Chapter 6
Third Person’s POV
Marc’s face darkened as he pulled his hand away from Astrid‘ s with a sharp jerk. His voice turned cold as he hissed,
“What do you think you‘ re doing?”
Astrid‘ s lower lip trembled, her eyes glistening as she pouted in mock innocence. “Marc, I didn’t understand my feelings before. But when I went abroad, all I could think about was you.”
However, Marc’s expression didn’t soften. Instead, he exhaled and firmly said,
“That’s all in the past. The person I love now is Kendall. It’s late–you should get
some rest.
Without giving her a chance to respond, Marc turned on his heel and walked away, leaving Astrid standing alone. She stomped her foot in frustration, glaring at his
retreating figure with growing
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determination.
Kendall’s POV
Unlike Marc, Dudley couldn’t wait to seal the deal. He practically dragged me to the county clerk’s office, as if he thought I’d change my mind if he gave me a second to hesitate.
When we finally stepped outside, I stared down at the marriage license in my hands. It felt surreal, like I was watching someone else’s life unfold.
I’ll surely be married anytime soon now.
For years, I’d dreamed about this moment. I used to picture Marc and me standing together, sharing this milestone. But now, here I was, holding a license with a different man’s name on it.
Beside me, Dudley studied his license as if it were a winning lottery ticket. His face lit up with excitement, and he turned to me with a grin. “Kendall, you‘ re finally gonna be my wife.”
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His enthusiasm was so infectious that I
found myself smiling back. “Are you really that thrilled?”
“Thrilled?” His grin faltered for a moment and was replaced by a serious expression. “Kendall, I’ve been waiting for this day for years. You have no idea. Back then, I stepped aside because I thought it was the right thing to do. You loved Marc, and I didn’t want to get in the way. But when I saw how he treated you….. I knew I’d made a mistake.”
Then he raised a hand like he was swearing an oath and promised, “I promise I’ll treat you right. You’ll never have to doubt that.”
Warmth spread through me at his sincerity, and I nodded softly. “Alright.”
He didn’t stop there. He tagged the office, captioned the post with a promise of a grand wedding, and even announced a giveaway—a whopping $8,888 cash prize for one lucky commenter who wished us well.
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As such, the comments poured in.
[Commentator 1: Congratulations, Mr. Stokes! Wishing you both a lifetime of love and happiness!]
[Commentator 2: Such a beautiful couple. Truly a perfect match!]
Dudley read every comment with a proud. smile. “See that? The internet has good taste. They know a perfect couple when they see one.”
The post went viral within hours. The news of our marriage–and the alliance between our families—was suddenly the talk of the
town.
When we got home, I grabbed my phone charger and plugged in my dead phone. As it powered back on, the screen filled with notifications–dozens of missed calls.
However, the number wasn‘ t one I recognized.
Before I could process what was
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happening, the phone buzzed again in my hand. Hesitant but curious, I answered.
The voice on the other end was raspy and familiar, making my heart skip a beat.
After I’d left yesterday and blocked all of Marc‘ s accounts on every social media and his number on my phone, he must have resorted to this number to reach me.
“Kendall, where are you? Why did
you
move out? Why did you block me everywhere?” Marc’s words tumbled out in a desperate rush. “Just tell me what I did wrong, and I’ll fix it. Please.”
I stayed silent, gripping the phone tighter.
But he kept going, his tone pleading. “I also saw the post about you and Dudley. That can’t be real, right? You wouldn’t actually marry him. You promised me, Kendall! We were supposed to have another wedding together—just us!”
