Chapter 1
Wearing a plain black velvet dress and zero jewelry, I sat quietly in the back row of the Royal Charity, completely invisible among London’s glittering elite.
My only goal tonight? Winning an 1890 Victorian pink diamond for my engagement ring. My family in the Scottish Highlands had just arranged my marriage to Phil Graham, London’s hottest real estate heir.
"Starting at £8,000," the auctioneer announced. I raised my paddle.
Instantly, a flashy woman behind me sneered and raised hers. "Are they letting just anyone into charity galas now?" she loudly mocked to her friends. "Dressed like a department store clerk, and she thinks she can bid on antique jewelry?"
I ignored her, calmly raising my paddle again: "£15,000."
Furious, the woman stood up, her voice echoing across the silent ballroom. "£20,000! I suggest you back off, poor girl. My brother is Phil Graham, CEO of Graham Real Estate. This necklace is mine."
I slowly looked up at her. "Graham Real Estate? What a coincidence. ”
I calmly pulled out my phone and dialed my so-called fiancé right in front of her.
“Phil?” I said lightly. “It seems your little pet sister is trying to hijack my engagement diamond. How exactly do you want to explain this to me? Should we cancel the wedding?”
Heavy bass and the loud clinking of glasses blasted through the speaker.
"Who the hell is this?" Phil’s voice came through.
"I'm Joyce," I said coldly.
"Listen to me very carefully," Phil snapped, his tone turning instantly aggressive. "I don't care who you are or how you got this number. And what does my relationship with Monica have to do with some random outsider? Mind your own damn business and stop calling me."
Beep. Beep. Beep.
He hung up.
I slowly lowered the phone, staring at the darkened screen.
He hadn't even saved my number. My own fiancé, handpicked by his father to merge our families, couldn't even be bothered to add my contact.
The entire ballroom was dead silent. You could hear a pin drop. On stage, the Christie’s auctioneer nervously wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. He looked between me and Monica, clearly wanting to avoid the crossfire.
"Twenty thousand... going once," the auctioneer stammered. "Going twice... Sold. To the lady in the back."
The gavel hit the podium with a sharp crack.
Monica let out a loud, theatrical cheer. She turned to her friends, high-fiving them.
Then she burst out laughing.
"Oh, that was priceless!" She strutted over, her designer heels clicking aggressively against the marble floor. She crossed her arms and looking me up and down.
"Did you really just try to pretend you know my brother? You?" She pointed a manicured finger at my dress. "Look in a mirror, honey. You snuck in here to eat free food and bag a rich guy, didn't you? You're out of your mind."
I stayed in my seat, my expression entirely neutral. "I didn't sneak in."
"Please," Monica snorted, rolling her eyes. "My maid dresses better than you do for a night out. A basic, cheap velvet dress with absolutely no jewelry? You think you can just drop my brother's name and I'll back down? Do you know how many women try to use him to get ahead?"
"That diamond is going on my neck. Not yours."
The commotion had drawn a crowd.
A woman in a tight red dress stepped out from the crowd.
"Look, honey," she said to me, her tone dripping with condescension. "The Grahams are basically royalty in London's real estate right now. You really can't afford to offend them. Just apologize to Monica. There's no need to make this uglier for yourself."
A woman dripping in heavy pearls leaned into her friend's ear. "I heard Arthur Graham has some dirt-poor distant relative from the countryside trying to marry her way into the family. Do you think that's her? She looks absolutely broke."
"Honestly, how did she even get past security?" her friend replied, laughing. "She looks like she just wandered in off the street. Bidding on a twenty-thousand-pound antique when she probably doesn't even have a thousand pounds to her name. It's a joke."
"Must be," a third woman chimed in, immediately turning a flattering smile toward Monica. "But Miss Monica is the apple of the Graham family's eye. Anyone trying to steal from her is just asking for a death wish. Right, Monica?"
Monica soaked up the flattery, her chin lifting higher.
"You heard them," Monica barked, taking a step closer to me. She pointed her finger directly at my face. "Apologize. Right now."
I didn't move. "For what?"
"For forgetting your place," she sneered. "Say it loud so everyone can hear. Say: 'I shouldn't have overestimated myself and fought with a VIP like you, I was wrong.' Say that, and maybe I won't have the security team throw you out on the street."
The crowd watched in breathless anticipation. They were waiting me to cry and run out of the room.
Instead, I slowly stood up.
I was a good three inches taller than Monica, forcing her to look up at me.
I looked her dead in the eye. The corners of my mouth twitched up into a cold, flat smile.
"I heard you loud and clear," I said. "Since you want to apologize that badly... get out of my way and stop being an eyesore."
It took a full second for the words to process in Monica's brain.
When they did, her face went violently red. The veins in her neck popped, and her eyes widened in pure rage.
"You bitch!" she screamed.
Without another word, she raised her hand, aiming a slap straight for my face.
