The wedding was set for a week later, and no expense was spared.
At my insistence, it would be held on Riverbend Pack territory. Leo agreed.
I stood in the dressing room wearing a couture wedding gown, my palms slightly damp.
Leo pushed open the door and, seeing my nerves, deliberately teased me. "What? Having second thoughts?"
I glared at him and pretended to snarl. "Shut up!"
He chuckled and reached out to straighten my veil. "Relax. With me here, no one will dare laugh at you."
I paused, suddenly thinking that perhaps this guy wasn't quite so insufferable after all.
On the signature wall in the wedding foyer, Daniel's crooked name had been squeezed into a corner.
As Vivian's "plus-one," he had been assigned an extra seat in the last row.
Daniel hovered attentively around Vivian with a glass of champagne, though his eyes kept straying toward the gift table piled with luxury goods.
Vivian had only told him that two powerful figures were getting married. She claimed she had begged her father for ages to secure an invitation but never revealed exactly who the couple was.
Taking in the lavish ceremony, Daniel abruptly found Vivian unimpressive by comparison.
He silently resolved to find an opportunity to ingratiate himself with the bride and groom.
When the wedding march began, I walked down the aisle with my skirt up.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Daniel's back go rigid. The wineglass in his hand tipped, soaking Vivian's skirt with red wine.
"What are you doing?" Vivian's shrill cry drew everyone's attention.
But Daniel could no longer hear her.
He stared at me, his face filled with disbelief.
Then his gaze shifted to the jeweled earrings at my ears—the limited-edition pair he had once said he could never afford in his lifetime.
"The bride and groom will now exchange rings," the priest announced, his voice carrying across the venue.
Leo deliberately lifted my left hand high, making the 20-carat pink diamond blaze beneath the spotlight.
"You may now kiss the bride."
The instant the officiant finished speaking, Leo lifted my veil and kissed me.
Thunderous applause erupted below the stage.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Daniel stumble forward, only to be stopped by security.
"Emma!" he screamed in anguish.
The music swelled to its c****x at precisely the right moment.
Leo wrapped an arm around my waist and bent to whisper in my ear. "Want to put on one more show?"
Before I could answer, he turned to the guests. "Thank you all for coming, especially my wife's former colleagues."
At his words, a spotlight snapped onto Daniel's bloodless face.
Clutching the edge of his cheap suit, Daniel gritted out, "Emma, how could you marry someone else? You did it for money and status, didn't you?!"
Leo scoffed and looked down at him mockingly. "Money and status? Do you think everyone is like you? You truly have no idea, do you? My wife is the Riverbend Pack Alpha's biological daughter."