Chapter 3 HOPE ON UNSTEADY GROUND

CHAPTER THREE

Vivienne stood at the edge of the celebration, her fingers tightening around the stem of her

glass as she tried to breathe past the weight growing in her chest. Every corner of the room felt

too bright, too loud, too sharp. She kept telling herself Maddox loved her, whispering the

promises he'd made into the back of her mind like a shield. He said he wanted a future with her.

He said she was the only one who understood him. He said she made him feel human.

So why did she feel like she was drowning?

Tessa's laughter drifted across the room, light and practiced. It was the kind of laugh that turned

heads, drawn from a throat used to attention. The sound alone rattled Vivienne's nerves. Her

stepsister glowed tonight hair swept into a stylish twist, emerald dress hugging every curve, her

smile carved with something almost predatory

Vivienne tried to ignore her. She tried to look anywhere else at the golden chandeliers, the

polished marble floors, the guests draped in expensive fabrics and painted confidence. But

everywhere she looked, she found her parents' eyes cutting toward her, sharp, assessing,

calculating.

She felt catalogued. Measured. Weighed.

Vivienne forced herself to take in a slow breath. Maddox had promised her this was their night.

He told her they'd take the next step soon, that he wanted to build something real. She held on

to that his warmth, his whispered words, the memory of his hand brushing her cheek when no

one was watching.

She clung to it because everything around her felt wrong.

Her mother stood a few steps away, her gaze flicking between Vivienne and the entrance as if

waiting for something. Her father whispered to a business associate, but his tone carried

impatience, as though the evening were already behind schedule.

Tessa caught Vivienne staring and flashed her a smile that didn't reach her eyes. It was smug

quietly triumphant. As if she already knew the shape of the night, and Vivienne did not.

Vivienne turned away before her stomach twisted further. She tried to focus on the music

swelling through the room, on the familiar faces milling around in curated politeness. But her

thoughts spiraled, slippery and fast: maybe Maddox had grown distant because he was hiding

the proposal plans. Maybe Tessa was acting strangely because she knew the surprise. Maybe

her parents were simply nervous about hosting so many important guests.

Maybe everything was fine.

A hand brushed her elbow. She jumped.

"Relax," one of her cousins teased gently as he passed. "You look like you're waiting for the

world to end."

Vivienne forced a laugh. It sounded thin, but it was the best she could manage.

If only he knew how close his words felt to the truth.

A sudden clang of glass against silver cut through the chatter. Maddox Lane stood near the

center of the room, tapping his champagne flute with the back of a spoon. The sound echoed

beautifully, drawing every head toward him.

Vivienne's heart leapt before she could stop it.

Maddox looked devastating tonight tall, broad-shouldered, his dark hair swept back with casual

elegance, his suit tailored perfectly across his athletic frame. His eyes, deep and familiar,

scanned the crowd with a calm she had always loved. He looked like someone who belonged in

every room he walked into. Someone people naturally admired.

Someone she thought would choose her.

The murmurs died. The music softened. People shifted to face him fully.

Vivienne felt her pulse climb into her throat.

He was going to do it.

He was finally going to do it.

This was the moment she had imagined for years the moment she thought would become the

first page of the life they'd build together.

She caught his eye for half a second.

He looked away.

Vivienne's stomach dipped, but she forced herself to stay still. Maddox always grew shy in

crowds. Maybe he needed courage. Maybe the weight of so many eyes made him nervous.

Then Tessa stepped forward.

Her movements were deliberate, smooth, calculated. She crossed the space between them as if

drawn by an invisible thread. Guests whispered as she reached Maddox's side, her smile bright

and knowing. She placed a hand on his arm and leaned in slightly, positioning herself for the

spotlight.

Vivienne blinked, confusion slicing through her breath.

Why is she next to him?

Why is she smiling like that?

Why is he letting her?

The room buzzed with expectation, but it wasn't directed at Vivienne anymore. It shifted toward

Tessa toward the shimmering emerald dress, the hair perfectly pinned, the radiance that looked

suspiciously like victory.

Vivienne's hands trembled. She pressed them against her skirt to hide it.

Maddox cleared his throat. "Thank you all for joining us tonight."

Vivienne's world went hollow.

Her breath vanished. Sound muted into a dull hum. The room swayed not gently, but like the

ground had lurched beneath her.

She reached for something to hold, anything to steady herself, but her fingers grasped nothing

but air.

Tessa sobbed, dramatic and perfect, placing her hand over her heart. She whispered his name

as if tasting something sweet.

Vivienne watched Maddox open the ring box. She saw the diamond catch the chandelier light.

She saw people turn toward Tessa with applause already forming.

She did not blink.

She couldn't.

"Will you marry me?" Maddox asked.

And Tessa said yes before he even finished the question.

Vivienne didn't hear the cheers. She saw lips moving, saw hands clapping, saw flashes of

cameras.

But she couldn't hear any of it.

Her chest ached, burning from the inside out. Her throat tightened until breathing felt like

swallowing glass. She looked at Maddox, searching for a sign that this was a mistake, a cruel

joke, anything that meant this wasn't happening.

But he didn't look ashamed.

He didn't look conflicted.

He didn't look at her at all.

He only looked at Tessa.

Vivienne's legs wobbled. She stepped backward, bumping into a table. The tremor in her hands

spread through her body, a quiet panic rising and rising.

The world she built around Maddox every memory, every secret, every whisper of a future

shattered in one breath.

She turned away before the tears reached her eyes.