My sister immediately reacted to the contact, ripping off her blindfold and looking at the man in horror.“What is this? Who are you?” she asked, alarmed.“It doesn’t matter who I am. What matters is that you’re the bride. A round of applause for the bride!” the stripper announced, trying to get everyone excited.The ladies screamed in delight, completely engrossed in the moment. So much so that they didn’t notice that the bride was clearly uncomfortable. The guy danced, stepping back a bit to help Amanda relax, but she couldn’t. Her face showed that she felt harassed.I looked at her so-called friends, who were more interested in taking photos, cheering, dancing, or drinking. Was no one going to stop this? When the stripper ripped off his pants and practically shoved his crotch in Amanda’s face, I had to step in.“That’s enough. Stop,” I ordered, putting my arm against his chest and pushing him away from Amanda.The room filled with confusion at my sudden action. The stripper lo
The sound of Amanda’s body hitting the water snapped me out of my daze. She had done it. That crazy lunatic had actually thrown herself into the water.“What did you do?! Murderer!” Estelle screamed at me.My face showed nothing but shock as I realized I wasn’t alone. About five of the bridesmaids were standing nearby, processing what had just happened. There was surprise, fear, and panic.“Stop the captain! The bride fell into the water!” Marissa started yelling at the crew members nearby.One girl ran to alert the captain while two others threw life preservers into the dark waters. As they hit the surface, Amanda’s arms emerged, flailing and crying for help. She was drowning and couldn’t grab hold of the life rings on her own. Two men dove into the water to rescue her.By now, the yacht had come to a stop, and everyone onboard—bridesmaids and crew—was focused on the accident. The men managed to get a hold of Amanda, securing a life preserver around her as she coughed from swallo
My words earned me several scoldings, but they rolled right off me. I couldn’t have cared less about the opinions of those women.-By the time we returned to the port, Amanda was being checked over in the ambulance, and Serge’s car pulled up. Amelia was the first to rush out, wrapping Amanda in her arms. Amanda, sitting at the edge of the ambulance’s back, was covered with a large towel draped over her shoulders.Taking his time, as always, was our father. But Amelia couldn’t wait for him. She pulled away from hugging her daughter and stormed over to me, furious.“What did you do to my daughter?! You filthy—” she yelled, raising her hand to slap me.I reacted just in time, grabbing her wrist and shoving her back with enough force that my stepmother stumbled a few steps.“How dare you?! Insolent brat!” she screamed.At that point, I wasn’t interested in her reaction. What mattered was Serge’s. He was watching us with his usual calculating gaze. He didn’t rush to Amanda to check
The culmination of my evil plans was finally about to unfold on that glorious day. Standing at the entrance of the cathedral, wearing my pink bridesmaid dress, I witnessed a rather amusing sight—Amanda struggling to get out of a flower-covered Mercedes 300. Her princess-style dress was so puffy that she could barely get out of the car.The absurdity of the crinoline, along with all those layers of tulle beneath the skirt, was worth many mocking photos. The bridesmaids fussing over her, adjusting her three-meter-long veil and holding her bouquet of 20 roses was an equally amusing sight.As for my interactions with the bridesmaids after last night’s circus, there was little to say. They had been glaring at me, and I had overheard whispered insults, calling me a terrible stepsister who tried to ruin poor, innocent Amanda’s wedding.Inside the cathedral, the music started to play, signaling that Andrew was waiting at the altar with his mother. The wedding planner instructed us to line u
She walked down the aisle to "Ave Maria," hanging off my father’s arm while wearing her enormous gown with a veil and crown adorning her head. Many of the women among the guests were moved. The cathedral was packed to the brim, and the decor was straight out of a fairytale, I’d admit that much. The problem was the embarrassed looks on the faces of several members of Andrew's family. I even saw his brother whispering mockingly to one of the groomsmen. When Serge handed Amanda over to Andrew, no one could have guessed that these two were secretly at each other's throats, fighting tooth and nail to keep up appearances. The ceremony began. To me, it felt fake, boring, and monotonous, despite Amelia's tearful eyes and those of the other bridesmaids. And just like that, my sister and my ex-boyfriend got married. They became husband and wife right before my eyes. - After a thousand photos with the wedding party outside the cathedral, I was finally free to escape this den of snakes. T
Even Amelia’s discomfort didn’t make me feel any better. Lucius, on the other hand, reveled in it. He enjoyed this kind of torture, especially when it was directed at Amelia’s past. He had already asked her several times about her supposed archaeological training in Egypt or if it was true that she spoke Mandarin. Amelia couldn’t have looked worse—she had asked to go to the bathroom at least three times.Serge wasn’t paying attention to his wife at all. He was more focused on greeting guests and entertaining them, maintaining the image of the perfect father, not just in front of the family but also in front of his employees. Half of Fairmount Corporation was included among the 400 guests, which reminded me that Jenna had mentioned she’d be there too."I’ll be right back. I’m going to say hi to Jenna," I told Lucius.He smiled and continued charming the table. I searched for my friend, eventually spotting her in a far-off corner table, surrounded by our work team—Amy, Melanie, Karen,
The world spun, even with my eyes closed as I woke up—I could still feel it. I had definitely had too much to drink at my sister’s pathetic wedding. Smiling, I snuggled deeper into my small bed. It was hard to pick the best part of that hellish wedding—the critical mother-in-law, the hypocritical father, or the sulking groom who had been miserable all night.I tried to fall back asleep, hoping the hangover would ease, but worried it might be late, I forced my eyes open. Blurry, I saw it was 2 PM, which wasn’t too bad. I snuggled back down, pressing my back against the warmth beside me. It felt so good—so warm."Are you doing that on purpose? I swear you are."My eyes flew open, and I turned in shock to find… Lucius lying beside me, his face resting on his arm. I reacted faster than I could think, trying to push myself away from him while screaming at the top of my lungs.But my bed was tiny, and in my attempt to get away, I tumbled backward, landing on the floor with a thud. I groa
"Very funny, huh? It was obvious this apartment didn’t match your lifestyle. I’ll move in with you, but I’ll keep visiting my place regularly—it’s my investment," I told him, settling our arrangement. He seemed satisfied. "Another thing we need to discuss: how long is this marriage supposed to last?""Two to three years should be enough.""Two to three years? Isn’t that too long?""Trust me, I’m not giving my family the satisfaction of seeing me divorce within a year. They’re probably betting on how short my marriage will last. I’m not letting them win. Or do you have other plans during that time?"I mulled over being locked in a contract for that long. I’d be nearing 30 when it was all over, but I stood to gain a lot if I played my cards right."I can understand that. Who would’ve thought you’d put more thought into our relationship than just sex?" I teased.He didn’t take the bait."To clarify, sex is still a top priority. I have a varied and intense sexual appetite, and you’l