All Chapters of Becoming Mrs. Blackwood: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

~ LENA ~By the time I got back to the house, my head felt heavy and every part of me ached.It wasn’t just tiredness. It was the kind of exhaustion that sinks into your bones. Physical. Mental. Emotional. The kind that comes from smiling too much, from pretending too well, from answering questions that didn’t belong to you.Elise had called it ‘final confirmations’.It hadn’t been final. It had felt endless.We had gone over everything again. Every single detail of the wedding ranging from the menu, to the floral installations, to the seating chart, to wine pairings, order of speeches, the exact timing of the string quartet…The string quartet. To my surprise, Elise had arranged for them. In my presence, they had rehearsed the exact version of the bridal march I would walk to.Kim had wanted perfection, and Elise was delivering it.The only problem was, I wasn’t Kim.Every girl wanted her wedding to be beautiful, unforgettable. But having over three hundred wedding guests, a giant, to

~ LENA ~As the sun sank lower and evening arrived, the gardens transformed into something much more beautiful for the wedding reception.The rows of white chairs from the ceremony slowly disappeared, carried away by quiet staff in black uniforms. What stood in their place now were round tables draped in ivory linen beneath a sweeping canopy of soft white fabric that billowed gently in the evening breeze. Overhead, fairy lights woven through the draping glowed, turning the ceiling into what seemed like a constellation of warm stars.I was the bride. And yet, I felt like a guest at my own wedding, standing there and taking it all in as though I had stumbled into someone else’s fairytale.Crystal chandeliers hung low from the center beams of the canopy, their light catching against carefully set polished glassware and gold-rimmed plates laid next to elegant centerpieces.Beyond the canopy, the lawn stretched, wide and open, the trees wrapped in delicate strings of light. They glowed lik

~ LENA ~Nathan.I didn’t need to turn around. I knew it was him the moment he appeared behind me in the mirror.Breath caught in my chest, I watched him as he took off his jacket first, dropping it onto the nearby couch. Then his tie followed next. He loosened it with one slow pull and slid it from around his neck.The air in the room felt heavier now. Charged. Filled with his scent, his presence. It was overwhelming. Every part of me wanted to run, but there was no escaping this.For a second, he just stood there, watching as my unsteady fingers fumbled with the zipper of my dress. Then he stepped closer.“Allow me,” he said quietly. His fingers replaced mine before I could say a word. They were warm and steady.The zipper slid down slowly, the soft sound slicing through the silence. I felt every inch of it as the tension in the dress loosened, as the corset gave way, and air touched my bare skin.His knuckles brushed lightly against my spine. The contact was like electricity floodi

~ NATHAN ~When my eyes opened the next morning, she was still asleep, curled up against me with her arm draped over my waist. Her cheek rested on my chest like that was where it had always belonged.For a moment, I didn’t move. I lay there, savoring the sweet warmth of her body as she slept peacefully in my arms.It was still dark outside. The soft glow of the bedside lamp illuminated the room. Everywhere was quiet save for the faint ticking of the clock on the wall and the steady, soft rhythm of my wife’s breathing against my skin.My wife.The word settled deep in my chest with a slow warmth that spread through my entire body.Instinctively, I tightened my arm around her, pulling her a fraction closer. She stirred slightly but didn’t wake up, only burrowed further into me, her fingers curling faintly against my side.A slow, satisfied smile tugged at my mouth. I brushed a lock of hair away from her face, careful not to wake her. Even in sleep, she was beautiful. She looked so soft,

~ LENA ~The first thing that greeted me when I opened the kitchen door was the delicious aroma of breakfast.The kitchen was huge, almost the size of a small apartment. Soft morning light filtered through the windows, touching the wide marble counters and stainless steel appliances lining the walls. A long kitchen island stood at the center of the room, its smooth surface gleaming faintly in the light.Pancakes were stacked on a plate nearby. Something sizzled softly on the stove, the scent mingling with the rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee lingering in the air.And in the middle of it all stood Nathan.He was by the stove, completely absorbed in what he was doing.I was used to seeing him in perfectly tailored suits and crisp shirts, the kind of corporate elegance that always made him look distant and untouchable. Seeing him like this now felt almost surreal.He wore a simple white T-shirt that clung lightly to his broad shoulders and loose gray lounge pants. He was barefoot, his