The Bride Who Owned the Groom's Empire

On my wedding day, the screen that should have shown our photos cut to Julian kissing his best friend Lena.

Lena rose from the guest table, covered her mouth, and laughed like she'd done nothing at all.

"Don't get the wrong idea, everyone," she said, "we grew up together, I'm basically his second wife."

Julian leaned in and murmured that I shouldn't take it to heart, that she's just like that.

I looked at him without blinking.

"She played your kiss photos at our rehearsal and called herself your second wife — that was a joke too?"

He frowned, irritated, and said it was just a few pictures.

"Five years together, and you're nitpicking over something this small?"

I raised my hand and cut him off.

"Yes," I said, "I'm nitpicking, and I won't let it go."

He'd never seen me hard like this, and for a second he just stared.

I turned to the whole room and said, clearly, that the wedding was over.

What none of them knew was whose thirty million saved the Cade empire three years ago.

They were about to learn whose name the company really belongs to.

***

The chandelier lights dimmed, plunging the grand banquet hall into a hushed twilight. Above the altar, the massive LED screen flickered to life, illuminating the faces of three hundred guests.

It wasn't the slideshow of our bridal portraits.

There, magnified for every family member, friend, and business partner to see, was my fiancé, Julian, locked in a passionate kiss with Lena.

A collective gasp ripped through the room. The sharp sound echoed off the vaulted ceilings.

The thorns of my white roses bit into my palm as my grip tightened on the bouquet stems. A drop of blood welled against the white lace of my glove.

"What is the meaning of this?" a voice muttered from the third row.

"Is that... isn't that his assistant?" another whispered loudly.

A chair scraped against the marble floor in the front row. Lena stood up, smoothing the skirt of her pale pink silk dress. She didn't look ashamed. She covered her mouth, a bright, melodic laugh cutting through the tense silence.

"Please, everyone, don't misunderstand!" Lena called out, turning to face the bewildered crowd. She waved a hand dismissively. "Julian and I grew up together. We're practically inseparable. I'm basically his second wife!"

The murmurs intensified into a low roar.

Beside me at the altar, Julian didn't flinch. He didn't shout for the technicians to kill the power. He didn't even step away from me. Instead, he leaned close, his sharp cologne invading my space.

"That's just how she is, Adeline," he whispered, his tone utterly casual, as if someone had merely dropped a fork at dinner. "She has no filter. Don't take it to heart."

I turned my head to look at him. His handsome face, the one I had loved for five years, showed nothing but mild annoyance.

"Don't take it to heart?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

Julian sighed, adjusting his silk tie. "It's just a prank. You know Lena loves practical jokes. Smile, Adeline. People are staring."

"She hacked the rehearsal file to swap our wedding photos for a picture of you two kissing," I said, my words precise and cold. "She stands up at our wedding, in front of my family, and calls herself your second wife. You call that a practical joke?"

"Keep your voice down," Julian warned, glancing nervously at the front row where his parents sat frozen. "I'll have the AV guy fix it. Just let it go."

"Let it go?" I repeated. I stared at the screen, where the image of their intertwined bodies remained frozen. "Did you kiss her?"

Julian rolled his eyes. "It was years ago. A drunken mistake at a college party. She just found the photo and thought it would be funny to mess with us today."

"Funny," I echoed flatly.

"Yes, funny," he snapped, his patience fraying. "Are we going to do this right now? The officiant is waiting."

I looked at Lena. She was still standing, making eye contact with me, a smirk playing on her lips. She mouthed the word, Sorry.

"Tell her to leave," I demanded, locking eyes with Julian.

"What?" Julian scoffed. "I'm not kicking her out. Her parents are right over there. It would cause a scene."

"She already caused a scene."

Julian's jaw tightened. A deep crease formed between his brows. He grabbed my elbow, his fingers digging into the lace of my sleeve. "After five years together, are you really going to be this petty over something so small?" he muttered, exasperation lacing every syllable. "It's just a joke. Stop making a huge deal out of nothing."

I stared at his hand on my arm. Then I looked up into his eyes. The man I thought I knew was gone, replaced by a stranger who expected me to swallow my pride for his convenience.

I raised my free hand, palm facing him, cutting off whatever excuse he planned to offer next. I yanked my elbow out of his grasp.

"You're right," I replied without emotion. "I am exactly that petty."

"Adeline, stop acting crazy," Julian hissed. "Say your vows."

"No."

I turned away from his shocked expression and faced the sea of guests. The murmurs died down instantly. Three hundred pairs of eyes locked onto me.

"This wedding is over," I announced.

My voice carried clearly through the microphone clipped to the officiant's lapel. The words bounced off the walls, ringing with finality.

Absolute silence swallowed the room.

Julian froze. "What did you just say?"

"I said, the wedding is over," I repeated, not bothering to look back at him. "Thank you all for coming. Please enjoy the catering. The bar is fully paid for."

"Adeline!" Julian's mother shrieked from the front row, clutching her pearl necklace. "You can't be serious!"

"I am not joking," I answered smoothly.

I lowered my arm. As I did, my fingertips brushed the stiff edge of a folded paper tucked securely inside the hidden pocket of my voluminous lace sleeve. The thick parchment felt rough against my skin.

It was the signed credit-facility withdrawal notice.

Only my cousin and I knew it existed. Julian's entire expansion plan depended on the twelve-million-dollar credit facility Mercer Holdings was supposed to release tomorrow morning. He thought this marriage secured his empire. He thought I was a docile little bride who would tolerate his blatant disrespect just to wear his ring.

He was wrong.

I dropped the bouquet of white roses onto the marble floor. The heavy thud broke the silence.

"Adeline, you are making a massive mistake," Julian threatened, his voice dropping to a dangerous register. "You walk out now, and we are done. I won't forgive this."

"There is nothing to forgive," I said, lifting the hem of my heavy gown. "We are already done."

I stepped down the carpeted stairs.

The guests parted like the sea as I walked down the center aisle. No one dared to speak. The only sound was the rustle of my silk train dragging across the floor.

"Adeline!" Julian shouted, his voice cracking with embarrassment and fury. "Stop right there! If you walk out that door today—"

I kept walking, my eyes fixed on the heavy oak doors at the back of the hall.