Chapter 1 Can’t Stand Your Happily Ever After

At ten o'clock at night, the moon shone brightly in the dark sky. Room 101 of Sanctum Hotel was pitch-black, echoing with noises of lovemaking.

Claire Weiss opened her eyes, her vision blurry and her body feeling as though it was on fire. Vaguely sensing that someone was on top of her, she struggled to push him away. However, the person didn't budge.

Claire's mind was a mess, and she couldn't process the situation. All she could recall was that she had welcomed her fiance back from abroad, and out of pure excitement, overdrank. Her stepsister, Chantelle, had then sent her back to her room to rest.

Who would have ever thought that she would be in this state as soon as she woke up?

"Who are you…?" Claire didn't even have the strength to nudge the man. "Let go of me…"

Never had she felt so powerless and yet addicted to someone. The man ignited her desires, and she couldn't help but respond to his touch.

The man, on the other hand, was grimacing. He didn't seem to be in his right mind either, which was rather peculiar. Eventually, Claire's energy was drained and she lost consciousness, passing out right away.

The sky darkened further as time passed. Around three o'clock in the morning, the cellphone placed on the nightstand suddenly vibrated violently.

The man woke up wearing a deep frown and looked around the messy bed. Then, his eyes fell on Claire, whose naked body was covered with only a thin blanket. His expression instantly turned gloomy.

Grabbing his phone, he flung it at the wall with great force. The fury in his eyes could barely be concealed. He thought that it was beyond a dirty trick to drug him. Whoever set him up must have a death wish.

After that, he slipped out of the bed and took a shower before promptly leaving the room, sparing not a glance at the unconscious woman. It was as if she was nothing more than an object, undeserving of his attention.

…

By the time Claire woke from her slumber, it was already the next morning. The moment she opened her eyes, she was overwhelmed with a splitting headache and numbness all over her body. It felt like she'd been beaten up.

In a daze, she sat on the bed as the memories from last night flashed across her mind, each scene vivid enough to make her shudder in despair. Clearly, the man Claire had slept with was not her fiancé, Armand Kendall. She couldn't believe that she lost her virginity under such inexplicable circumstances.

"What do I do… What do I do now?" Claire wondered frantically while she hurried to pick up her clothes from the floor and put them on. All she could think of at the moment was to get home and wash her body thoroughly. She did not want to stay here for any second longer.

Unexpectedly, when she opened the door, she saw Armand's shocked expression along with the angry faces of her stepsister and father.

"Armand?" Claire was momentarily tongue-tied. Before she could explain herself, her father slapped her hard across the face. The mess in the hotel room was a sore sight for Liam Weiss. "Look at what you've done. You've brought shame to the Weiss family name! I can't believe I have such a disgrace of a daughter!"

Meanwhile, Armand clenched his right fist tightly, his brows furrowing into an intense frown as he stared at Claire. "Claire, I'm really disappointed in you."

"No, it's not what you think." Claire shook her head desperately. Without thinking, she grabbed Armand's hand out of fear that he would storm off. "I got drunk last night, and I swear I returned to my room to rest."

It was at that moment realization dawned on her. Claire turned to look at Chantelle with wide eyes, asking in bewilderment, "It was you, right? You brought me here last night. Why did you set me up?"

Faced with her accusation, Chantelle replied aggrievedly, "Claire, I don't know what you're talking about. I never did this to you."

"What?" Claire scoffed ridiculously, unable to control her rage. "Then how the hell could I wake up in a stranger's room? If you didn't do this, why would the man…"

"Enough!" Armand bellowed, cutting off her words; he couldn't listen any further. "Why are you pushing the blame on others when you made a mistake?" His gaze had grown indifferent when he looked at Claire. "Claire, I was only gone for half a year, yet you're already thirsty for other men. Did you have to go as far as sleeping with them behind my back?"

Claire held her arm in a panic, her tears rolling down her cheeks and falling onto the carpet. His words sounded especially harsh to her ears, considering the fact that they'd been together for three years and were supposed to get married soon. It felt surreal.

"Armand…" Claire choked out a plea while looking at Armand with distress in her eyes, "Please, you have to believe me…"

"Stop it. Your voice disgusts me." Armand looked away with hatred, avoiding her gaze. "Our wedding is canceled. I don't want to see you ever again." After that, he turned to leave. That sentence pierced Claire's heart like a knife, and it was so painful that she felt suffocated. The anguish inside her intensified by the second, nearly drowning her in it.

"Armand!" Staggering, Claire wanted to chase after him, but Liam held her back and shoved her to her knees.

"What more do you want to do? Have you not embarrassed us enough? Claire Weiss, from today onward, you're disowned. I don't have a daughter like you!"

Claire was stupefied. She didn't know how she got home afterward. Everything happened so quickly, and in a blink of an eye, her luggage was packed and thrown at the door. Liam had already booked a flight ticket for her as he wanted her out of the country immediately.

"Claire, are you okay?" Just as Claire was picking up her belongings absentmindedly, she saw Chantelle coming down the stairs leisurely.

When Claire ignored her, Chantelle wasn't bothered at all. Conversely, she giggled and said, "You must be dying to know how you ended up in that hotel room. Let me enlighten you, then. You were right. It was all my doing. I want to marry Armand, and I can't stand letting you be with him happily ever after."