"What if something happens?" I complained, spilling my fears in front of my little sister.
Aurelia narrowed her sharp hazel eyes. "Are you worried about Sinclair?" she asked with a pout.
I opened my mouth, then closed it. She'd nailed it.
Aurelia sighed and grabbed my hand.
"Oh, Cassie, relax. Nothing's going to happen to Sinclair, and tomorrow you'll have the perfect wedding." She started pulling me deeper into the club.
Her words didn't do much to calm me. How was I supposed to relax when Sinclair was at his bachelor party with those crazy friends of his? I pulled my hand free, and Aurelia turned with a frown.
"What if he drinks too much and doesn't show up to the wedding tomorrow?" I complained again.
I'd never liked the idea of that bachelor party and had opposed it from the start. His friends called me controlling, but it wasn't about that.
It was those bad influences Sinclair called "friends."
Aurelia groaned, already fed up with my whining. She took my face in both hands and forced me to look at her.
"Nothing is going to happen. Have fun. It's your last chance. Your friends are already waiting for you, so don't ruin the night, Cass."
Just then, a familiar high-pitched voice shouted from nearby, "Cassie, you finally made it!"
Rebecca, my best friend, snatched me out of Aurelia's hands.
"Enough standing around. It's party time!" she squealed, dragging me toward our table. It was my last night as a single woman, and the girls had planned everything. The problem was that I just couldn't switch off.
My God, getting married was exhausting.
Rebecca led me to the reserved VIP table, packed with familiar faces.
"The bride-to-be has arrived, girls! Let's get wild!" she announced.
Aurelia took my other hand.
"Time to let our hair down," she said, her voice bright with excitement.
There was no escape. Their enthusiasm rubbed off on me, and eventually, I let go and relaxed.
There was no reason to worry. Even if Sinclair's friends were idiots, he was a saint and quite responsible.
We toasted, drank, and had a great time. The DJ started playing my favorite tracks, and I ended up on the dance floor with Rebecca, who became my personal cheerleader.
I stood out in my tiara and "Bride-to-Be" sash-a little cheesy, but the girls had insisted.
Song after song, the night was only getting started.
While I was singing at the top of my lungs and dancing to "Did It First" by Ice Spice, I saw Aurelia slip off the dance floor to answer a call.
I shrugged. She was a grown woman. I had no reason to meddle in her business.
Time passed... half an hour.
"I need a break," I told Rebecca, my feet numb.
"Sure, rest for a bit. The male strippers will be here any minute," she said with a wink.
I almost choked. I gave her a "you're telling me this now?" look.
Rebecca laughed and pushed me toward the table. I sat down to watch the others having a blast, but my nerves got to me again. My fingers trembled out of habit.
It wasn't because of Rebecca's joke. It was because Aurelia had been gone too long. I frowned and started imagining the worst. My stomach churned.
What if she'd run into some dangerous guy?
I couldn't sit still.
I took advantage of Rebecca being distracted and went out to look for her.
"Where do I start?" I asked myself as I pushed my way through the crowd. The bathrooms at the back were quieter. Maybe she was there.
I escaped the chaos of the dance floor and reached a quieter hallway. The restrooms were at the end. I hurried, not wasting a second.
"Of course you do. You have the prettiest smile," a male voice said, half mocking and clearly flirting, from a sharp turn to the left.
I slowed without realizing it. I felt my heart slow down.
A frown formed on my forehead. That voice... it was too familiar. It made me nervous.
No. I shook my head.
Impossible.
Sinclair was with his friends on the other side of the city. There was no way he was here.
And even if he had come to this club, why hadn't he told me?
I gripped my dress in my fists. My body urged me to run over there. Just before I turned the corner, another familiar voice paralyzed me.
It felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over my head.
Her voice was soft. Playful. She let out a sweet giggle.
"Prettier than your fiancée?" she asked, her tone deliberately provocative.
My heart, which had just calmed, started racing again. It pounded so hard I could hear it in my ears.
No. This couldn't be happening.
Maybe it was just someone with a similar voice. Part of me wanted to turn around, go back to the club, and forget everything. Because deep down, I already knew that what I was about to see would destroy me.
But my body acted on its own, ignoring my mind and my heart, which couldn't bear it.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and peeked around the corner to confirm what I already suspected.
"Can we talk about something else? To me, you're the prettiest. If it weren't for my dad, I wouldn't even bother with that prude," the male voice said with disdain.
"But you're going to marry her anyway," Aurelia replied, pouting.
The scene left me petrified. I could only watch, my heart beating so fast it felt like it would burst out of my chest.
I should have screamed. Cried. Done anything to let them know I was there. But my brain froze, and they didn't even notice me.
My fiancé had his back to me. He had my sister pinned against the wall, wrapped in his arms. His large body covered hers as he tilted his head to kiss her skin slowly, as if savoring her...
I couldn't see his face, but I was sure it was the man I was marrying tomorrow. The same man I'd been dating since my freshman year of college. He was even wearing the custom leather jacket I'd given him for his last birthday.
On the back, it read, "Cassie is my favorite sin." It was cheesy, and his friends made fun of him for it, but he loved wearing it.
Sinclair von Duvall, my devoted fiancé, was secretly kissing my own sister on the eve of our wedding.
"I have no choice but to marry your boring sister..." he hissed as his hand slid slowly up her dress and slipped toward her panties.
She moaned and clung to him. Her eyes darted away from Sinclair for an instant.
A flash of surprise crossed her face... then it transformed into a provocative smile. Apparently, she had seen me. Instead of fear, she looked triumphant, as if she had won.
"You're so bad... What if Cassie catches us? Aren't you scared?"
He nibbled her ear and traced his tongue along the skin behind it, drawing a surprised moan from her. Aurelia's eyes fluttered shut, her fingers digging into his jacket. Sinclair chuckled.
"Even if she caught us, she couldn't do anything," he mocked, his voice sharp. "Dear Cassie is too uptight and cowardly. Sometimes I have to imagine you just to get hard enough to fuck her."
My fingers trembled, and a faint sting rose in my eyes. Was that how he saw me?
Aurelia let out a satisfied laugh. She rose on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and pulled him toward her.
Their lips crashed together, and they started kissing hungrily. Sinclair groaned into her mouth and pressed her harder against the wall, returning the kiss with equal intensity.
Every fiber of my being screamed at me to go over there and pull them apart, but my legs failed me. Maybe Sinclair was right. Cassandra Sterling was a coward.
My vision blurred with tears I refused to shed. Then Sinclair's voice pierced me like broken glass.
"Let's get out of here. I miss your little moans."
That was the last straw.
I ran like the coward I was. My head was a mess.
I wasn't even running in a straight line, and then-worst of all-my heel broke and I lost my balance.
My phone slipped from my hand and hit the floor with a loud notification ping that echoed down the hallway.
I froze, my breath caught in my throat, terror flooding through me.
The ping from the phone nearly scared me to death. The cheaters' laughter cut off.
"Someone's there," Aurelia whispered, feigning surprise as if she hadn't seen me two minutes ago.
Footsteps were approaching.
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