07: Questions

CHRISTY:

I was expecting that there would be a lot of visitors to our wedding, but I was surprised when I found that it was only Everette and his secretary and my friend—Raven. 

I thought Everette would be bringing his family…Talk about having an extravagant wedding only to find out that not even his family was present. 

I could not help but feel a little bit hurt about it. Does this mean that his family hated me for jilting their son? And now, I was also the one who forced him to carry on the wedding as soon as possible. 

Well, if I had an in-law like this, I would also be hurting. 

Whatever. Now was not the time to be sensitive. 

Today, I would be marrying Everette Watson— a CEO and billionaire. 

“Hi. Am I late?” I asked, bringing the silence. 

I shifted my weight from foot to foot as I felt their gaze trained on me. If I had known that they would stare at me like this, I would have paid more attention to my makeup. 

All the men were now watching me as I sauntered towards them. 

“What?” I asked. “Is there something wrong with my face?”

I knew I was not at my best right now. But if I will put my mind to something, I would definitely be more beautiful than this. 

Everette cleared his throat, gave one last look at my outfit before saying, “There is none.”

He never said anything about my dress. Was it to his liking? This might be cheap, but…

You're crazy, Christy. It's your goal to disappoint him so why does his appearance matter now? 

Ah, right. I better focus on what should be important. 

Did his family really hate me? They said that Everette's family was kind and never looked down on people. But seeing how they asked their son to marry me without their presence was something to be concerned about if I was the type who wanted their approval.

As if knowing what was running on my mind, Everette said,  “About my family—”

“I don’t care about your family. One witness is enough,” I said, cutting off his words. 

I should not allow myself to be hurt because this was what I wanted. 

My eyes transferred to Everette. “What are you waiting for? Let’s get this over with.”

Raven, the mayor who was also my ex-boyfriend, was looking at me with furrowed eyebrows. He had a  lot of questions, I knew, but right now, I had no plans of answering any of them.  There were also three people at the back part, but I thought they were Raven's men.

Still, I was glad that he had given in to my request of officiating the wedding. It meant a lot to me. I thought he would not approve, but he did even at the last minute. 

“Ah, right. I have my secretary with me.”

I nodded curtly.  I did not care who would be the witness of this marriage. 

“Mr. Mayor? Can we start?”

“Wait.” Everette gave me something on my hands. A box. Probably his ring. “We can start now, Mr. Mayor.”

Reluctantly, Raven started the ceremony. It was faster than I expected and the next thing I knew we were exchanging rings.

From the looks of it, it was expensive. I was not even expecting that he would prepare anything. But he did.

Everette grabbed my hand and watched me with a softening gaze.

“Tina. Accept this ring which symbolizes my love for you.” He put the ring on my finger. This man was an actor professing his supposed love for me. 

Next, I put the ring next to his finger. 

I wanted this to end as soon as possible. All I had to do was marry this man. 

Still, I could not deny the fact that he smelt so good that I could smell his aftershave. He put some extra effort into his clothes and cut his hair. Overall, Everette Watson was one of the most handsome men I ever put my eyes on. Not even my ex-boyfriends could compare him.

I wondered if he was okay with my weight. Did he think I was fat? I totally accepted my weight and did not care about it, but what would I feel when Everette said something against it? 

I let out a shivery sigh upon seeing he was waiting for me to put the ring on his finger. 

Here I go. 

“Rett. Accept this ring which also symbolizes my devotion to you. I promise to be your lawfully wedded wife until the last of our breath.”

He never asked me to love him, but to serve him, right?

Raven had uttered more words to finish this ceremony, which I no longer listened to until I heard him saying Everette could now kiss me.

My heart jumped. 

The kiss. One of the things I did not want even though I already kissed a lot. 

My eyes locked on Everette. This was not a true wedding, but why does my heart thump loudly?

“You looked beautiful, my wife,” he uttered and brushed his hands on my cheeks. 

Beautiful? Why would he say I was beautiful when I did not even put effort into my outfit?

Everette dunked his mouth into mine.

Sparks exploded and I almost moaned and grabbed his hair to pull him into mine.

Before my chest could summersault and embarrass myself for asking more, I broke the kiss.

Everette looked dazed while I forced myself to act as if nothing had happened.  

He looked at me with a weird expression. 

“Where are the documents that we need to sign, Mr. Mayor?” I asked to break the weird atmosphere. 

I felt my cheeks flamed as Raven watched me.  Damn.  This man was making me self-conscious.  I had to get away from here. As fast as I can or he would bombard me with questions. 

We separated with a good relationship. There was no third party. Only that he said he wanted to focus on his career and that he wanted to join politics. And being someone who cared for him, allowed him even if it was painful. 

“You can sign here,” Raven uttered, without leaving my gaze.  As I signed the documents, I could feel his burning stare around me. 

Geez. 

Please don't ask me right now. 

After Everette did the same, he shook hands with Raven. 

“Thank you so much for being the officiant, Mr. Mayor.”

“Don't you worry, Mr. Watson? It's a pleasure. I also cannot say no to your wife.”

“You two know each other, I can see.”

“We have a past. But it was already part of my past, Everette. Thank you so much, Mr. Mayor,” I said and dragged Evertte away from his wandering eyes. 

I only sighed in relief when we stepped out of the room until we reached the parking lot, then let go of Everette's hands. 

I was about to return to my hotel but was reminded of his secretary.

“Before I forget, thank you for being with us. What's your name?”

“I’m secretary Levi.”

“Levi. Can I call you that?”

Levi lifted his eyeglasses. “Anything is fine with me, Miss Tina.”

Tina. 

Everette was the only one who would 

Now that I had a better view of his face, I could see that he was cute.  But Everette was more handsome. My husband. 

“You can leave us now.” As if asking for confirmation, Levi looked at Everette. 

The man nodded and said, “I’ll be taking a cab. Congratulations on your wedding day.”

When it was only the two of us alone in the parking lot, Everette fished out the car key from his pocket and pressed it. Something clicked. 

“Let's go now.”

“Where?”

“Where else? To our house.”

“What house?”

“Our own house,” he said as if he was patiently explaining something to a child. “I bought it before.”

“Before? When exactly?”

He looked away. “Our supposed first wedding.”

What?

He already had everything even before we wed? Having close family ties with his family, I thought we would be staying with them. It's not like I would approve of the arrangement, but to say he opted to stay away from his family was something surprising. 

“This is only a business marriage, Rett,” I reminded. “We don't have to take this seriously.”

His expression changed into disapproval. 

“You're now my wife. I take the importance of marriage seriously. Besides, I did not want to give the press a reason to write negatively about our family. It's not good for business. Which also means you have to fulfill your duty as my wife. Be prim and proper and on your best behavior.”

I secretly smiled. 

You don't have any idea, my dear husband. 

“Okay. You say so. Where is your car?”

His eyes narrowed. “What are you planning, Christina?”

I smiled even more. “Oh, please, Everette. What am I planning? If I planned something, then you would still be a  jilted groom,” I commented and entered his car. 

---------

The house that Everette bought for us was one of the most luxurious houses I had. This was nothing that the house my parents owned. Everything was using technology.  Plus, there was a vast flower garden before we reached the entrance door. 

“How do you like it?” Everette asked as he pulled over in the parking lot. He sounded proud that I could not blame him at all. 

I pretended to think for a moment, before saying, “It’s fine. But I want to ask why you chose to make a flower garden. Is it perhaps your ex-girlfriend’s taste?”

His lips curled. “Definitely not. You don't like it?”

“Hmmm…it's fine.” Though I was not really fond of flowers. It was Poppy who had a liking for it.  “You don't have work?”

“It's my wedding day and you want me to work?” he asked in disappointment. 

I chuckled. 

“You don't have to take this wedding seriously. We don't love each other.”

“But you loved Rett. Is that how you love, Christina? It disappear suddenly? And what about that mayor? You two had a past? Mind sharing it with your husband?”

I could sense his jealousy.