No Longer Your Wife, Call Me Boss

Brooklyn's POV

"I wanna surprise you on our wedding day," my husband had said with a sweet smile. "Don't worry, whatever you see, cooperate." 

The smile had turned rather mischievous but I was thrilled to be honest. 

Who doesn't love surprises? 

Only to walk into my wedding to see a strange woman on white, standing on the podium with my husband and an officiator with a wedding rite book in hand. 

For a while, time stood still. I looked back and forth, then back in time to the statement he made. 

"I'll be doing something quite spectacular for my love. I'll go all out to show her how much I've loved her all these years." 

Those words hit me more deeply as I slowly turned back to the woman on stage with a silvery diamond petals wedding ring and a veil costing a fortune. 

My breath caught in my throat. I turned to my chief bridesmaid. "What's going on here?" But Mabel was equally confused. 

I looked around, the whole beach house was adorned with the most expensive sparkles, exactly how I'd wanted it to. The event center to the cost of the wedding, everything I'd footed with my own money but told my husband it's my godfather, my late dad's boss. 

And he's getting set to wed another woman? 

The two stood still, seeming to be waiting for someone. 

My little niece-in-law and little bridesmaid, Ayla, without saying a thing, took to her heels, with the set of rings with her. She ran towards the podium, climbed up and grabbed the strange bride. 

I grabbed my chest, lips sprawled wide open. Those who didn't notice before turned. 

Cooper stretched his hand over to her and picked her up, giving her a kiss on the forehead before dropping her back. 

And I tried looking at this bride but her heavy, luxury makeup wouldn't let me know right away. 

Ayla turned back to look at me, Cooper and the bride followed. 

Oxygen left my lungs. 

Justeen. His best friend. Our family best friend and supporter, like a sister to me. 

And him, he held no regret. Rather a smug smile like 'I told you,' 

"Cooper, what's it? What are you trying to do?" I screamed my lungs out, feeling hot tears brew in my eyes. 

In a second, the caring and gentle sweetheart I'd always looked up with radical adoration each morning and all through the day flashed before my eyes. 

Each day, starting from college, where no one barely looked my way. To when he decided to propose and marry me, even as an orphan with no family but a godfather. 

"Will you be willing to stand as both parent and husband? I've got no one." 

As men were afraid of marrying orphans, in case of anything, they wouldn't have anywhere to turn to. 

"It's no issue at all, I will." He'd readily said. 

This guy was too enthusiastic, too good to be real but since I had nothing, it was true love. 

I'd sought this same Justeen, asking if she would support our marriage. 

"He has no father, you're an orphan. Both of you are so fitted together." She smiled, sweetly. 

"Don't you love him, don't you want him?" I'd asked, considering how they were so close even before Cooper started crushing on me. 

"Yes, I do love him but as a best friend. As a second mother figure." 

My eyes glowed with uncontrollable bliss. I'd made sure of everything and all was set. 

The thoughts faded off to show reality here. 

The same woman who'd told me she's very happy for us. It was hard to breathe. 

The weirdest thing, neither of them spoke. 

I dropped the black bouquet I held, wanting to storm right there in front, grab both of them in the throats and ask what the hell is going on. 

But bouncers pulled up from nowhere, barricading me. 

I screamed again, "Can someone tell me what's going on here?" 

Whispers and murmurs began and before long had spread across the hall. 

"Could this be the surprise you were talking about? The so-called mafia themed wedding?" 

He'd asked me to choose black but also telling me that wasn't the main surprise. The main surprise will be at the wedding. 

Cooper tapped the bride on her arms, then left the stage and walked up to me, pressing his suit confidently. 

I stood stiffly, head tilted low with rage. He seemed not to mind, even pressed on a smile. 

Jezzz. 

When he reached me, he stretched out his hand to hold me but I slapped his hand off. 

"What are you doing, Cooper?" I lashed at him but he flapped his hands asking me to calm down. 

"Actually, I've got a lot to tell you but Justeen just flew in from the UK today. She's my bride." 

It was sharp and curt. No remorse. No apology. 

My hand flung across, slashing him a big slap across the cheeks. I grabbed the collar of his suit. 

"Tell me what's going on here?" 

The bouncers had wanted to lunge in defense but he pulled his hand up in the air. 

They stepped back. 

"Tell me!" I shouted even louder, fighting to control the hot tears in my eyes. 

"You don't need to act unruly, before people wonder why I chose another bride on your wedding day." He said slowly like he wasn't the one I just slapped. 

My eyes rallied around, cheeks red, sunk in a brief shame. 

Big men and women from the business world. So many elite faces I'd seen in journals, the TV and social media. 

They wandered back to him. The man I was over excited about calling my husband today. 

"There's a billion-dollar deal from Wil-X." Cooper said in a low whisper. I stiffened. 

Because of that name. It clicked so deep. 

My eyes poked out. 

He inhaled, watching my face closely. 

"She's the only medium I can use to get this deal." He lowered his tone. My heartbeat skyrocketed. 

He didn't even have the conscience to brief me on things beforehand. 

"Since you're a housewife....." 

I stumbled back. That was the height of everything. 

The little iota of doubt I had vanished and there I saw him for who he is. 

What he was doing. 

He lowered his brows, feigning innocence, as if this is the only thing he could do. 

As if there was no other option to get the deal apart from this. 

"She asked for your place as my bride, not only that, but for me to divorce you before everyone."