Chapter 6

I eventually drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, my phone blared loudly, waking me up.

I groggily grabbed it. My mother's caller ID was flashing on the screen.

I swiped to answer.

"Joanna! Do you know what time it is?!"

Helen’s screeching voice blasted through the speaker.

"Your sister is getting engaged today! All the relatives are here. How dare you, as her sister, be absent!"

I checked the time.

9:30 AM.

"Hurry up! Your dad booked the restaurant downtown. Get an Uber now!"

She hung up before I could reply.

I tossed the phone onto the bed and rubbed my temples.

My purse was still at my parents' house.

My ID, credit cards, work phone, keys, and company badge were all in there.

But most importantly, the original signed client contract from last week was in that purse. I needed to submit it to the office first thing Monday morning.

The hotel was about a twenty-minute drive from my parents' place.

On the way in the Uber, Helen called again.

"Where are you? We're literally waiting on you!"

"Almost there," I muttered and hung up.

The city streets flew past the window. I leaned against the glass, looking at the city I had lived in for eight years, suddenly feeling like an outsider.

I got off at the restaurant.

Inside the private banquet hall, three large tables were packed with relatives, including distant cousins I barely knew.

Chloe sat at the head of the main table, with Caleb right beside her.

My entrance caused a brief hush in the noisy room.

Then, the chatter resumed.

No one cared about my feelings.

"Jo is here!"

My aunt was the first to notice, waving warmly.

"Come, sit! We were just waiting for you. Look at your sister, she's so lucky to find such a great guy!"

"I know, right? A tech lead making six figures! So promising!"

The relatives gossiped, their words piercing my ears.

Helen marched through the crowd, grabbed my arm, and dragged me forward with a fake smile.

"Finally. Dragging your feet on your sister's big day."

I was shoved right in front of the main table, facing Caleb and Chloe.

Caleb looked up, his eyes as cold as if I were a stranger.

Chloe lowered her head, playing the shy bride, though her fingers were tightly wrapped around Caleb's hand.

Helen smirked, nudging me toward Caleb. "Jo, aren't you going to congratulate your sister?"

Every eye in the room was on me.

I looked around at their faces.

It was so absurd it was comical.

"Actually, I do have something to say."

I stared at Caleb, pronouncing every word clearly: "Congratulations on finding a 'domestic, settling-down' woman."

Then, I turned to Chloe, a cold smirk playing on my lips.

"Stealing my boyfriend... does it feel good?"