Chapter 1

• CLAIRE LEBLANC
• There was nothing that money couldn't buy. It was something I had known since birth because from jewels to people... everything was delivered to you if you showed the right number of zeros after the comma in your bank account. And when you were a LeBlanc? That became even more apparent, shining as brightly as newly cut gems.
• Want to know what the biggest proof of that was? It was the annual ball. A ball that always caused discord, shouts, tears, and, most importantly, joy. Because besides being the most anticipated event for all families with a certain reputation (and whose faces were already familiar at this event), it was also something that the new rich yearned for - if your family received an invitation, it was almost certain that contacts would be knocking at your door, and, of course, it was proof that the LeBlanc family... admired you in some way.
• And this specific ball? I had been the person responsible for organizing it. I spent almost an entire month without sleeping properly due to the planning, seeing so many color palettes that I could no longer distinguish between baby blue and cyan, along with all the issues like catering, attire, and so on...
• But honestly? That didn't matter now because I was in the spotlight, and I... was descending those beautiful stairs that allowed me to admire all my hard work. The tables were arranged the way I wanted, the flowers positioned where I told them to be, and the chandelier I had chosen to better fit the decoration I had chosen? It was just as I had imagined.
• But something was missing. My fiancé wasn't there. "He said he would be the first person I'd see..." I thought while still forcing myself to smile, maintaining my serene expression while all those glances were on me. However, I thought it was just my imagination not being able to see George in the hall. I even suspected that the culprits were the spotlights right in my face, limiting my vision due to the brightness. But even when I reached the last step, he wasn't there. He wasn't waiting for me.
• "Claire, darling!" one of the guests came towards me, adorned with large emeralds around her neck and ears. "This event is divine! The decoration, the music... heaven!"
• I smiled. "I'm flattered," I replied, a proud smile spreading across my lips, my eyes discreetly searching for my fiancé. "What did you think of the drinks and appetizers? Were they to your liking?"
• "Darling! They are on the level of this party. You should give me the name of the place that serves them," she responded, only for me to remember how difficult it was to find this place, along with the tastings.
• As if I would hand over that place on a silver platter. "Of course, I'll give you the number when I can," I lied, "now, if you'll excuse me, I need to... find someone."
• "You must be looking for your fiancé, aren't you?" she remarked. "It's a shame he's not here, especially for abandoning you at such an important event."
• I sighed, managing to make my lips arch in the most social way I knew. "He must be busy," I said more to myself than to the lady in front of me. "Now, I hope you enjoy the event."
• I replied as I went in another direction, looking for George in all the corners where he usually hid. I juggled being a good hostess and talking to all the guests who came to me, until I reached a point where I had literally found everyone except my fiancé!
• I sighed. I tried to give him every possible excuse when I descended the stairs and didn't find him, and when I started walking back and forth like a dizzy cockroach. I also tried to think the best of George. "Maybe he went to the restroom," I thought, or even, "he must be hiding, or maybe he's planning a surprise for me, just waiting for me to find him."
• But it couldn't be any of those alternatives anymore. It left me exhausted; my feet throbbed from so much walking, and honestly? I couldn't stand smiling anymore when all I wanted... was for my fiancé to be by my side.
• "Okay, Claire... he'll have a good explanation," I said to myself while looking for any empty room to lie down and maybe rest a bit, "I'm sure something happened, and he couldn't..."
• "Deeper... more... ah!" I heard a woman moan as I opened one of the doors, and, to my complete displeasure, it was George. My George who was having sex with her. She was on all fours, with her dress practically... thrown on the floor.
• "Will it take much longer?" I asked, one of my eyebrows raised, George's blue eyes staring at me with some surprise.
• "Claire?" He pulled his own penis out of the girl, who now had her face raised, and her hair thrown back... I saw that it was one of my friends. Vanessa Adams. Of course... what else should I expect? Because this situation wasn't cliché enough.
• "George, Vanessa," I said with pure disdain, a mask that was only because my chest hurt, and the desire to cry was overwhelming.
• But I was still a LeBlanc. I wouldn't show weakness to traitors.
• "Claire, listen to me..."
• "What would I have to listen to? That you fell, and your dick went inside her?" My voice was laden with resentment. "That you were drugged, and when you saw, you were fucking her, maybe? Or better yet! You were enchanted?!"
• "Stop playing, Claire!" He raised his tone, his eyes now glaring at me as he approached. "Do you think it was easy for me?"
• Easy? For him? It had to be a joke, right?
• It had to be.
• "Easy for you? Do you know how hard I worked this last month for you to just... not care and fuck my friend? Seriously, George! You said you'd be there! You said you'd be the first person I'd see, and..."
• "Can you stop thinking only of yourself at some point?"
• My eyes widened.
• "What?"
• "That's right, what you heard," George's tone was now cold, his eyes dull. "Do you know how hard I worked? Even seeing my fiancée paying attention to anything but me! You always do that, Claire! You always focus on your projects, and when this damn ball came? It messed everything up even more!"
• Messed up? He could only be joking, right?
• Damn it... I...
• I had to get out of there.
• "Claire, don't you dare!" George tried to stop me, but I had already managed to cross the door, going through the back to the garden, hiding like a cowardly rat.
• "How pathetic..." I sniffed, tears finally streaming down my eyes. "I can't believe this, I... Claire LeBlanc was betrayed? This can only be a joke."
• I laughed at my misfortune until I heard footsteps approaching.
• Damn it. Is this serious?
• "Please, let it not be George," I pleaded from the depths of my soul, but... it wasn't him. In reality, it was a tall, blond man with eyes as beautiful as topazes, wearing a concerned expression on his face.
• Well, great! I have only a few minutes of being single, and this is how I come across the first handsome man I meet. Congratulations, Claire…