My Fiance Rigged the Game for His Bestie? I Changed the Groom Chapter 04
At some point, the bridal suite had gone silent.
Madison complained that the room was too cramped
and swept out with everyone else.
Naturally, they took the gown with them.
But once the door closed, the room felt cavernous.
Even my breathing seemed to echo.
I tried over and over to pull myself together.
Then I looked into the mirror and saw a clown staring back at me.
I broke down.
For the first time, my entire five–year relationship
looked like one long joke, and I had been the punch line.
When Ethan called the night before, I had thought his
warning was absurd.
It had even made me angry.
“That’s impossible.
“Alex would never do that to me.”
My faith in him hadn’t come from nowhere.
It came from everything he had done for me over the past five years.
When I first started coaching, one student’s father
became fixated on me and refused to leave me alone.
Alexander dismantled the man’s business in less than two weeks.
Back then, he had told me, “No one gets to hurt you.”
Another time, record–breaking rain trapped me in my
hometown while floodwater climbed almost to the roofline.
Alexander had appeared through the storm like a beam of light.
“I can’t even think about losing you,” he’d said. “It
terrifies me.”
Now he was helping someone else destroy me.
Apparently, the thought of losing me no longer frightened him at all.
“Oh my God. What happened to you?”
The shocked cry came from the doorway.
My makeup artist had returned.
She hovered awkwardly near the door. “Mr. Caldwell said you needed a different look, so we were told to…”
I wiped at my tears and let out a bitter laugh.
“Please just take all of it off first.”
She hurried over and began cleaning my face.
After a moment, she said quietly,
“If a marriage starts with you feeling this miserable,
maybe it’s worth asking whether it should start at all.”
I gave a small nod, lowered my head, and texted my
parents in the reception hall.
[The venue has changed. Don’t tell anyone. Bring the family to this address.]
They responded with a wall of question marks,
followed a few seconds later by one simple word.
[Okay.]
I didn’t have the strength to explain.
When the makeup artist finished, I checked the time.
Twenty minutes.
I caught her wrist before she could step away.
“Will you come with me? I’ll pay you double.”
She blinked at me, baffled.
Then my phone rang.
It was Ethan.
“I’m downstairs.”
I froze.
“I thought about sending a car,” he continued, “but I couldn’t stand the idea of trusting this to anyone else.”
A beat later, panic rushed into his voice.
“You haven’t changed your mind, have you? Everything’s ready over here.
“You’ll never be happy with Alexander. Madison didn’t
come back to reminisce. She came back to take him.”
Just before he completely unraveled, I said,
“I’ll be down in two minutes. Did you bring enough cars? My parents and the rest of my family are coming too.”
“Enough? I brought a full motorcade. There are dozens.”
The grin in his voice made him sound almost ridiculous.
Almost.
After I hung up, I found the makeup artist frantically packing her kit.
“Say no more. I’m coming with you.
“Let’s get you married somewhere else. This other
man already sounds like he understands what a bride is worth.”
We had just reached the doorway when Madison
appeared at the top of the stairs in my couture gown.
The heavy skirt swept around her feet.
Alexander walked beside her, one hand supporting her
arm, his expression gentle.
Our eyes met.
His pupils tightened.
“Why isn’t your makeup finished? The ceremony is
about to start.
“Claire, are you trying to sabotage our wedding? Don’t
take this any further.”
Then he noticed Ethan striding toward me.
“Ethan? I thought you said you had something
important today.”
Ethan stopped at my side, smiling brightly.
“I do. I came to pick up my bride.
“I’m getting married today.”