Chapter 1 I Want Tomorrow's Wedding Broadcast Live

Kiera Miller nudged the door open, wincing at the sharp creak. A thick, sweet scent hung in the air, and the entire room was swallowed by shadows.

"Danna? Danna, where are you?" She called out to her adopted sister, Danna Miller, but the silence was her only answer.

"Danna? Didn't you say you needed a change of clothes? Where are you?"

As her eyes strained against the darkness, she tripped over something and nearly lost her balance.

A jolt of panic shot through her. "Who's there?"

Before Kiera could step back, a hand-hot and unyielding-latched onto her ankle. Her scream echoed through the room.

"Who are you? Let go of me!" Kiera's words tumbled out as she fought to break free. The stranger's grip held firm, like she was caught in a vice.

"Help me, and you can have whatever you want." The voice that answered sounded rough, desperate.

Kiera jerked her leg, her voice sharp. "Get off me!"

The man ignored her plea. Instead, he lifted her effortlessly.

Her cries faded as his lips claimed hers, her protest lost in the heated kiss while her breath slowly slipped away.

Long after the night dragged on, the man finally wore himself out and slipped into a heavy sleep.

Kiera forced herself upright on the rumpled bed, steadying her breath as she fought to stay composed.

With shaking hands, she picked up the shredded pieces scattered across the floor and dressed herself with what little fabric remained.

The idea of calling the police crossed her mind for a fleeting second. But she pushed it away just as quickly.

Her future left no room for mistakes. As a rising diplomat, any hint of scandal would destroy everything she had worked for and end her career on the spot.

On top of that, the Miller family would never accept a daughter who brought disgrace to their name.

If the truth ever surfaced, she would lose far more than her reputation. Her place within the family and her future would all collapse together.

Right now, the immediate priority was to get through tomorrow's wedding.

She refused to stir chaos and turn herself into a source of ridicule.

As for the man who had taken her virginity by force... Kiera curled her hands into tight fists, her nails pressing painfully into her skin. She promised herself that one day, he would answer for what he had done.

Pulling her clothes close to hide the marks left behind, Kiera slipped out of the hotel in silence, carefully steering clear of every security camera on her way out.

What she didn't know was that the moment she was gone, Danna emerged from wherever she had been hiding and quietly entered the same room.

...

The drive home felt reckless, with Kiera tearing through one red light after another as the city blurred past her windshield.

She could not wrap her mind around it. After guarding her virginity for twenty years, it had been taken from her by a complete stranger.

A sharp ache welled up behind her eyes, and she clenched the steering wheel harder as she forced herself not to break down.

Her thoughts drifted back to the message Danna had sent earlier, and a heavy weight settled in her chest.

No matter how much she resisted the idea, the truth pressed in on her. Danna stood at the center of everything that had gone wrong.

Kiera held herself together until she reached home, where the house sat in an eerie silence.

Before she could breathe a sigh of relief, she walked past her fiance's room and froze, caught by the sounds spilling out from inside.

The door was slightly open. Oliver Harvey lay stretched across the bed with his clothes half undone, playing with himself as he spoke into his phone. "Danna. Say my name again. I love you. I only want you."

Each whispered word drifted into the hallway and struck Kiera like ice, leaving her rooted in place as shock hollowed her chest and dread crept into her wide, unblinking eyes.

"Just hold on a little longer, babe. As soon as I marry Kiera and the Miller fortune is in my hands, I'll leave her and make you my wife," Oliver murmured, his words dripping with sweet promises.

Hands shaking, Kiera hit the record button on her phone and captured every single word.

Once she finished, she strode into the room and spoke in a cold, even tone. "Oliver, would you mind repeating what you just said?"

The sound of her voice made Oliver stiffen. He tried to hide his phone in a panic.

Without hesitation, Kiera walked up to him and delivered a stinging slap across his face.

"You owe me an explanation, and it better be good," Kiera said, her voice cold and unyielding as she took a step back. She glared down at him, though her insides felt shattered.

How had her world fallen apart in just one day? What cruel twist of fate let her find out, right before the wedding, that the man she had trusted and supported all along despised her and set her up?

Pain and desperation twisted Oliver's features. Finally, after a long, tense pause, he dropped to his knees and pleaded, "Kiera, please, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking straight. I swear, I'll change after we get married. Please give me one more chance!"

Oliver's face was a mess of tears and mucus, and whatever charm he once had was nowhere to be found.

"Not thinking straight? Do you really think I didn't hear every word? You've been plotting for an entire year to steal my family's wealth. Tell me, Oliver, do you have a heart?"

A deep, aching sorrow spread through Kiera's chest, leaving her heart heavy and raw.

After his family went bankrupt, she had pulled him back up step by step. She arranged his return as general manager, gave him the best resources she could offer, and even allowed him to live under the Miller family roof.

In the end, all she had raised was a thankless traitor.

"You think you can scheme against me? Neither you nor Danna will walk away untouched." Kiera's voice dropped, edged with fury. Her fingers curled tight, her nails biting into her skin until blood welled up.

Without warning, Oliver sprang to his feet and stepped into her path. "If you're angry, then take it out on me. Leave her out of this!"

Upon hearing that, Kiera scoffed, though a dull, lingering pain settled deep in her chest. Only now did she feel like she was seeing him clearly for the first time.

"You really treasure her, don't you? But if she knew that everything you have now came from me, would she still choose you?"

The chill in Kiera's smile and the cruelty of her words made Oliver's face burn with humiliation and rage.

He clenched his fists and snapped back stubbornly, "Danna isn't like you! Don't act like money gives you the right to judge what we have. You never loved me. All you ever did was use your wealth to belittle me..."

Before Oliver could get another word out, Kiera struck him again and silenced him on the spot.

This time, she did not hold back at all. The force of the slap sent Oliver crashing to the floor, and a red, swollen mark bloomed across his face almost instantly.

Shock froze him in place as he clutched his cheek, unable to process the ruthlessness she had just shown.

"You talk about humiliation now? When you took everything I gave you, why didn't you refuse then? You gladly accepted my money, my connections, and my help."

Kiera bent down and brushed the back of her hand against his face with open contempt. Her eyes burned with fury as she spoke.

"Do you really think you can play games with me and walk away untouched? If you dared to scheme against me, then be prepared to spend the rest of your life paying for it."

Straightening up, Kiera pulled out her phone and played the recording aloud. She looked down at him as she warned, "I don't care what you think or how you feel. Since we've already announced the wedding, it will go on as scheduled tomorrow."

Hearing the certainty in her tone, Oliver misunderstood her resolve as mercy meant to protect the Miller family's reputation. Relief rushed over him, and he nodded repeatedly, eager to agree.

"Now, get out." Kiera did not bother hiding her disgust.

Scrambling to his feet, Oliver fled the room without looking back. Left alone, Kiera raised her phone and called her secretary.

"Skylar, I want tomorrow's wedding broadcast live across the entire internet."