Chapter 1 Retaliation

Everyone fell silent. The edges of Penelope's eyes went red. She was Shawn's grandmother.

Tamara screamed again. Shawn snapped out of it and grabbed my hand. "Hey, you hired the emcee. Stop throwing a tantrum!"

I laughed without any warmth. After so many ruined weddings, no emcee wanted to take my job anymore. I had to beg and plead and bow my head just to hold this wedding, all so we could bring our ten-year relationship into a new stage.

And now these two were playing the loving family again. I could not believe they had the gall to pin this on me. I looked at Shawn seriously and repeated, "As you wish. Let's cancel the marriage."

For once, a hint of discomfort flickered on his face, and he held my hand gently. "I know you're throwing a tantrum, but Tamara's father died saving me. I can't just ignore her."

I nodded and took off my veil, then I tossed it at Shawn. "You can marry her, then. There's no need to drag me into your mess. I hate the way you want everything while sacrificing nothing."

I turned to leave. Even an idiot could see what Tamara was scheming. Maybe I should have slapped her during the first wedding, when she threw herself into Shawn's arms after being frightened by a tiny bee.

"Do you even know what you're doing, Artemis?" Shawn stopped me. "She was worried the wedding might be messed up, so she woke up early just to rehearse with me multiple times. Your emcee scared her, and now you're giving us attitude? This wedding will go on!"

That explained a lot. Shawn usually refused to rehearse with me, but he knew the process of this wedding so well, it felt like he had rehearsed many times. He had not been too busy with work. He just had someone more important to him.

"Yeah, how could you see us in that light, Artemis?" Tamara was fiddling with my veil, but she was still acting innocent. "Shawn's my brother. We'd never do anything filthy!"

Fine. Her sugary little act convinced me to stay. "Is that so? I don't remember siblings doing this!"

Before they could realize what was going on, I projected a photo of Tamara furtively kissing Shawn onto the big screen. The crowd gasped. Shawn's face well. He charged onto the stage and tried to yank me away.

I dodged and scoffed at the screaming Tamara. "Does your dear brother know you assaulted him during his sleep? My, my, perhaps I should be the one who's scared here, not you."

"You're out of your mind, Artemis!" Shawn unplugged the socket, and his icy voice carried through the darkness. "It's just cheek kissing. Are you really going to nitpick something like that?"

My gaze swept over his hand. Even now, he was still protecting Tamara. I sneered. Finally, for once, I was the one who ruined the wedding. It was exhilarating.

Shawn calmed himself down and hugged me. His hand gently combed my hair. "If this wedding falls through, your reputation gets hit. I'll get you your favorite cake if you stop this tantrum. Stop throwing your tantrum, and we get our wedding license tomorrow."

He knew exactly how much I had once wanted to marry him. He also knew where to strike to make it hurt. But now, I no longer cared about that license.

The lights came back on with a pop. Penelope slowly approached me, supporting herself with her walking stick. "Go on the wedding, Artemis. However, we'll have a change of groom."