Joe looked at me in exasperation, as if questioning why I was making a joke that was wasting everyone's time.

We had been in a relationship for three years. We had broken up before, but we somehow always made up and got back together.

The last time we got into a fight and broke up was when Erica made a huge mess at our engagement party.

Joe had been particularly furious then. He slapped Erica and gave her the cold shoulder.

"Leave, or you're going to regret what I'll do to you."

Back then, Joe grabbed Erica by the wrist and dragged her out to the road.

When he returned, he knelt before me in front of all our relatives and elders, and promised nothing like this would ever happen again.

After that, Joe proved his loyalty to me by deleting Erica's contact and blocking her on all social media.

"I'm twenty-seven, Simone. All I want to do is spend the rest of my life with you. I don't want anybody else."

As he declared his love for me, Joe took out a diamond ring from his pocket called the 'Lover's Eye'. He had designed it himself, and he put it on my ring finger.

I believed Joe in that moment. I had so much hope for the future back then.

However, my hope diminished every time we argued, and now, nothing was left of it.

I ignored Joe and took a cab home.

Our new home was now a complete mess. The air was filled with the strange stench of the hornet wine.

The smell made me retch so much that I lost my appetite for dinner.

Late that night, I woke up from the pain in my swollen arm. The space next to me in bed was still empty.

He promised me he would be home tonight, but he broke his word again.

I sneered. I had no idea why I even thought he would keep the promise.

The next morning, I called Joe's mother, Maria Fulham, to talk about cancelling our wedding.

She was surprised, but did not want to lose a daughter-in-law like me, who was perfect for their family. She tried to talk me out of it.

"Simone, you've already registered your marriage with Joe. Don't be rash about this.

"Besides, your wedding is next month, and we've already sent out the invitations. You should give Joe another chance."

I closed my eyes. My voice choked in my throat, and I had no idea what to say.

It was tempting to tell her that Joe and I had not yet registered our marriage.

Joe and I had planned to register it on the 17th of last month.

However, Erica somehow found out about it. She called Joe before we stepped into City Hall.

"Joe, I was assaulted. I don't want to live anymore!"

Erica cried hysterically about what happened, barely able to breathe between her sobs.

"All I remember was drinking too much the night before, and I woke up in a hotel room. I'm so scared! Am I… Am I dirty now?"

Joe's heart tightened. He quickly comforted Erica and tried to get her to call the police.

"Don't panic. Put on your clothes and check the surveillance cameras. I'll come over right now and go to the police station with you."

I tugged Joe's sleeve and said bitterly to him, "Joe… We haven't registered our marriage yet.

"Can't you tell what's going on? Why are you still so stubborn? Don't you know what Erica's going through?"

He said, "You were molested before as a child, so how can you not understand the pain Erica is going through?"

My mind went blank. Joe's words were like a knife to my heart, and I could hardly breathe.

Joe was the only person I had ever told about being molested by my relative when I was young.

However, he used this information against me to go help another woman.

I watched as my fiancé called a cab without hesitation to go to another woman.

Even though the situation turned out to be a misunderstanding, we never mentioned registering our marriage again.

I thought it no longer bothered me, but the memory still pained me.

"Maria, I've made my decision. The wedding is off!"

Joe finally came home at eight that night.

He did not look well. He sounded exhausted when he spoke to me.

"Simone, do you really want to cancel our wedding over something so minor?

"I promise to cut all ties with Erica after we get married."

The whole situation was torture to me right now. I did not want to wait until we got married.

I shook my head and smiled bitterly. I relished in my revengeful tone as I spoke sarcastically, "Joe, are you sure we're able to spend the rest of our lives together?"

His expression turned grim. He suddenly pulled me into his arms and kissed the back of my neck.

"Give me another chance, honey.

"I'm begging you!"

I took a deep breath. I wanted to push him away so badly.

However, his hands were like lead as they wrapped around my waist so tightly that I could hardly struggle.

I closed my eyes and decided to give him one last chance.

Joe finally kept his promise this time. He ignored Erica whenever she came over to cause trouble.

He focused on his work as he prepared for the next season's preview of his jewelry collection.

"This time, the theme I'm designing for is 'eternal love'. I'll be using our love story as the background and core of the design to publicize the idea behind this concept…"

Joe rambled on about it while looking lovingly at me.

I felt nothing as I looked into his eyes. On the contrary, I had a bad feeling about things.

The wedding went forward as planned. Joe was busy juggling work while organizing the wedding too.

On the day I was trying on my wedding gown, I received an anonymous message that looked like the sender was showing off.

"Simone Carter, I always get what I want. You don't even stand a chance against me!"

I frowned. I quickly recognized it as a taunting message from Erica.

The first thing I did was block the sender. After that, I called Joe to ask him what he was doing.

"Honey, I'm busy working on the next season's jewelry collection preview. My team has invested so much money and work into it. We're aiming to hit a new high in our advance sales."

Joe sounded excited about it, which made me let my guard down.

"Also, it's our wedding the day after tomorrow. I won't forget about it. Don't worry, honey!"

Joe hung up. I felt relieved.

I hoped nothing would go wrong this time.

The night before the wedding, the nagging feeling that something was wrong only grew. I kept feeling like something was about to happen.

I called Joe again to ask him where he was.

This time, he sounded a little annoyed and slightly breathless.

"I'm finishing up the last piece with my colleagues, so it won't be a distraction during our wedding tomorrow. I'm working hard until late tonight—"

I suddenly overheard a voice in the background, and I frowned.

Before I could ask about it, Joe quickly explained, "My colleague fell down. I need to take a look at him."

The moment Joe hung up, my mother called me in a panic. She sounded like she was breaking down as she fired a question at me.

"What happened, Simone? Why didn't you tell me anything?

"You're my only daughter. How can I not worry when you're facing something like this?"

My mother sounded more anxious by the second. She must be really mad about something.

My mother suffered from severe asthma, so she should not be agitated. I tried to comfort her patiently.

"What's going on, Mom? Nothing's wrong with me…"

The next second, I received messages that my mother had forwarded to me.

All sorts of unseemly photographs appeared in front of my eyes.

They were all passionate pictures of Joe and Erica in bed.

Their naked bodies clung to each other like Siamese twins in a tight embrace.

She had also forwarded a voice recording that lasted a little more than ten seconds of their erotic, breathless pants. It burned my ears.

It featured the boyfriend who had just claimed he was hard at work in the office.

I clenched my phone tight as I stared at the obscene photos. My heart felt like someone had just squeezed it dry.

There was no doubt that Erica was doing this on purpose to get me riled up.

I did not dare to think about my mother's reaction when she received these messages.

Just as my brain went blank for two seconds, my mother wheezed and fell hard on the ground. The call was cut off.

Something broke inside me, and I went into panic mode.

"Mom!"

There was no time for me to change. I jumped into my car and sped crazily, running through at least three red lights.

I did not care. If my mother did not get help during her asthma attack, she would die.

Despite hurrying toward her, I was still too late.

My mother was foaming at the mouth, lying on the ground motionless with her eyes rolled upward.

I quickly called an ambulance to take her to the hospital.

As I was trembling, I called Erica.

Her voice sounded sickly sweet, like she had just had a great time in bed. She admitted to everything.

"That's right. I was the one who sent the photos and recording to your mother. That should teach you a lesson for trying to steal my man!"

"Erica, I won't let you get away with it if anything happens to my mother!"

She laughed, not taking my threat seriously. She replied to me sarcastically, "Here's to wishing you a blessed wedding in advance, Simone."

Why was she trying to make me so angry?

Fine. I would not give in any longer.

I tried my best to calm down. I made sure to save all the evidence of Joe cheating on me while calling the police to record my statement.

After seven hours of waiting, the doctor managed to save my mother from the jaws of death. Even he could not help lamenting the situation.

"It would be amazing if she manages to wake up, but if she doesn't, she might be in a vegetative state the rest of her life."

The news hit me hard. My limbs lost all feeling as I froze on the spot.

Tears fell slowly down my cheeks, and I clenched my fists. I swore to get justice for my mother.

This wedding was very important to the Fulhams, and they invited many well-known figures.

It was a grand event. The makeup artist reminded me that it was time to do my makeup, but I refused to show up.

"I won't be attending the wedding. Please help me deliver a big gift to the attendees instead."

As the wedding drew nearer, I did not show up. Eventually, Joe started to panic. He called me to rush me.

"Stop joking around, Simone. We have guests waiting for us. My parents are going to be humiliated. Come over right now!"

I sneered. I counted silently in my heart before I answered him.

"My gift for you has arrived, Joe."

The screen in the middle of the wedding venue turned dark. An excited moan could be heard coming from it. The moans interspersed a flirty conversation between Joe and Erica.

"I love you so much, Joe. You can only belong to me…”

"Erica, you crazy woman! This is the last time I let this happen!"

Everyone could hear the sound of human flesh slapping hard against each other. It was particularly loud in the silent hall.

It was the recording Erica had sent to my mother. Now, it was my turn to share it with everyone.

Joe's parents turned pale. They trembled with anger and could not say a word.

The guests looked at each other with disdain on their faces. They could not help criticizing the situation.

"What a horrible thing to do the day before his wedding!"

"I can't believe a Fulham man would behave this way. Disgusting!"

"Erica is Joe's ex-girlfriend. She’s been harassing him for years. I can't believe they're… Tsk tsk!"

Joe had no idea what to do when the recording suddenly played. He turned pale.

He quickly called me, but no one picked up. Joe started to panic again.

That was when the makeup artist suddenly ran in while shouting to the guests, "The bride has abandoned the altar!"

Meanwhile, the police arrived quickly and blocked all exits of the wedding venue.