I once believed Sarah Weller was the love of my life. For her, I planned a once-in-a-lifetime wedding; for her, I launched a “True Love” jewelry collection worth over a billion. However, with only seven days left before the wedding, she calmly told me that she needed to fulfill her first love’s late mother’s final wish to marry him first, and only then marry me.

As if it were a matter of fact, she said, “For Tim, all of this can be sacrificed. If you can’t even bear to lose that little bit of money, you can find someone else to marry right now.”

Only then did I understand. In her world, I and everything I had built could be pushed aside at any moment for her so-called first love. So, I turned around without another word and called home.

“Penelope,” I said to my sister-in-law, “the wedding will proceed as scheduled. Just do me a favor and replace the bride.”

On the day of the appointment to try on her wedding gown, I waited downstairs at Sarah Weller’s company for a long time before she finally came down, slow and unhurried.

The moment she got into the car, she tossed me a small airplane model.

“Tim wanted me to give this to you,” she said. “You embarrassed him at the funeral yesterday. You should find the time to apologize to him.”

The airplane was a miniature version. It was clearly a freebie that came with a real purchase. I had seen it in Sarah’s shopping cart just a few days ago.

I replied flatly, “I don’t want it.”

She frowned immediately. “Why are you throwing a tantrum? You were the one who barged into the funeral and said I wasn’t his fiancée, making things awkward for him. Not only did he not hold it against you, but he even thought to bring you a gift. And this is how ungrateful you are?”

The woman who once stood firmly by my side was long gone. Now, the person she treasured was someone else.

Irritated, Sarah rolled down the window and let the wind blow in. After a long while, when she realized I wasn’t going to coax her, she finally spoke again.

“Forget it. Today’s a good day. I’ll be trying on my wedding gown. I won’t argue with you.”

This was the first time all year that she had softened first.

At the bridal boutique, a shop assistant immediately came forward.

“Miss Weller, Mr. Grant has personally commissioned one hundred and twenty custom wedding gowns for you. They’re all ready.”

However, Sarah wasn’t looking at the dresses at all. She was staring down at her phone, her expression tense and distracted. When she noticed my gaze, she quickly put the phone away, a trace of guilt flashing across her face.

“Henry, something urgent came up on Tim’s side. I need to go right now. You can pick one for me. I trust your taste.”

Before I could say anything, she hurried off, flagged down a taxi, and left me standing there alone.

The shop assistant approached cautiously. “Mr. Grant, would you like to choose the wedding gown yourself?”

I looked away and nodded. Of course, I would choose, but just not for Sarah. After all, the bride was now someone else.

“Penelope,” I said into the phone, “the wedding is still on, but I need you to find me another bride.”

There was stunned silence on the other end.

“You’re calling off the engagement?”

“No,” I replied with a bitter smile. “She chose to marry someone else.”

For Sarah, I had fought my way through countless objections within the family before finally gaining my parents’ approval. I had even scheduled the launch of the ‘True Love’ jewelry collection for our wedding day. Now, everything had turned into nothing.

After a long pause, Penelope, my sister-in-law, finally spoke. “In that case, Summer’s the only one. Her family’s been pressuring her, and she’s been looking for someone to marry lately.”

I frowned. Summer Flores was my sworn rival. On the day of my engagement, she had even cursed my marriage to fall apart. I never thought her words would come true.

With time running out, I said, “Then it’ll be her. Ask her if she’s interested. If not, I’ll think of another way.”

Penelope replied without hesitation, “There’s no need to ask. She’ll agree.”

“What?”

Before I could ask anything else, she said she was busy and hung up.

I drove home, fully expecting Sarah not to return that night. Yet before dinner, I saw her.

She strode over to me, holding a takeout box, saying, “I went all over the city to get this for you—a late-night snack from Harry’s.”

I looked down at the chicken tenders inside. There were three fewer than usual. One of them even had a clear bite mark, as if someone had already taken a bite. Half an hour earlier, I had seen Tim post on social media. The photo was of this exact food.

“My wife never forgets to buy me a late-night snack, even at this hour. Thanks for the hard work, my love. I love you.”

I set my fork down, mocking myself silently. My appetite vanished instantly.

“I don’t feel like eating,” I said. “Throw it away.”

Sarah immediately looked displeased, but she held it in. She sat beside me and began to complain instead.

“You have no idea how sad Tim was today. My parents went to see him and brought up the wedding. He panicked so badly he almost cried. Tim just got back to the country and doesn’t have much money. I was thinking of using the money you gave me for our wedding to help him with the wedding first.”

She shook my arm lightly, like she was trying to flirt with me.

I looked at her and sneered, “So now I’m supposed to pay for the wedding for your husband, too?”

I used to care deeply about Sarah. As long as she asked, I was willing to give her anything, do anything for her, but now, she had personally given me a reality check.

Thinking back carefully, ever since Tim returned to the country, everything she did had been for him. She had forgotten that I was the one she was supposed to spend her life with.

My response clearly angered her.

“What do you mean by that?” she snapped. “You don’t want to? Get this straight—Tim is my best friend. You’d better make him happy, or I won’t marry you!”

With that, she slammed the door and left.

Feeling stifled and restless, I went downstairs to the park for a run. I had barely finished one lap when Summer called. Thinking of her cold, aloof face—the kind that looked like she was tired of the world—I hesitated for two seconds before answering.

The moment the call connected, she hit me with a verbal ambush.

“Once you’re on my boat, you’re mine. If you dare run, I’ll break your legs.”

I fell silent, not saying a word.

She continued calmly, “Send me your ID. I’ll get the paperwork done. I don’t want you backing out.”

Something was definitely off with Summer. In my mind, I had imagined ten thousand scenarios where she would use marriage as a convenient way to torture me.

In the end, all I could manage was, “See you at the wedding, Miss Flores.”

The moment I said that, a voice sounded behind me.

“You’re inviting Summer to our wedding? I won’t allow it!”

Sarah stared at me as if she were facing a great enemy.

“Henry, didn’t I tell you to cut all contact with Summer? Her intentions toward you aren’t as pure as they seem. If you insist on inviting her to our wedding, don’t blame me then for turning against you!”

I hadn’t even said a single word yet, and she had issued her ultimatum.

Sarah had always disliked Summer for reasons unknown. She harbored a strange hostility toward her. When we first got together, she had even gotten jealous because Summer and I used to exchange sarcastic messages online. After that, I gradually cut off contact with Summer. Yet now she was saying… Summer had ulterior motives toward me?

Just as I was about to question her, Tim suddenly leaned weakly against Sarah’s neck.

“Sarah, you’re hurting me…”

Only then did I notice that the two of them were walking hand in hand, fingers tightly intertwined.

Sarah coughed awkwardly but made no move to pull her hand away. Tim looked at her with deep affection before he turned to me with a helpless expression and apologized.

“Henry, I’m sorry. Sarah and I were just rehearsing the wedding. Please don’t misunderstand. As for the incident where you had someone beat me up and damage my mother’s grave, I won’t tell anyone about it. But please don’t hurt Sarah. Don’t put her feelings to the test.”

I had no interest in watching their act. I turned to leave.

“If you’re looking forward to it that much, I’ll have someone beat you up tonight and dig up your mother’s grave while I’m at it.”

Suddenly, Sarah struck me hard across the face.

“Henry, how can you be so vicious?” Her face darkened, her chest rising and falling with anger.

Me? Vicious? She believed someone else’s lies without question, yet five years of history between us couldn’t earn her trust.

A surge of anger flared in my chest. Just as I was about to confront her, Tim stepped in front of her.

“Henry, I’m begging you. Once the wedding is over, I’ll give Sarah back to you. Please, show mercy. Don’t hurt the people around me, and don’t hurt Sarah anymore.”

As he spoke, he moved as if to kneel. Sarah quickly wrapped her arms around his waist, stopping him, and glared at me furiously.

“Henry, stop using your rich-kid privilege to be a bully! You know how much I hate it. If you still want to marry me, stop putting up a fuss!”

She then warned me sternly not to appear in front of them again before the wedding, so I didn’t expect her to contact me the very next day.

She immediately launched into furious accusations. “Henry, I can’t believe you actually went and dug up Mrs. Ziegler’s grave. I never thought you were this kind of person!”

Full of confusion, I immediately called my assistant and told him to investigate the matter. What he uncovered shocked me to the core.

Tim’s mother wasn’t dead at all.

No wonder Tim could be so utterly deranged as to dig up his mother’s grave just to frame me. As it turned out, the whole “death” was a lie.

I sent Sarah a message.

“Tim’s mother isn’t dead. The truth is in the email I sent you.”

Whether she chose to read it or not was no longer my concern. My flight was booked for three days later. Summer had done the booking.

When Sarah returned home, she saw me packing. Half my clothes had been thrown away, and a small portion had been boxed up and shipped to South City.

“Why are you packing?” she asked, her expression uncertain.

I brushed it off by replying, “Moving.”

She paused briefly but didn’t sense anything wrong. Instead, she continued on her own.

“The Grants’ business is in South City. After we get married, we’ll be moving there anyway. It makes sense to start packing early.”

Then, her gaze sharpened as she looked straight at me.

“About Tim’s mother, you need to apologize as soon as possible. Don’t put me in a difficult position. Why don’t you do it on the wedding day? What do you think?”

After saying that, she tossed her phone aside and went to look for her ID. Today was the day she and Tim were registering their marriage, so she didn’t come back all evening.

When I picked up my phone, a message from Tim popped up immediately. It was a dimly lit photo of a woman. In the picture, Sarah was wearing a maid's outfit, looking straight into the camera. I closed my eyes. Despite myself, a sharp pain pierced my heart. I forced that feeling down and turned off the screen.

Late at night, the phone beside my pillow vibrated once every hour. Each time it buzzed, it was another video from Tim—videos of him and Sarah, sent deliberately to provoke me.

It wasn’t until the next morning that Summer sent me a message.

“Mr. Grant, the flowers have bloomed. You may return at your leisure.”

Attached was a photo of two marriage certificates and a pot of vibrant red peonies. I hadn’t expected that the flower I had casually given her years ago was still being kept alive. For some reason, a strange feeling rose quietly in my chest.

I replied, “Okay.”

I put my phone down and started organizing my laptop and work files, only to realize at some point that Sarah had returned.

She was packing her daily necessities as she spoke. “I’m going to stay with Tim for a few days. He can’t handle preparing the wedding alone. Don’t forget to attend the wedding the day after tomorrow. Be on time. Don’t be late.”

After that, she launched into a long explanation—nothing more than insisting she was just helping out and warning me not to cause trouble again.

“I won’t be going,” I said quietly, my eyes lowered.

After everything that happened last night, the last trace of affection I had for her was gone.

Seeing how calm I was, an inexplicable sense of panic swept over Sarah. She hesitated, but then she thought of Tim’s clingy behavior, and the hand gripping her phone slowly relaxed. She knew I loved her so much. What could possibly go wrong?

With that thought, she let out a breath, and walked out of my sight. I watched as she walked out and dialed a number.

That very night, a helicopter landed in the city plaza.

A man stepped forward. “Mr. Grant, the helicopter you booked has arrived. It will safely deliver you to South City in thirty minutes.”

I nodded, then handed him a sealed document envelope.

“Deliver this to the wedding tomorrow,” I said calmly. “It’s my wedding gift to the bride and groom.”