We're Just Friends, He Said. So I Married His Rival

When I found out my childhood friend was going to meet his arranged marriage partner, he was lying on my bed, casually flipping through a financial magazine.

I thought he was joking, so I ran my fingers gently over his collarbone. "Julian, you're not seriously going to that blind date with the Sterling heiress, are you?" He closed the magazine nonchalantly. "Yeah.

Make sure the housekeeper presses that white suit in the closet." My breath hitched. "For real?

Then what are we?" He chuckled, his tone completely dismissive. "We grew up together, Sienna. You'll always be like a sister to me." "We're adults. We sleep together occasionally.

Don't overthink it." Julian and I shared our entire childhood, and for the last five years, we played the role of lovers in high society.

For five years, we did the most intimate things imaginable. The only thing missing was an official ring.

But now, tracing the red mark he left on my collarbone, he told me not to overthink it.

While he was in the shower, I called my parents. "Mom, Dad, that corporate marriage alliance you mentioned last time? I accept." The line went silent for a few seconds.

My mother’s voice came through, filled with worry. "Sienna, don't do this impulsively. Marriage isn't something you do out of spite." I shook my head. "Mom, Julian is right.

We’re just childhood friends.

If he's moving on with a corporate marriage, I can't stop him." "But you clearly—" "Mom," I interrupted. "We were never what you thought we were." I hung up and sat on the edge of the bed alone until Julian walked out, a towel wrapped around his waist. "What's wrong?" He walked over, wrapping his arms around my waist from behind, his voice thick with postshower laziness. "Who upset my favorite girl?" "Nothing." I pulled away from his embrace. "My parents just set me up with a marriage of convenience." He froze for a second, then quickly laughed. "Sienna, you're not seriously marrying some random guy just because I'm going on a date, are you?" There it was again.

That dismissive, mocking tone. He was so sure I’d always be there, always at his beck and call. I looked down at myself, at the marks he’d left on my skin last night.

A wave of sadness hit me. I reached for the glass of water on the nightstand, but he snatched it away first. "You know you have a sensitive stomach.

Why are you drinking cold water?" With that, he poured me a cup of warm water. He remembered all my habits. He knew everything I liked, every health issue I had.

He even kept track of my period. But he didn't love me. I lowered my head and asked softly, "What is she like?

Miss Sterling?" He came up behind me again, resting his chin on my shoulder. "Remember that ballet dancer we saw in Paris three years ago?" "I said back then, a woman like that is fit to be Mrs.

Vance." My fingernails dug into my palms. Of course I remembered. Julian had watched her perform once in Paris and spent a whole week talking about how elegant she was.

But back then, I was naive. I thought he was just projecting my image onto her. After all, we looked so much alike. She wasn't even as striking as I was.

It turned out he had kept her in his mind for three years. So, what did our five years mean to him?

Seeing my pale face, Julian added, "Sienna, don't go falling in love with me." "Isn't what we have right now perfect?" "If I actually married you, my life would be so boring." He smiled casually, his warm breath tickling the back of my ear. "Jealous?" His hand slipped under the hem of my nightgown, but I gently pushed it away. "Julian, let's end this." He froze, his brows furrowing. "Sienna, stop playing games." "I'm not." I looked up into his eyes. "You're getting married.

If I don't wake up now, I'd just be pathetic." He stared at me for a few seconds, then suddenly let go.

His tone went cold. "Suit yourself." After he left, I sat in silence for a long time.

We had known each other since we were kids, and after we turned eighteen, we crossed every line.

For five years, I was his plusone at every highsociety gala, and I stood by him through the hardest times of the Vance Group's restructuring.

We were business partners by day and lovers by night. He would get jealous if I smiled at other men, and he’d cancel all his meetings to spend my birthday with me.

Everyone assumed we would naturally end up together. I, too, thought we were just one confession away from forever. But it was all just wishful thinking on my part.

After leaving Julian's apartment, I met up with Christian Hayes. I had run into him at a few galas before.

Gentle, refined, and incredibly polite—the quintessential oldmoney gentleman.

If my heart hadn't been occupied by Julian, Christian would have been exactly my type. "Miss Montgomery." He stood up and pulled out a chair for me, ever the gentleman. "Mr.

Hayes," I said as I sat down, getting straight to the point. "I agree to the marriage, but I have a few conditions." He raised an eyebrow, gesturing for me to go on. "First, we won't interfere in each other's private lives, but we must maintain a united front in public." "Second, I won't give up my career.

I will keep running Montgomery Enterprises." "Third," I paused, "if you ever fall in love with someone else, we can end this marriage anytime." He smiled and nodded. "Fair enough.

But I have one condition of my own." "Go ahead." "Since we're getting married, I expect mutual respect and honesty." "For instance, I don't want my wife carrying a torch for another man." I froze for a moment, then nodded. "Deal." We talked for a long time, covering everything from market trends to art collections.

He was articulate and highly intelligent.

When it was time to leave, he walked me to my car. "I'm looking forward to our marriage, Sienna." Looking at him, I suddenly realized this marriage might not be as bad as I thought.

Just as I was about to drive home, I got a SnapChat from Julian. He was bringing Melody Sterling to meet his family today, and he wanted me there to help break the ice.

I hesitated, but eventually drove to the Vance estate. Yet, when I arrived, I realized I had no idea who I was supposed to be in that house anymore.

I sat in my car for God knows how long, until Julian’s assistant tapped on my window. "Leo? What are you doing here?" He handed me a folder. "Ma'am, Mr.

Vance secured the Eastside development project for you. I assumed you were here to sign the contract." I glanced at the papers but didn't take them. "Keep it.

Julian is on a blind date today. He just wanted me here as a guest." I stepped out of the car, leaving Leo stunned. Before he could say anything, Julian arrived with Melody.

He was wearing that white suit, and they looked pictureperfect together. I had bought him that suit for his birthday last year.

He used to complain that white was too hard to maintain, but after I pressed it for him several times, he finally wore it. It wasn't that he hated white.

He just hated putting in the effort for me. Melody held Julian's arm, smiling warmly at me. "Miss Montgomery, it's so good to finally meet you. Julian talks about you all the time.

He says you're his most capable assistant." Assistant... A few hours ago, I was his "sister." Now, I was just an assistant.

He was so afraid Melody would misunderstand that he was actively erasing our history. He wouldn't even acknowledge we grew up together. I gave a tight nod.

Leo looked like he wanted to speak up, but Julian cut him off. "Leo, leave the business for tomorrow." He was terrified his assistant would let something slip.

But weren't we just "sleeping together occasionally"? Why the secrecy? Watching how careful he was, I suddenly wondered who the hell I had been loving for the past five years.

Inside the Vance mansion, the halls were filled with red roses—Melody's favorite. But Julian forgot that I am severely allergic to roses.

Suppressing the tightening in my chest, I tried to grab the edge of Julian's jacket.

But he was too busy introducing Melody to everyone in the family, completely ignoring me as I suffocated behind him. My vision began to blur.

I leaned against the wall, trying to make it outside for air.

Julian finally noticed and walked over, his tone annoyed. "Sienna, what are you doing?" "I asked you here to help host, didn't I?" He grabbed my shoulder to turn me around, but froze when he saw the angry red hives covering my face.

I couldn't hold on any longer. My legs gave out, and I collapsed. Through the haze, I heard his voice shouting to the maids: "Get her out of here!

Don't let her scare Melody!" The brutal contrast in how he treated us pierced my heart like a dagger. Every memory with Julian flashed through my mind.

For a split second, I was back in our teenage years.

Julian was holding my hand, promising me with absolute certainty: "Sienna, when we grow up, let's get married, okay?" It turned out I was the only one who took that childhood promise seriously.

When I woke up in the hospital, my mother had sent me the wedding schedule. As I was typing a reply, the ward door swung open. Julian walked in, holding a thermos of soup.

Seeing me awake, he let out a sigh of relief. "You're finally up. Eat something." He snatched my phone away and pushed me back onto the pillow.

The screen was still showing my wedding planning document. I tried to grab it back, but he had already seen it.

Frowning, he pointed at the screen. "Sienna, what is this?" "Are you seriously rushing into some marriage alliance?" I took my phone back, my voice deadpan. "No.

It's my cousin's wedding. I'm the maid of honor." He instantly relaxed. "I knew you wouldn't do something so reckless.

Who knows you better than I do?" "Even though Melody and I are getting engaged soon, I'll still look out for you in business." "We can still work together on future projects." "We're the best partners, aren't we?" I couldn't believe the words coming out of his mouth.

He was getting engaged to Melody, yet he wanted to keep me on the hook? A wave of nausea hit me, and I dryheaved.

Julian gently patted my back. "Okay, okay, I won't talk about it." "Did you look at the proposal Leo gave you?" I pushed his hand away and turned onto my side. "What proposal?" "The Eastside development.

Since when is your memory this bad?" He was so sure I’d sign that contract.

He was so sure I’d accept his "compensation." In the past, whenever we fought, he would throw a lucrative project my way as a peace offering.

For five years, he ruled over our relationship from his high throne. And because I loved him, I forgave him every single time. But not this time. I didn't answer.

I just told him I was tired and wanted him to leave. After I was discharged, I went home and collapsed onto my bed.

I pulled out my phone and saw that Julian—who never posted on Instagram—had just shared a post: [Beautiful reunions. ❤️] It was a picture of him and Melody posing in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

I stared at the photo for a long time before calling my secretary. "Chloe, decline the Vance Group's proposal." "From now on, handle all business with the Vance Group through standard procedures.

No need to fasttrack anything for them." Over the next few days, Julian was all over the news, attending various highprofile galas.

And his social media was constantly filled with Melody. I watched it happen, but my heart didn't ache anymore. I poured all my energy into preparing for my wedding with Christian.

Once everything was finalized, we just had to wait for the big day. As it turned out, our wedding date fell on the exact day Julian’s Eastside project was set to launch.

The day before the launch, Julian went to the site but couldn't find me.

He asked his assistant, only to find out that Montgomery Enterprises had backed out of the partnership weeks ago. As the main investor, he was the last to know.

But he still didn't believe it. After all, we had fought countless times over the last five years. He had been linked to other women before. I had always forgiven him.

Why would this time be any different? He assumed I was just throwing a tantrum to get his attention. Angry, he called me. "Sienna, what the hell is going on?

The project launches today, and my most important partner is a noshow?" When the phone rang, I was running through the wedding rehearsal with Christian.

The officiant's voice echoed through the speaker: "Do you, Christian, take Sienna to be your lawfully wedded wife, to..." Before Julian could make sense of it, I hung up.

Julian thought he was hallucinating. Sienna loved him to death. How could she marry someone else? He called me dozens of times like a madman, but I didn't pick up.

With every unanswered call, panic began to claw at his chest. With trembling hands, he opened my Instagram, only to find that every single photo of us had been wiped clean.

Just then, Melody, the face of the new project, walked into his office. She was wearing a dress that should have matched mine. "Julian," she called softly. Julian’s vision blurred.

He rushed forward, only to realize she wasn't me. He suddenly remembered when he first saw Melody in Paris three years ago. He had thought she was incredibly elegant.

And that she looked remarkably like Sienna.

Back then, he had stubbornly told his friends, "She looks nothing like Sienna." But looking at Melody now—her posture, her expressions, even the curve of her smile—she was a carbon copy of me.

So, who had he really been in love with all these years? He pushed Melody aside, stumbled out of the building, and kept dialing my number. The call finally connected the next day.

But the background was chaotic, and a stranger's voice answered: "Hello? Is this the bride's family? The ceremony has started.

You need to get here right now." Julian slammed on the brakes, his mind going completely blank.