Cupid's Arrow Hit On Me

Matrimony Surprises

With his game face on, Zachary said, “Back to the meeting.”

Sitting nearest to Zachary was his cousin, Callum. Among the cousins within the same age range as Zachary, Callum ranked second.

Callum drew close and whispered, “Zack, I overheard your conversation with Nana. Did you really marry that Ser- girl?”

Zachary shot him a glare.

Scratching his nose, Callum straightened his back and ended the probing.

Even so, Callum had nothing but sympathy for Zachary.

There was no need for the York boys to secure social and financial standing through marriage, but Zack and his new bride were not a match in every single way. Poor Zack. He merely married the girl because Nana took a liking to her.

Once again, Callum offered Zachary condolences through his thoughts.

Thank goodness Callum was not the oldest in the family. Otherwise, he would have to step up to the plate and marry Nana’s lifesaver.

Unaware of all that, Serenity got the location details and was busy dragging her suitcase to get to her new home.

She opened the door only to step into a spacious house. The place was bigger and more decked out than her sister’s house.

Putting down her suitcase, Serenity started by looking around the place. This was her home from now on.

It had two living areas, four bedrooms, one kitchen, two bathrooms, and two balconies. Each space was broad and wide. Serenity estimated the entire house to be at least two thousand square feet.

The place was barely furnished as there was only a sofa set with a coffee table, and a wine chiller in the living room. Two out of four bedrooms were equipped with a bed and wardrobe while the other two were empty.

The master bedroom had en-suite facilities, complete with a walk-in closet, study, and bathroom. Despite the divided space, the master bedroom remained huge like the living hall.

This must be Zachary’s space.

Serenity chose to live in the other room with a bed. The sunlight that came from the balcony brightened up the room. As this was a bedroom down from the master bedroom, the new husband and wife could enjoy their personal space.

Although they were married in the eyes of the law, Serenity would not propose spending time as a married couple unless Zachary asked for it.

After dragging her suitcase to the bedroom, Serenity went into the kitchen.

The kitchen was squeaky clean without kitchenware in sight. Both balconies were also bare but gave a roomy feeling due to the vast space. Serenity intended to spruce up the balcony with some plants and a swing. Nothing beat reading a book and taking in the botanic view on a swing during her free time.

It appeared Zachary was rarely home for dinner.

Now that she was occupying the space, home-cooked meals were a must. Serenity started with the kitchen by purchasing kitchen utensils online. As for plants on the balcony and other furniture, she wanted to get Zachary’s take on it when he got home from work.

It was his house after all while she was simply crashing here.

After placing an order on kitchen tools, Serenity looked at the time and needed to return to the shop.

Picking up the keys, she grabbed her phone and rushed down the stairs.

Serenity made it back to the shop in time for the afterschool rush.

Her best friend, Jasmine, inquired out of concern. “What were you up to in the morning, Seren?”

“My sister and brother-in-law have been in constant argument because of me. I thought about it and decided to move out.” Serenity shrugged. “So I moved out this morning.”

Her best friend’s brother-in-law was something else. Jasmine sighed. “Men love to tell women that they would take care of them, but when it comes down to it, they’re the ones nagging and finding faults. After marriage, we, women, have to put family above all while grinning through misunderstandings. It’s so unfair. I think your sister should find a job! Women must always be financially independent so we have a say in the household.”

While speaking, Jasmine suddenly furrowed her brows and gave Serenity a confused look. “I can’t believe your sister let you move out.”

“I got married.”

“Oh… What? You got married? You don’t even have a boyfriend. Who did you marry?” Jasmine’s mindless nodding was ensued with shock as she stared at Serenity wide-eyed. Her voice went high-pitch too.

Knowing that she could not keep the news from Jasmine, Serenity came clean about the whole thing.

Jasmine glared at Serenity for a while before poking the latter’s forehead. “I don’t know where you find the guts to marry someone you met for the first time. You could’ve stayed with me if you couldn’t find a place. I have extra rooms at my place. You could’ve also picked my cousin if you were looking for a husband.”

Serenity said with a smile, “What do I need your cousin for? He has a girlfriend. It’s too late now because the papers are signed! Keep it between us and don’t let my sister know. I don’t want her to be sad.”

Jasmine, “…”

Her best friend sure pulled one heck of a move.

“There are all those Lifetime movies and romance novels about blindly marrying a multi-billionaire. Maybe that’s the case with you too, Seren.”

Smacking her best friend in the head, Serenity remarked with a grin, “I bet you read all the chick lit in the shop. Dream on about marrying a billionaire at first sight. Do you think the place is crawling with billionaires?”

Jasmine rubbed on the bump and sighed as Serenity had a point. Jasmine then asked, “Where’s your husband’s place?”

“Brynfield.”

“Not bad. It’s a good neighborhood and easily accessible. Plus, it’s not far from our shop. Where does your husband work? He must earn a lot of money since he bought a house in Wiltspoon and a gated community like Brynfield. What are his wages like? Do you need help with the mortgage?

“Seren, get your name on the title deed if he wants you to contribute to the mortgage. It’s to protect yourself. Not to jinx it but you won’t get anything when you guys fall out and divorce since it’s a prenuptial property.”

Studying her best friend’s face, Serenity answered, “You sound like my sister. He bought and paid the house in full, so there’s no mortgage. I don’t think it’s nice to put my name on the title deed when I didn’t spend a dime on it.”

Jasmine replied, “It won’t matter if the husband and wife get along.”

It struck Serenity that her brother-in-law bought the family house before marriage. He was also paying the monthly house loan, but the renovation was paid with Liberty’s money. Still, Liberty was not named on the property deed. With her mind harking back to her brother-in-law accusing Liberty of blowing cash, Serenity began to worry about her sister.

She ought to bring it up to her sister one of these days.

Serenity closed the shop at eleven o’clock at night.

Since Jasmine’s home was nearby and a family member was buying her dinner, Serenity told Jasmine to get on home.

Having shut the main door, Serenity took out her keys and walked to her e-bike.

She rode for twenty minutes until she arrived downstairs at her sister’s place. It was only when Serenity parked the bike that she realized she no longer lived there.

Lifting her head, Serenity glanced at the floor her sister was on and found that the lights were out. Although feeling down, Serenity left the family of three to be and rode her e-bike into the night.

It was midnight by the time she reached Brynfield.

She was welcomed by darkness as she pushed the door and entered the house. It did not feel like anyone lived in this space.

Grabbing her pajamas from the suitcase, Serenity took a hot shower and allowed the weariness to rock her to sleep.

Meanwhile, at the Wiltspoon Hotel.

Flanked by bodyguards, Zachary walked out of his family-owned hotel. He had just closed a big deal with a major client and arranged for the client to stay in the presidential suite. With his new wife coming into mind, Zachary decided to take a trip home.

“Sir, will it be the estate or the hilltop villa?”

The estate was the Yorks’ family home while the villa on the hill was a property belonging to Zachary. His permanent domicile was the villa, but he would catch up and have dinner with the elders of the family at the estate every now and then.

“To Brynfield.”