Chapter 1

I got slapped at my own wedding, and my wife’s bodyguard was the one who did it.

Amelie Darren was standing before me in her custom-made wedding dress and smiling gently. Her expression was warm.

Right then, a figure suddenly sped over from her side. It was Cole Martin.

Before I could react, there was a sharp smack, and the left side of my face burned with pain.

I was stunned. I covered my cheek as I looked at Cole in astonishment.

“Have you gone mad, Cole?” Rage rose within me, and I subconsciously wanted to shield Amelie behind me. She was not in a state to be frightened like this.

A ruckus immediately started up below the stage.

When I looked over, the blood seemed to freeze in my veins. My father was looking down into his glass, while my mother had turned her face away. They did not make a single sound in protest.

“Why?” I asked as I tried to suppress my anger.

Cole ignored me and pointed at my feet. “Mr. Bennet, where did the mud on your shoes come from?”

The mud on my shoes? I looked down at my shoes. They were shiny and made of leather. There was not a speck of mud on them.

“What kind of nonsense are you spouting?” He was making no sense.

“There’s mud there.” Cole’s voice was steely. “It’s red soil from the back garden.”

The back garden? I had not gone there at all today. After accompanying Amelie to her prenatal checkup, I came directly to the hotel.

“Cole,” Amelie began. She took a step forward and clutched my arm in a protective stance. “Eli’s shoe might have gotten muddy from our stroll this morning. It’s just a small matter. Did you have to slap him?”

Although it seemed like Amelie was defending me, she was instead confirming that I had gone to the back garden.

I looked at her in confusion.

Amelie immediately put her hand to her lower abdomen, as if in reminder to me.

Her action made me temporarily relinquish my suspicions.

Cole glanced at Amelie and said tauntingly, “A small matter? You’ll never get rid of something so dirty once it’s on you.”

The words stung. Below the stage where the guests were, the gossip reached a fever pitch.

“He hit the groom because of some mud? He must be nuts!”

“What’s going on with Elijah’s parents? Why aren’t they saying anything when their son just got slapped?”

“The way that bodyguard looks at the bride gives me a funny feeling.”

The more I heard, the more frustrated I felt. When I looked over at Amelie, her face was pale. This whole incident must have scared her. I could not keep holding back.

“Call the police!” I yelled, pointing at Cole. “Call the police now and have him locked up!”

“You can’t call the police!” Amelie shrieked. She grabbed my arm. Her nails were cutting into my flesh. There was a panicked look in her eyes that I had never seen before.

“Elijah, you can’t call the police. Think of it as doing a good thing for the baby. Don’t escalate things.”

What did she mean by that? What kind of excuse was that?

Before I could retort, my parents abruptly stood up at the head table.

“No one’s allowed to call the police!” my father, Roger Bennet, roared.

My mother, Margot Bennet, agreed in a sharp voice, “Anyone who calls the police will be going against the Bennet family!”

I was frozen in place. I looked at my parents, who were both defending Cole, and then at Amelie, who still looked at me pleadingly. I turned to look at the guests below the stage, who all found this weird.

This whole thing was absurd, and I was overwhelmed by how alone I felt. What were they so afraid of? Rather, what were they hiding from me?

Seeing how messy things were getting, Cole smirked. He raised his hand and cruelly tried to slap me again.

“Don’t!” Amelie cried out. She instinctively wanted to intercede, but she stopped when Cole flashed her a glance.

I stood in place as I watched the hand descend on me. Meanwhile, the people I loved stayed unmoving. My heart sank.