Chapter 4

There were two soft knocks at the door.

The next second, Mason pushed it open and came in, holding a bouquet of white roses.

"Agnes, these are for you."

He walked over to me and straightened my veil.

"Nervous?"

"A little."

"Don't be scared. I'll be waiting for you up on the stage. Just walk over to me."

I stared into his eyes. Clear, sincere, not a trace of guilt.

He probably really thought he'd pulled it off flawlessly.

"Mason."

"Hm?"

"Can you promise me one thing?"

"Go ahead."

I paused.

"No matter what happens later... don't come looking for me."

Mason blinked, then answered gently.

"Don't be silly. You're marrying me. Who else would I go looking for, if not you?"

He pulled me into his arms and rested his chin on the top of my head.

"Agnes, you're about to be my wife."

The red pop-up messages scrolled by fast.

He held Nadia's hand ten minutes ago, and now he's hugging Agnes. So disgusting.

God knows how many times he's gotten a room with other women, and here he is playing the innocent.

Mason let go of me and glanced at his watch.

"It's about time. I'll head down first. Come out when the music starts."

He reached back and closed the door.

I stood there without moving until the footsteps outside faded away completely, then slowly let out a breath.

I walked to the window and looked down at the parking lot.

On the drive beside the back door, a gray car sat under the shade of a tree.

Yvonne was leaning against the car door, looking up at me too.

Everything was ready.

The music started.

The wedding march came drifting up from the hall, and even through the door I could still hear its muffled throb.

I pushed the door open and walked out of the lounge.

Two bridesmaids stood at the top of the stairs leading down to the hall. One was Wanda; the other girl I didn't recognize.

Red pop-up message: That bridesmaid is Nadia's best friend. She's here to cause trouble for the female lead.

Wanda handed me the bouquet.

"Ready, sis?"

I took the flowers.

A few of the petals had already wilted, like they'd been sitting in cold storage for a long time.

"Ready."

I stepped onto the red carpet.

Everyone in the hall rose to their feet, and the lights fell on me.

Petals kept drifting down from above, and the air was thick with the scent of lilies, so heavy it was cloying.

In the middle of the stage, Mason stood with his hands behind his back.

Two rings sat on the ceremony table.

When he saw me, his eyes slowly reddened, the very picture of a man overcome with emotion.

Out in the seats, Silvia dabbed at the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief, and Wanda held up her phone to record.

Nadia kept her head down, her handkerchief clenched into a ball.

Red pop-up message: Nadia isn't clutching that handkerchief because she's sad. She's holding back a laugh.

I walked forward, step by step.

The red carpet was long, a full fifty steps from the entrance to the stage.

I counted them silently.

At the fortieth step, the emcee spoke with a smile.

"Today, we gather here to witness the love of a new couple."

Forty-eighth step.

Mason reached out his hand to me.

On the outside, that hand was long and slender, fair.

But inside... I couldn't see.

I laid my hand on his.

Mason gripped it at once, as if afraid he might lose me.

The emcee opened the program book and looked at him with a smile.

"Mr. Mason James, do you take..."

"I do."

Before the question was even finished, Mason blurted out his answer.

He turned and smiled at me, and the room burst into thunderous applause.

The emcee smiled too, then turned his gaze to me.

"Ms. Agnes Whitney, do you take Mr. Mason James to be your husband, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to never leave his side, till death..."

I opened my mouth.

The whole room went silent. More than three hundred pairs of eyes were fixed on my face.

The last line of red pop-up messages scrolled across.

Say it now. Say you don't.