A line of bodyguards entered the wedding hall.

Ivan Astor then appeared between the doors in a pure white wedding suit, his tall, lanky figure casting a soft shadow as he walked down the aisle.

All the guests were shocked when they finally caught sight of his handsome face. Even the few tycoons of Seafare City, seated at the front of the hall, felt their blood run cold when they saw him.

How could it be Ivan? What was he even doing here?

Ivan ignored the guests fidgeting in their seats and only focused his attention on Miranda, standing at the altar with a bouquet of fresh flowers in her hand. Then, he slowly made his way toward her.

Miranda froze in her spot as she watched Ivan coming toward her. She hadn't seen him in two years, and he had changed a lot. However, his cynical demeanor was still the same as ever, and it was written all over his face.

She straightened her back and s

"You're leaving with him?" Carson asked, staring at Miranda in disbelief. 

Miranda pushed his hand away, her expression cold. She raised the arm linked with Ivan's and said, "My husband's right here, and he doesn't like it when other men get too close.

"Mr. Stallone, I know everything you've done. I'm not holding it against you because I refuse to dwell on those painful memories. But from now on, stay out of my life."  

She left the wedding with Ivan in front of all the guests. Watching her walk away with another man, Carson felt something in his chest crack open. It was a pain that would never heal.

The wedding, once carefully planned, fell into complete chaos after Ivan's arrival. With Gianna's video leaked and their reputation in shambles, Carson could no longer bring himself to continue the ceremony. He apologized to the guests and returned their gifts.

Back at the villa, Carson

Carson's friends brought him out for drinks, celebrating the success of their plans.

"Congrats, Carson! I bet the video's being recorded right now. We just have to wait for the grand reveal tomorrow!" one said.

Suddenly, Carson grabbed the person by his collar and said darkly, "What video are you talking about? What have you done to Miranda?"

His other friends were shocked to see him behaving so aggressively. They quickly separated the two.

"Why are you getting mad all of a sudden? We're all just trying to help you!"

"We knew that you wouldn't bear to do it yourself, so we conspired with Gianna to carry it out in your place. You can just pretend that you don't know anything."

"Yeah, just keep up the good-guy image and let us handle all the dirty work for you."

Carson felt his chest constricting. He started feeling stuffy as his eyes turned bloodshot and his lips turned white from how hard he was biting on them.

Suddenly, he got up, wanting to leave, but his friends' words made him stop in his tracks.

"Are you planning to go back and stop them, Carson? It's too late now. You're only getting a front-row seat to the most erotic sight you'll ever see in your life. I mean, we won't stop you if that's what you want to do, though."

Carson tightened his fists. He simply didn't know what was happening to him. Miranda deserved all of this. She was practically begging for it. But why did he actually feel upset over this?

Another one of his friends patted him on the shoulder and said, "Carson, everything's already done. We're just waiting for the wedding tomorrow now. Don't let us down when the time comes."

…

The next morning, Miranda put on her bridal makeup and looked at herself in the mirror. She felt a little lost as she stared at her reflection.

In the past, she had always dreamed of marrying Carson and starting a family with him. And today she was finally getting married, but Carson wasn't going to be her groom.

Miranda changed into her wedding dress. It wasn't the one that Carson picked for her. Rather, Ivan had personally sent it over to her.

Even the makeup artist, who had seen plenty of wedding dresses in her lifetime, was taken aback at how gorgeous and luxurious Miranda's wedding dress was.

"Ms. Oakley, your dress is so beautiful. Your husband must be really nice to you."

Miranda nodded expressionlessly.

She wasn't doing a first look together with the groom, and since she didn't have any other family members, Miranda then set out for the wedding venue on her own.

Carson was one of Seafare City's elites, so he had invited plenty of wealthy, influential people to the wedding as well.

When the doors opened, Miranda slowly made her way down the aisle toward the altar on the stage.

She could hear plenty of murmurs coming from the guests as she walked past them.

"Mr. Stallone is such a loyal romantic. I can't believe that he'd actually marry a woman like her. It must be true love."

"Pfft! My family would rather cut all ties with me than let me marry a woman like her! Yes, Miranda is good at a lot of things, but she's such an embarrassment to bring around!"

"Don't talk about her like that. Carson really loves her very much. See the wedding dress she's wearing? If I'm not mistaken, that's the wedding dress belonging to Princess Dianne of Engston that had been auctioned off to a mysterious person. As it turns out, it was Carson after all!"

The guests weren't exactly quiet, and Miranda could hear every single word they said.

Soon, Miranda had reached the altar at the front of the hall, but there was still no sight of Carson anywhere.

The wedding officiant, Rory Peterson, hurriedly tried to smooth things over when Carson still didn't show up.

"I guess our groom is a little shy and trying to test his bride's sincerity. Well, since the groom has organized and held such a grand wedding for his bride, I'm sure that his bride needs to show how grateful and sincere she is to him.

"Ms. Miranda Oakley, do you take Mr. Carson Stallone to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

Miranda didn't say a single word in reply. Her eyes were sharp and icy.

Rory was panicking. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as he chuckled and said, "I guess that our bride is a little temperamental as well. I'm sure that the groom has already arrived beforehand and is just hiding somewhere to observe our beautiful bride from afar for a while longer.

"Everyone, please put your hands together to encourage and welcome our groom today!"

The guests played along and clapped loudly, but Carson still didn't appear.

Just as the guests were all starting to get restless, Carson's friends decided to stand up. They exchanged glances with each other, eyes glinting with malice, as they got ready to announce that the wedding was cancelled because there wasn't going to be a groom in the first place.

A split second later, however, the massive doors in the wedding hall slowly opened.

A line of bodyguards entered the wedding hall.

Ivan Astor then appeared between the doors in a pure white wedding suit, his tall, lanky figure casting a soft shadow as he walked down the aisle.

All the guests were shocked when they finally caught sight of his handsome face. Even the few tycoons of Seafare City, seated at the front of the hall, felt their blood run cold when they saw him.

How could it be Ivan? What was he even doing here?

Ivan ignored the guests fidgeting in their seats and only focused his attention on Miranda, standing at the altar with a bouquet of fresh flowers in her hand. Then, he slowly made his way toward her.

Miranda froze in her spot as she watched Ivan coming toward her. She hadn't seen him in two years, and he had changed a lot. However, his cynical demeanor was still the same as ever, and it was written all over his face.

She straightened her back and suddenly felt less nervous. She ignored the restless guests as well and told Rory, "The groom is here

Chapter 9