He Made Me Fight His Champion Best Friend, Then Begged Me to Come Home Chapter 03

This was the joint savings account Nathaniel and I had set up together.

We had planned to use it in just three days, for our honeymoon.

I didn’t stop to wipe my tears before calling the hospital to make the payment.

“Ms. Harrison, your balance is insufficient. You only have five thousand dollars left. You cannot cover the remaining amount.”

The voice on the other end of the line was apologetic.

I froze. How could there be no money left?

I was about to call Nathaniel when a notification popped up on my phone.

Sierra’s social media update.

A ten-million-dollar pink diamond ring now sat on her pale finger.

Caption: [He said it’s worth it just to make me happy.]

Below it were rows of comments:

[No way… that’s the engagement gift his fiancée sold, right?]

[Honestly, it looks better on her than it ever did on the original owner.]

A bitter laugh escaped me. I even hit the like button.

And yet, I still enlarged the photo. That was when I saw it.

In the corner of the image, something familiar was being used to prop up a table leg.

My grandmother’s locket.

The antique silver locket she had saved her entire life for, just so I wouldn’t be looked down on by the Whitmore family.

I could still remember that day.

She placed it into Nathaniel’s hand and mine with trembling fingers.

“Nathaniel… think of this as me being there. Please take care of Emily.”

Nathaniel had looked confused back then, but he still sat in front of her and promised solemnly. “Grandma Ruth, as long as I’m alive, Emily will always be safe with me.”

Now it was being used like trash under a table.

My hands shook as I dialed Nathaniel’s video call.

The moment he answered, I asked, voice breaking, “You swore on this locket. Why is it in Sierra’s hands? Give it back to me, Nathaniel.”

His eyes flickered with guilt. And then Sierra appeared beside him, casually swinging the locket between her fingers like a toy.

“Oh,” she said with a smile. “So this cheap thing belongs to you? I thought it was something some country bumpkin left behind.”

Before I could react, it slipped from her hand and hit the ground.

It hit the ground, and the locket cracked open.

“SIERRA!” My voice cracked as my entire body trembled.

“Emily, she didn’t mean it,” Nathaniel said quickly, grabbing her hand and pulling her behind him as she made a playful face.

“She’s just clumsy. She doesn’t know her own strength.”

“But that was my grandmother’s locket,” I said, choking on every word. “She’s in the hospital. It’s the most precious thing she ever gave me.”

Nathaniel’s patience snapped.

“I’m honestly tired of you always using your grandmother as an excuse. Stop this act.”

“You like money, don’t you? Isn’t this exactly what you wanted?”

“I’ll compensate you one million dollars.”

I stared at him, lips trembling, biting down so hard I tasted blood.

I didn’t say no. I couldn’t. My grandmother needed that money, so I swallowed everything and accepted his decision in silence.

Once again, Sierra had destroyed something of mine.

And once again, I failed to protect it.

Soon after, my phone rang.

But the sound that followed wasn’t a deposit notification. It was a deduction.

Five hundred thousand dollars withdrawn from the account I had been saving for my grandmother.

The location: a bridal boutique.

My chest tightened violently. The transaction had Sierra’s name on it.

I ran there immediately. And what I saw made my breath catch in my throat.

Nathaniel was holding Sierra in his arms.

When he saw me, he immediately let go.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, frowning. “You should be resting.”

“If I hadn’t come, I wouldn’t even know someone else is wearing my wedding dress… using my money.”

My voice shook as anger surged through my chest.

Nathaniel’s expression changed instantly. Panic flashed across his face.

“It’s not what you think. Sierra was just trying it on for you. You’re not well enough to fit dresses right now.”