My Fiancé Sided With His Mischievous Childhood Friend, Until My Mother‑In‑Law Burst In Chapter 01

My Fiancé Sided With His Mischievous Childhood Friend, Until My Mother‑In‑Law Burst In Chapter 01

The night before our wedding, my husband’s childhood friend, Chloe Hayes, cut off nearly all my hair while I slept.

When I woke up, she stared at my freshly shorn head with a smug grin. “Oh, Lily. Where did all your hair go? Your head is so smooth. It feels even better than my sphynx cat.”

I thought my husband would stand up for me. Instead, he looked at her with helpless affection.

“Chloe’s always been a little wild. She didn’t mean any harm. It’ll grow back in a couple of months. Don’t make such a big deal out of it.”

Too tongue-tied to fight back, I could only let the tears fall.

That only made Chloe bolder. She led the bridesmaids toward me and reached out to rub my head.

Before I could get away, the door flew open with a violent crash.

My mother-in-law, Victoria Ashford, came barreling in. She drew her arm back and gave Chloe a sharp slap that sent her stumbling backward.

“If your parents never taught you how to behave, then I will!”

***

Before I married into the Ashford family, the person I feared most was my mother-in-law, Victoria Ashford.

The first time I had dinner at the Ashford estate, my spoon accidentally tapped the edge of my soup bowl. It was barely a sound, but Victoria’s fingers went still at the far end of the long table.

The entire dining room fell silent. My back went rigid with fear.

Ethan squeezed my hand and whispered, “Don’t worry. Mom’s been doing pretty well lately.”

Doing pretty well.

Those words almost made me cry.

Later, the Ashfords’ driver told me Victoria had always had a fierce temper. When her temper flared, she had a habit of knocking things over or breaking whatever was close at hand.

At her worst a few years earlier, she’d caused a spectacular mess in the estate’s study, leaving an entire wall of glass in ruins.

But Victoria had never made things difficult for me. Whenever she saw me, she would study me for a moment, then turn to Ethan’s father, Richard Ashford, and demand, “Why is this girl so thin? Does Ethan not take good care of her?”

Ethan would laugh. “I’ll tell the kitchen to make her something.”

After Ethan and I got married at City Hall, Victoria gave me an heirloom pearl bracelet as a gift.

She shoved it into my hand with a scowl. “Wear it or don’t. Just don’t lose it. It cost a fortune.”

I said, “Thank you so much, Victoria.”

The tips of her ears turned red. Then she spun around and walked away.

Ethan smiled. “My mom isn’t good at showing it, but that means she accepts you.”

Back then, I truly believed I was lucky.

Then came the night before our wedding celebration.

I had spent three years growing my hair for that day.

That evening, the hotel’s penthouse bridal suite was packed with bridesmaids, hairstylists, and members of the wedding team.

Chloe wore a champagne-colored cocktail dress and ordered everyone around as if she were the bride.

“Lily’s so fair. Keep her makeup light tomorrow, or it’ll age her. And isn’t that tiara a little dated? It’s not like Ethan’s family is short on jewelry. Why don’t we get her a new one?”

I tightened my grip on the jewelry box and said nothing.

Ethan looked up from his phone. “It belonged to Lily’s mother.”

Chloe stuck out her tongue. “I was only joking. Why are you being so serious, Ethan?”

Everyone laughed. I couldn’t understand what was funny.

By eleven, the makeup trial was over, but a rash had broken out along my neck and behind my ears. The hairstylist said I might be allergic to the hairspray.

I had medication in my bag for the reaction. Not long after taking it, I could barely keep my eyes open.

Richard called Ethan downstairs to double-check the seating chart in the ballroom.

Before leaving, Ethan stroked my hair. “Go to sleep if you’re tired. We have an early start tomorrow.”

Chloe immediately raised her hand. “Don’t worry. I’ll look after Lily.”

I looked at her, uneasy. But it was the night before the wedding, and I didn’t want a scene.

As I drifted off, I heard Chloe laugh softly beside my ear.

“You have so much hair, Lily. It must be so heavy when they pin it up tomorrow.”

I was too drowsy to open my eyes.

Something cold touched my scalp. Then came the buzz of electric clippers.

I stirred.

Chloe pressed down on my shoulder, her voice sickeningly sweet. “Don’t move. The hairstylist is just trimming your flyaways.”

I was exhausted. More than that, I trusted that no one in a bridal suite could possibly do something that cruel to the bride.

So I fell asleep again.

When I woke, my pillow was covered in black clumps of hair.

My scalp burned in waves, as if someone had dragged a flame across it.

I lifted a trembling hand and felt an unfamiliar field of sharp stubble.

For one horrifying moment, I couldn’t process what I was seeing.