Chapter 1My Brother and I Got Our Wires Crossed

My brother is gay, and I'm a lesbian.

I have my eye on his arranged marriage partner.

My future sister-in-law has fair skin, a beautiful face, and long legs. But her hands are what really get me—long, slender fingers with pronounced knuckles.

In the middle of the night, I stole my brother's phone and texted her to meet me at a hotel.

The next morning, right outside the hotel entrance.

My brother was leaning shyly against my fiancé's chest, while my sister-in-law had her arm wrapped securely around my waist.

The four of us stared at each other in absolute, stunned silence.

* * *

My dad's business went under, leaving him buried in debt. He tried to start a new project but couldn't find a single investor.

Just when we hit a dead end, the Sterling family—the number one old-money family in New York—extended an olive branch.

The eldest daughter of the Sterling family said she wanted my brother to marry into her family, and that I should come along as part of the "package deal." In exchange, she would invest twenty million dollars in my dad's project.

The eldest daughter's brother said he wanted to marry me, and that my brother should come along as my "dowry." In exchange, he would also invest twenty million dollars.

My dad sat on the sofa and slapped his thigh.

"Yes, yes, yes! Both of you will marry into the Sterling family!"

My mom wiped her tears, loudly scolding my dad for selling his children.

"The Sterling family is famously complicated! Sending them there is like throwing sheep into a wolf's den!"

My parents argued fiercely. My brother and I just looked at each other, keeping our heads down, neither of us daring to speak.

My brother couldn't marry the Sterling family's eldest daughter, and I couldn't marry her brother.

They just didn't know it yet.

My brother and I... he's gay, and I'm a lesbian.

The Vance family had both a son and a daughter, but unfortunately, no heirs to carry on the traditional bloodline.