Chapter 1

This year, Liam and I planned to get engaged, so on New Year's Eve, I went home with him.

Many relatives and friends came for dinner.

At the table, one of Liam's good friends suddenly greeted me.

"Hey, aren't you the number 18 masseuse from Intoxicated Dreams? Do you remember me? You even gave me a private massage."

My brain froze on the spot.

I'd never seen this friend of his before, and Intoxicated Dreams didn't sound like any legitimate establishment.

Everyone's eyes fell on me.

Liam's friend kept staring at me.

"You're not doing it anymore? What a shame. I still can't forget your figure."

My whole body trembled as I finally grasped what he meant.

The Hayes family relatives started whispering among themselves.

"Intoxicated Dreams? I heard that place isn't a legitimate massage parlor—they do all sorts of dirty business there."

"A distant relative of mine used to work the front desk there. She told me the masseuses there are actually prostitutes."

"My God, Liam's fiancée used to do that kind of work? Doesn't that mean Liam's been deceived? That boy is just too honest."

Liam also frowned at me, his eyes full of questions.

"Harper, is what Ethan said true?"

He actually suspected me?

We'd been together for so long. Didn't he know what kind of person I was?

After graduating from college, I went straight into the company. I clocked in and out on time every day. On weekends, I either went on dates with him or went home to keep my parents company. I'd never been to any improper establishments.

How could he doubt me because of someone else's single remark?

The overwhelming sense of injustice nearly made me lose control. I raised my head to look at Liam.

"Of course what he said is false! Liam, don't you know everything about me? How could I possibly work as a masseuse? He's making this up!"

Seeing I wouldn't admit it, Ethan was about to say more when the friend sitting next to him quietly tugged his arm and gave him a subtle look.

Ethan paused, then changed his tune with a wave of his hand.

"Oh, maybe I got the wrong person. I've had a bit too much to drink today, my head's not too clear. Just pretend I didn't say any of that."

He spoke lightly, as if it were merely a drunken slip of the tongue.

But that ambiguous attitude—where was even half an apology?

He was clearly stopping deliberately, wanting to deepen everyone's suspicions of me!

I couldn't swallow this!

And this was at the Hayes family's New Year's Eve dinner, with all the relatives present. If I didn't clear this up completely today, how could I establish myself in the Hayes family in the future?

No, I had to make this clear, make Ethan admit publicly that he was slandering me, and clear my name!

With that thought, I took a deep breath, stood up, and walked straight to Ethan.

"You said you saw me at Intoxicated Dreams? Then tell me, when exactly was this? What month, what date?"

Ethan hadn't expected me to be so direct, to actually dare confront him publicly.

He froze for a moment, a flash of panic in his eyes, then quickly recovered his nonchalant expression.

"It was in May of last year. I can't remember the exact date, but it was definitely May."

Last May?

I sneered inwardly. He sure could spin a story!

Last May, I'd been sent on a business trip out of town for an entire month, with daily work records.

I wasn't even in the city. How could I have been at Intoxicated Dreams?