Chapter 3: Truth by the Lake

“Did Anna finally realize Alex Lane doesn’t want to marry her, so she didn’t pick directly?”

“Whether she knows or not doesn’t matter. The real question is if she’ll let Alex Lane go. Girls like her always get what they want—spoiled, how could she stand her crush not liking her?”

“Knowing he loves someone else and still insisting on marrying him, that’s just shameless. She deserves to be coldly treated by Alex Lane for the rest of her life.”

Those words drilled into my mind, full of mean satisfaction and spite. The kitchen clock ticked too loud, each second stretching the ache in my chest.

If I wanted to be with Alex Lane, I was the villain.

I held my breath and told my brother’s friend to take me to the lakeside gazebo.

I didn’t believe the words in the air. The drive felt endless, the roads painted gold by the setting sun.

Alex Lane doesn’t want to be my husband? He already has someone else in his heart?

I needed to hear it from him.

But my courage vanished the moment I saw him standing beside a young woman.

She dabbed a spot of paint on his nose. Alex Lane looked startled, then smiled, his ears turning red. That playful, easy moment—a world I didn’t belong to.

Some things you don’t need to ask to know.

“Such a sweet couple.”

“Alex Lane is way more relaxed with Emily Young than with Anna. He doesn’t have to worry about family stuff—they’re equals.”

“Alex Lane didn’t resist being chosen because of family pressure. Poor guy can’t control his own marriage. No wonder he resents Anna.”

Alex Lane resents me?

It was summer, but my fingers went cold. I tucked them into my sleeves, shivering despite the heat.

The people in the gazebo seemed to feel my gaze.

Alex Lane saw me. His smile vanished. He wiped the paint from his nose and walked over.

The lake breeze ruffled his shirt as he approached. “Hey, Anna.”

“Who is she?”

Alex Lane pressed his lips together, hesitating. He shifted to block my view.

“Just a friend.”

His instinct to protect her was obvious. The way he stood, shielding her, said more than words ever could.

He looked at me like I was a disaster waiting to happen, like he was afraid I’d hurt her.

I didn’t realize I was such a villain in his eyes. The sting went deeper than I expected.

I felt like an extra in someone else’s love story. My chest squeezed, and I had to bite my lip to keep from crying.

My heart felt pricked all over. I clenched my palm, straightened my back, and tried to sound normal: “Really? Then walk me home. I didn’t bring anyone with me…”

“My painting!”

A worried voice called from the gazebo. The painting hanging there had blown into the lake.

The young woman reached for it, half her body leaning out.

Alex Lane’s face went pale. He forgot all about me and rushed back, pulling her into his arms.

I’d never seen him lose his cool like that.

I watched as he let out a long sigh of relief, like he’d just avoided disaster. The young woman blushed and stepped back.

Their eyes held only each other, leaving no room for me.

Just like the words in the air had said: a loving couple.

The last bit of hope in my heart vanished. My shoulders slumped, defeated.

I turned and walked away.

“Anna.”

Alex Lane called out once. I didn’t look back, and he didn’t call again.

I knew his choice, and I knew mine.

Those words in the air were right. I’d been pampered my whole life, always getting what I wanted.

There are plenty of good men out there besides Alex Lane. Why cling and humiliate myself?

Still, my chest felt tight. I pressed my hand against my heart, trying to breathe steady.

I thought it was mutual. It was just wishful thinking.

I walked away, my heart pounding, certain of only one thing: I couldn’t go back.