CHAPTER 1
“Tessa, are you sure you want to marry me on the seventh?”
“I’m sure,” I answered.
“Good. As soon as I wrap things up in New Zealand, I’ll fly back to make you my
wife.”
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I hung up the phone and let out a sigh, a wry smile tugging at my lips. The whole situation felt surreal.
If someone had told me six months ago that I’d be marrying a man I’d known less than half a year, I would’ve laughed in their face. Everyone knew my greatest wish had been to marry Griffin Hayes–the man I’d loved for twelve long years.
Yet here I was, about to give up on the man I’d spent over a decade pining for, choosing to marry someone else instead.
I sank into my couch, staring blankly at the TV where Griffin’s interview was playing. There he was, the CEO of Hayes Enterprises, impeccably dressed in a tailored suit. Those dark eyes that once made my heart race were gazing directly into the
camera.
The reporter flashed a coy smile. “Now that we’ve covered Hayes Enterprises‘ business strategy, mind if I ask something personal? Our female viewers would love to know what’s happening in the love life of New York’s most eligible bachelor.” Griffin nodded graciously. “Go ahead.”
“Word is you recently purchased a penthouse at The Sovereign and bought a rare 10–carat blue diamond at last month’s auction–the one engraved with ‘Love You Forever.‘ Are wedding bells in your future?”
The audience held their breath, waiting for his answer.
Without hesitation, Griffin replied, “Yes. A woman once gave me her youth, her whole heart. I promised to marry her before she turned thirty. She’ll be thirty in seven days, and I don’t want to keep her waiting any longer.”
His words sent social media into a frenzy, trending within minutes.
#Griffin Hayes Proposal
#NYCsBachelorOffTheMarket
#WeddingInOneWeek
As news of Griffin’s impending marriage spread, my former friends bombarded me with congratulatory texts. They all remembered how I’d told Griffin, “I’ll only wait until I’m thirty. After that, if you haven’t married me, I’m walking away…” But none of them knew the truth–Griffin wasn’t planning to marry me. Griffin and I grew up as next–door neighbors. Our parents were friends, and we’d been inseparable since childhood. I fell hard for him when we were teenagers and
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have loved him for twelve solid years.
How much did I love Griffin Hayes? When he mentioned wanting to attend Stanford Business School, I gave up my acceptance to Yale to follow him there. When he wanted to start his own company after graduation, I declined a $300,000 job offer to help him build his business from nothing.
I invested twelve years of my life in him, believing love could conquer all. Until two weeks ago, when I discovered the penthouse and blue diamond he’d purchased were gifts for a woman named “Chloe.” That’s when I realized how pathetic my twelve years of devotion had been.
In seven days, I’d turn thirty.
And since Griffin had no intention of marrying me, I decided I was done wasting my life on him.
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