Page 18 of Taking Chances

I’m so sorry. It was fate for me and Yasmin to meet, and I’m sorry you were a victim of its cruel play.

I will always love you and respect you as a friend, and I really hope we can stay in each other’s lives.

Love,

Bryce

“Urgh,”I growl, my fists clenching. Using fate against me is a low blow.

But what else could I expect from a man that’s sending wedding invitations so soon after we broke up?

This freaking sucks.My two-day no crying streak is long forgotten as I step into my apartment, not sure if the tears are the result of sadness or pure rage.

A mix of both, probably. On one hand, I feel pathetic to know he cared about me so little. On the other, the freaking audacity of that man?

Wedding? Marriage? He was living in this very apartment two months ago! Did she drug him? Or give him a love potion of sorts?

Am I witnessing a real-life paranormal romance?

As soon as my backside hits the couch, Luna finds her place on my lap, purring with satisfaction. At least one of us is happy.

Picking my phone up, I unblock Bryce and begin my research. It takes me barely five seconds to find his fiancé—shoot, the word makes bile rise in my throat—since his profile is flooded with pictures of the two of them.

Yasmin is twenty-four and a freaking super model.She has that curvy skinny body type I thought only existed on TikTok. Stacked both in the top and the bottom, she defies the laws of physics with a perfectly flat stomach and a Barbie-sized waist.

I look nothing like that.

I don’t see myself as unattractive, but I always considered myself cute rather than sexy. Luna jumps from my lap as I get up from the couch and head to the full-length mirror by the front door. A voice in my head screams this is a horrible idea, but I’m feeling too dejected to listen to it.

Taking off my sweats and tank top, I stand in front of the mirror in a bra and panties. My soft belly is nowhere close to being flat, my skin is so pale it’s almost see-through, andmy freckles don’t stop at my face, finding their way down my cleavage. There’s one large, weirdly shaped mark right between my breasts, and I’ve hated it ever since I noticed it. When men say they like curvy, they mean Yasmin—curves only where they prefer them, notthis.

My chin lowers to my chest as my throat constricts and my vision blurs.

No wonder he fell in love with her. Who wouldn’t?

“Today,in a new episode of Anne is pathetic, take a look at this.” I slam the invitation on the table as I slump into the booth at Factory. My face is probably still blotched and puffy from crying all day, but I’m too defeated to care.

“That asshole is out of his damn mind. You guys broken up just a few weeks ago. He really did that?” Natalie points a threatening finger at the invite.

“Yes, he really did that,” I snark, not caring there are six people witnessing my breakdown. “I’m not going, of course. . .”

“No! You definitely need to go. You need to go and show him you’re over his sorry ass,” Natalie states.

“Yes. You need to make him feel like a dick for what he did,” Rina adds.

“So, I need to be pathetically single in my ex’s wedding? Aren’t I already desperate enough?” I wail.

“No, you need a date.” Natalie waves me off.

“Here she goes again.” Rina rolls her eyes.

“The last time I found you a date, it was what made you two pull your heads out of your asses and get together for real.” Natalie smirks at Rina.

“Objection. It was onlyherwho needed that, my head was fully out already,” Connor intervenes.

He and Rina were stuck in a friends with benefits situation until the BYC’s gala where Rina brought a date.Thingshappened, and afterward they decided to get into a real relationship.

“Sure, sure.” Natalie shrugs. “Anyway, we’ll find you a date.” She looks around the bar, her gaze landing back on me. “Hmm. How about Noah?”

---