I looked up in alarm—and locked eyes with a gaze as bright as the stars.

“Aidan?!” I gasped.

He quickly let go of me, his face turning crimson under the mask.

“Miss Milton, what are you doing in a place like this...?”

“You’re supposed to be dead!” My voice trembled with disbelief.

He scratched the back of his head, revealing a charming little canine tooth as he smiled sheepishly.

“There was a mole in our operation here. I faked my death during the landslide to smoke him out.”

“You know how to pull stunts like that?” I was genuinely surprised.

But his smile dimmed in an instant. “Did I... disappoint you? Have you always thought I was just a fool?”

A sudden ache stabbed my heart.

I grabbed his hand urgently and said, “Listen! You must come back before the 8th—for the wedding.”

He froze, and his gaze darkened. “Of course. I’ll be there—for your wedding.”

“You idiot,” I stomped my foot in frustration, “I meant I want to marry you—”

“Boss! The mole’s on the run!” A shout came from the alley entrance.

Aidan quickly stepped back. “This place isn’t safe, Miss Milton. Go back for now. I promise—I’ll be there for the wedding.”

Then, without another word, he disappeared into the shadows of the alleyway.

I stood there, stunned, emotions surging in waves.

In my past life, he was the one I paid the least attention to among the eight “sons” my father raised.

Everyone said he was all brawn and no brain, spending his time in clubs and racetracks.

Unlike Wyatt, always calm and composed in tailored suits, gold-rimmed glasses framing his perfect strategies.

But now I realized—those “minor roles” and “dirty work” had always gone to Aidan.

The most dangerous dealings, the messiest connections—how could anyone manage those without real skill?

On the way back, I had a new digital wedding invitation made and sent it to him.

It wasn’t until the middle of the night that my phone lit up with a message.

[Miss Milton, you wrote the groom’s name wrong. Please fix it.]

The typing indicator blinked for a long time before he added.

[Don’t worry. I’ll definitely be at the wedding.]

I couldn’t help but laugh softly.

There was no way he’d believe me now. I’d explain everything in person when he returned.

Meanwhile, my phone buzzed nonstop with messages from Wyatt.

[Olivia deserves your apology.]

[Stop being so childish.]

I opened the thread and, without hesitation, deleted his contact.

Knowing Aidan was alive—and far more capable than anyone ever gave him credit for—filled me with a renewed sense of clarity.

I began preparing for the wedding in earnest.

That day, I pushed open the glass door of a bridal boutique—and was instantly hit by the overwhelming stench of cheap perfume.

“Wyatt~ do I look good in this?” Olivia’s sugary-sweet voice rang, making my skin crawl.

She was wearing my wedding dress—the custom gown my mother had commissioned for me—twirling in front of the mirror, admiring herself.

Wyatt stood beside her, gazing at her with gentle eyes. “Olivia, you look beautiful in anything.”

“Stop it~ You’re such a charmer, Wyatt~” She giggled, spinning again as her cheap perfume thickened the air.

I forced myself to swallow the fury rising in my chest and walked toward them.

The moment Wyatt saw me, his face stiffened.

He instinctively stepped in front of Olivia, his voice laced with forced calm. “Aubrey, don’t misunderstand. Olivia’s health isn’t good. She might not make it to see the wedding. She just wanted to experience what it felt like to wear a wedding dress—”

Olivia started coughing delicately.

I cut him off, my voice was like ice. “Take. It. Off.”

Her eyes immediately welled with tears. “I’m sorry, Miss Milton... I was just... so jealous of you.”

Olivia clung to Wyatt’s sleeve, trembling as tears streamed down her face. “It’s all my fault... Don’t be mad at Wyatt...”

Wyatt’s expression darkened. “You’re going to marry me sooner or later. So what if she tried on the dress? Can’t you just let her be happy for once?”

“I said—take it off,” I repeated, enunciating each word with icy clarity.

Then I turned to the nervous boutique staff. “Since when were my wedding dresses available for others to try on?”

The two shop assistants scrambled to undress Olivia. Red welts began forming on her pale arms from the rushed movements.

She wept like a pitiful flower in the rain. “I’m sorry... It’s my fault. I’m cheap... I don’t deserve something this beautiful...”

Suddenly, her knees gave way, and she collapsed to the floor.

Wyatt lunged forward to catch her, then turned and shouted at me, “Aubrey, are you happy now?!”

I sneered and wrinkled my nose in disgust. “Sanitize the dress three times. Don’t leave a trace of her stench on it.”

Covering her face, Olivia fled the store, sobbing.

Wyatt glared at me, his face livid, before storming out and slamming the door behind him.

That night, my assistant, Harper, leaned in close and whispered with a hint of mischief, practically bouncing with excitement. “Miss Milton, guess what? That fake little damsel Olivia—she got hit by a car today! Broke her leg, they say!”

She gestured dramatically. “If you ask me, it's karma! She knew Wyatt was your fiancé and still clung to him like a leech. Acting all innocent and delicate—gross!”

I swirled the wine in my glass, a cold smile tugging at my lips. “Who told you Wyatt was still my fiancé?”

Harper's eyes widened, nearly dropping the fruit platter in her hands. “Wait—Miss Milton, you mean...”

“Go contact the wedding planner,” I said, taking a slow sip of wine. “Change the groom’s name to Aidan.”

“That’s amazing!” she clapped with delight. “Miss Milton, honestly, Wyatt looks decent, but he’s got no boundaries. Always hanging around that fake little flower. He’s nothing but a walking air conditioner—cold to everyone!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

Even my assistant could see what I couldn’t in my last life. Love really made people blind.

The realization made me sigh quietly.

The next morning, I had just stepped out of my office building when everything went dark—a burlap sack was suddenly yanked over my head!

“Who are you?! Let me go!” I thrashed wildly.

Rough hands shoved me into a vehicle. My back slammed into the doorframe, the pain sharp enough to knock the air from my lungs.

A familiar wave of terror surged through me—memories of the kidnapping in my past life crashing back like a tidal wave.

“I’ll pay—whatever you want, I’ll pay!” My voice shook uncontrollably as hot tears soaked through the blindfold.

But there was only suffocating silence in response.

Then that familiar scent drifted to the tip of my nose—Wyatt's cologne.

My heart sank to the depths of despair. “What... what is it that you really want?” I whispered.

His voice came low and cold as he responded, “Someone paid me to teach you a lesson.”

Even though I had already chosen not to marry him, the cruelty in his tone still tore something inside me.

Crack!

A metal rod slammed down on my leg. The searing pain made my vision blur.

My chest clenched as if someone had split it open, but I gritted my teeth, refusing to call out his name.

I curled into the corner of the van, silent tears soaking through the rough sack.

Just before I lost consciousness, I heard his cold and emotionless voice again.

“Remember this lesson.”

Crack. Crack. Crack.

The iron rod struck my leg with a dull thud—once, twice, three times...

By the fifteenth blow, I could hear my bones shatter.

Then, everything went black.

When I woke up again, I was lying, broken and bloodied, in front of the Milton family gates.

The sharp scent of disinfectant in the hospital stung my nose.

From the VIP room next door, I heard Olivia’s syrupy voice. “Wyatt, you’ve been with me every day. You must be exhausted!”

Pain twisted in my chest like a knife.

Wyatt, just to vent her grievances, you went as far as to cripple me?

“Aubrey!” My father burst into the room and pulled me into a trembling hug.

“Who did this to you? I swear I’ll make him regret ever being born!”

“I’m fine, Dad,” I forced a smile through the pain. “Just get me a new team of bodyguards.”

“Oh, and by the way—Aidan is alive. Once we’re married, he’ll be protecting me too.”

After my father left, I hobbled to the window with the help of my crutch.

Down in the garden, I saw Wyatt giving Olivia a piggyback ride. She whispered something into his ear that made his cheeks flush red, and he smiled—tender, warm, effortless.

A smile he had never once shown me.

The day before the wedding, Aidan rushed in, still dusty from travel.

He carefully pulled out a smooth, jade-green stone from his coat.

“Miss Milton, a wedding gift.”

“The groom finally shows up,” I said with a bright smile, raising my voice deliberately.

Aidan froze. His eyes reddened instantly, and though his lips trembled, he couldn’t utter a single word.

Later, my assistant whispered to me that Wyatt hadn’t shown his face in days.

I sneered. He thought I’d beg him to come back. Cry, apologize, and plead for our wedding.

Too bad for him—his perfect little plan had already collapsed.

That night, my phone buzzed.

Olivia sent me a video. In it, she and Wyatt were tangled together in bed, shameless and obscene.

Seconds later, the video was deleted.

“Pathetic,” I muttered, locking my phone. Such low-level tricks were almost laughable.

I stepped to the window.

Under the vast night sky, Aidan stood alone, looking up at my window.

He waved at me, his smile steady and full of warmth.

For the first time in a long while, my heart felt truly at peace.

On the morning of the wedding, my phone rang.

Wyatt’s arrogant voice came through the line. “As long as you apologize to Olivia, I’ll come and marry you right now.”

“No need,” I replied coldly, and hung up without hesitation.

A faint smirk played at my lips.

At the ceremony, the guests whispered among themselves.

“Why isn’t Wyatt here yet?”

“Is the wedding being called off?”

I ignored every murmur and walked confidently down the aisle with Aidan on my arm.

His muscles were tense beneath my touch, but he held me with utmost care, afraid of hurting me.

“Let’s congratulate Mr. Aidan and Miss Aubrey!” the emcee’s voice rang out.

Just then, the banquet hall doors burst open.

Wyatt stood at the entrance, his face was pale as a sheet of paper. The bouquet in his hand slipped to the floor with a loud thud.

I turned slightly, curling my lips into a smile. And under his disbelieving gaze, I kissed Aidan.