just handed him a loaded gun."Thank you, Mom." He flashed her a smile that made my stomach twist.

Ew. He was a Mama's boy too? How did I never see that?

"Dean," Dad wwarned, his voice low and threatening. "Consider the amount of people here. Don't be stupid enough to create a scandal with Bridal Luxe in attendance."

But Dad's warning only lit the fuse. Dean's jaw clenched, his face flushing red. His next words were spat with venom.

"Is that so? In that case, I'll start with you, Uncle Julius. Why don't you tell everyone here that you bribed me into showing up at this wedding today?"

A collective gasp rippled through the hall. My own breath caught in my throat.

"What?" I whispered. My father bribed him?

Dean didn't stop. His voice grew louder, wilder. "But you know what you did? You and your evil daughter plotted behind my back to find a lawyer who'd anhul our marriage the next day. Because God forbid anything ruins her precious big day."

He threw his head back and laughed, a laugh so hollow it scraped down my spine. "But you know the best part? The wedding wasn't even real! The officiant's license expired three years ago. Three! And when I tracked him down, he admitted he's barely a functioning alcoholic now,he doesn't officiate anymore. So tell me, who's smarter now, Chloe?!"

Gasps,whispers, shocked faces everywhere. The glittering chandeliers above us caught the tension and refracted it. bouncing it off every diamond worn, every sequin, every polished glass of champagne gripped tight:

Chloe swayed on her feet like she might collapse. Dad's face was a storm of fury, but for once, he wasn't in control. His dream of clawing his way back into his old position-slipping through his fingers right in front of everyone.

Dean leaned forward, eyes flashing. "And don't even try to ask how I knew about your schemes. You're not the only one with eyes and ears everywhere."

Chloe found her voice, thin and shrill. "So you lied to me, Dean?! You deceived me! Was it your plan all along to humiliate me like this? Today of all days?"

Dean's face twisted. "You deceived me first! You took my love for granted. You planned to divorce me a day after our wedding because you found out I was sick. You never loved me. I was stupid to believe you ever would. You should be ashamed of yourself. Chloe. It's my fault for falling for a woman like you."

"You were weak." Chloe's sneer was venomous. "How could I possibly love a man so easy to control? So easy to deceive."

The words slapped him harder than any hand could. His laugh came out choked,desperate.

"Easy to control? Easy to deceive? Is that what it is now? But you used to call them sacrifices, remember? SacrificesI had to make to prove to you that I loved you. And what did you do? You got pregnant for

someone else and tried to lie your way through that as well." His voice dripped sarcasm. Then suddenly, he swung his gaze back to me. He walked toward me with sharp, fast strides.

My heart stuttered. I stumbled back until Roman pulled me firmly behind him, his body a wall between Dean and me.

"Back off," Roman growled. His tone was lethal, his eyes promising violence. "You've got three seconds before I get violent and make this ugly for you."

Dean froze. Then stepped back several steps. But his finger shot out,pointing at me like a dagger.

"You made me break up with Savannah, Chloe. You told me she was cheating on me with some guy named Declan from high school. Isn't that right?" He said, "Now I'm guessing that was a lie too."

"What?" My voice ripped from my throat, raw and disbelieving. The weight of his words pressed down like a thousand pounds. "Chloe, what is he talking about?! I never dated Declan! I never even-That was you!"

Every eye turned on Chloe. Her face flickered with panic, like a cornered animal. She darted looks left and right, searching for an escape that didn't exist.

Dean roared, "Tell your sister the truth! Tell her you wrote that text.Tell her it was your idea that I dump her on her birthday.Go on, Chloe!You love the spotlight, don't you? Well, here it is. There are cameras everywhere. Tell them!" His voice almost shook the chandeliers.

My heart thundered in my.ears. My palms were slick, my knees were weak. I was so grateful to be barefoot because my heels would've sent me

crashing to the floor. My breath came shallow,ragged.

"Chloe." My voice cracked as I stepped out from behind Roman.I looked her dead in the eye. "Why? What did I ever do to you?"

Her eyes hardened into stone. "Yes," she said, her voice low but sharp às glass. "I did all that. And I did it because I wanted to hurt you. A whole lot. Just like you hurt me."

I stared at her, stunned. "I hurt you? What are you talking about?I have never done anything to hurt you."

Her mouth twisted. "I'm not surprised. He always said you were a good liar."

Confusion swirled through me, wild and unrelenting. "Who? What are you talking about? None of this makes sense! I've never done anything to deserve this. To deserve you destroying every piece of happiness I ever touched!"

Dean snapped, his face contorted with fury. "Do not listen to her. She s lying, as always! Do not listen to this bitch. She constantly lies about you-about everything! We never even dated because she wasn't interested in me and only wanted this wedding to happen just to hurt you! This was all her grand scheme to get back at you. She planned this! And I went along with it because I used to have my eye on her and would do anything for scraps of her affection. Even when we were together, she played me. She played everyone. It's what you do, Chloe!"

The floor tilted. My chest squeezed until I couldn't breathe. "What?!Then why am I here? Why is everybody here? How could you both stage an entire wedding just to spite me?" My voice pitched high, disbelief dripping from every word.

Chloe's lipscurled into a cold, cruel smile. "Because I knew you loved him more than anyone. And I knew marrying him while you watched would kill you quicker than any dagger would."

"You hate me that much?" My voice broke, cracked down the middle."That much,Chloe?"

Her eyes glinted with malice. "This is nothing compared to what you did to me."

I didn't let her finish. My hand flew across her face before my brain caught up. The slap cracked through the ballroom like a gunshot, silencing every gasp, every whisper. Chloe's head snapped to the side, her cheek flaming red.

"Don't you dare accuse me of sins I didn't commnit." My voice shook,but it carried. "Never again."

For a moment, all I could hear was the pounding of my own heart.the tremble of my own rage, and the deafening silence of everyone watching as Chloe staggered back,eyes wide with shock. And for the first time in a long time, I wasn't the one bleeding.She was.