On my wedding night, my heart was soaring as the veil was gently lifted.
But the face looking back wasn’t Damian’s.
It was Liam, the Idiot son of Damian’s family’s housekeeper.
Laughter erupted around us, mocking and cruel.
Serena, Damian’s childhood friend, smirked, her voice dripping with fake pity:
“Since the veil has been lifted, by tradition, you have to spend your wedding night with the groom.”
Then she turned to Damian, batting her eyelashes. “I’ll make the sacrifice, Damian darling. I’ll keep you company tonight instead.”
It was only then that Damian casually strolled in.
“Chill out, Cassidy. It’s just a prank. Don’t be such a sore loser.”
He shrugged, a dismissive sneer on his face. “Anyway, he’s an idiot. He won’t know anything. Spending one night with him won’t kill you.”
His sarcastic tone, his cruel indifference – it made me laugh. A cold, bitter laugh.
“If he’s the one who lifted my veil, then one night won’t be enough, will it?”
My voice was icy. “If I’m marrying him, I’m marrying him for life.”
My bridesmaids, who had been expecting a harmless prank, stared, dumbfounded.
“Are you serious, Damian? You want Cassidy to spend her wedding night with… with an idiot?” Chloe burst out, disbelief etched on her face.
Ashley chimed in, “It’s your wedding day! Even a joke has limits!”
Damian just scoffed, raising an arrogant eyebrow. “What’s it to you? My fiancée doesn’t mind, so why are you making a big deal out of it?”
He walked up to me, his voice dropping to a low, menacing tone. “Last month, you publicly humiliated Serena and docked her half a year’s bonus. Tonight, I’m getting my revenge for her.”
He paused, letting his words hang in the air. “Either you sleep with this idiot for a night, or… our engagement is off!”
Threatened by Damian like that, I felt less anger and more a profound sense of absurdity.
Last month, Serena, who was my assistant, accompanied me to an auction. But she ignored all my instructions, bidding recklessly during the auction. Our company ended up buying an artifact for far more than our budget.
Afterward, I disciplined her according to company policy, and the incident spread through the office. Naturally, it gave Serena a bad reputation. But if she hadn’t ignored my orders, I wouldn’t have wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars. According to company rules, she should have been fired. I only docked her half a year’s bonus as a light punishment, mostly out of respect for Damian.
Yet, Damian stubbornly insisted I was just finding an excuse to target Serena and make her look bad. No matter how I tried to explain, he wouldn’t listen, convinced I was cold and ruthless.
He forced me to make a public apology, a statement that twisted the facts and painted me as an uncaring boss, all just to “make amends” to Serena. It cost me a lot of respect and damaged my professional standing. Only then did he reluctantly drop the issue.
I thought that whole awful episode was behind us. I never imagined it would come back to haunt me like this.
My heart, in that moment, turned to ice.
To appease Serena, he was willing to orchestrate this ridiculous charade on our wedding day. I could already imagine the gossip, the ridicule that would follow. I’d be the laughingstock of everyone we knew.
Damian’s posture screamed his certainty that I loved him too much to defy him. He was smug, convinced that even if this was an obvious trap, I’d willingly jump into it.
But what he didn’t know was that even the most passionate love couldn’t endure such reckless extravagance and blatant disrespect.
I let out a soft huff, tearing my gaze away from them.
Instead, I knelt down on one knee in front of the man who was happily munching on wedding candy.
I took his hand, looking up at him.
“Liam, will you marry me?”
The words had barely left my lips when Damian’s eyes widened, shocked.
“Cassidy, are you insane?! I only told you to spend one night in the bridal suite with him. Are you actually going to marry this idiot?”
Serena quickly grabbed his arm, whispering urgently, “Damian, calm down. Cassidy would never actually marry a fool like him. She’s just trying to provoke you, waiting for you to back down.”
“If you lose your cool now, you’ll be playing right into her hands.”
Hearing Serena’s words, Damian stopped, a smirk slowly spreading across his face.
“Cassidy, make sure you scrub yourself clean before you come crawling back to me tomorrow. I don’t want to catch anything dirty!”
When I ignored him, Damian rolled his eyes.
“Well, if the bride wants to marry someone else, then we might as well make up for the bachelor/bachelorette party! Tonight, we party until we drop!”
With that, he grabbed Serena and stormed out of the bridal suite without a backward glance.
I remained kneeling, my hand suspended in the air, a hollow ache in my chest.
Just then, a warm, soft hand gently touched my palm.
I instinctively looked up, my eyes meeting Liam’s.
He gazed at me, a soft smile slowly curving his lips.
His voice was quiet, yet incredibly clear.
“I do.”
I was taken aback.
For some reason, Liam, despite his childish demeanor, had eyes that were surprisingly clear and bright when he looked at me.
But the thought flickered and vanished; I didn’t dwell on it.
I softened my voice, trying to coax him.
“Liam, since you’ve agreed to marry me, we need to go to City Hall first to get our marriage license. Only then will it count.”
I paused, looking into his eyes, and asked again, seriously.
“This isn’t just playing house, Liam. Are you sure you’ve thought this through?”
Liam didn’t answer. He just clapped his hands happily.
Seeing his pure, joyful expression, a bittersweet smile touched my lips.
I drove Liam to City Hall myself.
During the process, Liam was a handful.
When it was time to sign, he held the pen and scribbled wildly, finally managing to scrawl his name crookedly.
When it was time for his fingerprint, he found the red ink fascinating. He not only got it all over his hands but accidentally smeared some on his cheek.
Liam just giggled foolishly at his smudged, cat-like reflection in the mirror.
Soon, two crisp marriage certificates were handed to us.
Liam clutched his certificate, his eyes sparkling, holding it to his chest as if it were the most precious treasure.
Stepping out of City Hall, I called the driver.
I gently stroked Liam’s head, my voice soft.
“Liam, why don’t you go back with the driver for now? I have something to take care of, but I’ll be back soon.”
Liam looked at me, confused, but nodded obediently.
I changed direction, heading alone to that bar.
When I pushed open the private room door, only Damian and Serena were left inside.
He was meticulously wiping Serena’s mouth with a damp napkin. Her shirt collar was still stained with a bit of vomit.
I remembered Damian had severe germaphobia. Once, when I had a bad cold and a fever, I accidentally threw up on the sheets in the middle of the night. He woke up, his first reaction to flinch back, pinch his nose, and snap at me, “Cassidy, that’s disgusting! Can’t you go to the bathroom if you need to throw up?”
In the end, I had to change the sheets myself, struggling through my sickness, and he offered no words of concern. That very night, he went to Serena’s place.
Yet now, he seemed utterly oblivious to the obvious stains on Serena’s clothes.
Serena, somewhat recovered, her eyes hazy with drink, grinned when she saw me.
“Cassidy, didn’t you say you were going to spend your wedding night with that idiot? What, regretting it already…?”
Damian’s hand didn’t stop, but he gently admonished her, “Serena, don’t say another word.”
Then he finally looked at me, his voice flat.
“Cassidy, you’ve learned your lesson from today, so I won’t hold it against you. I’ll make up the wedding for you in a few days. I need to take Serena home first; she’s had too much to drink.”
Seeing his concern for Serena, contrasted with the cold distance he always showed me, the already frozen part of my heart felt another stab of an ice pick—a dull, sharp pain.
The last ripple of emotion in my heart settled into complete stillness.
I nodded, then pulled the marriage certificate from my pocket.
“Suit yourself. But there’s no need to make up the wedding. Liam and I already got married.”
The moment Damian saw the marriage certificate in my hand, his face instantly turned ashen.
“Cassidy, are you kidding me? You actually went and married that idiot?!”
“I swear, you’re crazy. How could you do something like this? What will people say? How am I supposed to show my face after this?”
Even now, all he cared about was his own reputation. After all, if people found out that the daughter of the prominent Montgomery Group abandoned him to marry an idiot, how much would he be ridiculed?
At that moment, Serena, still tipsy, scoffed from the side.
“Cassidy, I have to admire you. You’d go this far just to spite Damian. But if you want to embarrass yourself, fine. Why drag him down with you?”
Hearing her words, I found it utterly absurd. They were the ones who told me to spend the night with Liam. When I said I’d marry Liam, Damian didn’t object. Now they’re blaming me?
Serena suddenly dry-heaved again. Some of the mess splattered onto Damian’s sleeve.
He yelped, but didn’t push her away. Instead, he anxiously scanned the room. The tissues in the private room were gone.
His gaze landed on me, and he urged, panicked, “Cassidy, where’s your handkerchief? Give it to me, fast!”
I froze.
The handkerchief Damian was referring to was one he had personally embroidered when we first started dating, with our initials on it. He’d told me it was a token of his love, and I should carry it every day. For years, I had treasured it, never letting it leave my side.
Now, he was asking for this precious keepsake so casually, to wipe Serena’s mess.
My heart shattered into a million pieces.
After a moment of silence, I pulled out the handkerchief, my face devoid of emotion.
I didn’t hand it to him. Instead, I simply dropped it at his feet.
“Damian, we’re done.”
He bent down, picked up the handkerchief, and, still busy wiping Serena, impatiently yelled at me, “It’s just a damn handkerchief! Why are you making such a big deal? If it’s dirty, I’ll just wash it. I can buy you a new one later if I have time!”
I ignored his words, turning and walking straight out the door.
Later… There was no later for us.
Seeing I didn’t stop, Damian grew even angrier.
“Go ahead and leave, Cassidy! Do you really think I care about being with you?!”
“You’ll regret this, eventually. Don’t come crawling back begging me then!”
It was late when I returned to the mansion.
Liam was curled up on the living room sofa, asleep, still clutching the marriage certificate tightly.
Seeing this, something in my chest softened.
I walked over quietly, intending to help him to the bedroom.
But Liam woke up with a start, his hazy eyes brightening the moment he recognized me.
“You… you’re back.”
“Yeah.” I bent down and smiled.
“If I come home late from now on, you don’t have to wait up for me. Go to bed when you’re tired.”
After settling Liam, I returned to my study.
Just then, my phone screen lit up.
It was a message from Damian.
[Cassidy, come back and apologize to me now, and I might consider forgiving you.]
[If you want to be mad and fight with me, fine. But you can’t marry that idiot to spite me!]
I stared at the screen, my mind perfectly calm. The words that once could easily sway my emotions now just seemed annoying.
I didn’t reply. I simply blocked Damian’s number.
The world instantly felt clearer.
Early the next morning, I took Liam out. For years, he hadn’t even had his own phone. I figured it would be easier to find him if anything happened.
While setting up his new phone plan, I casually saved his number in my contacts. When it came to entering his name, I paused, then deliberately typed two words:
“My Husband.”
Just as we were about to leave, we ran into Damian and Serena right at the mall entrance.
Damian’s gaze was like a knife, cutting through our clasped hands before finally settling on my face. He was a mix of anger and disbelief.
“Cassidy, are you seriously still playing house? Dragging that… thatthing around town, aren’t you afraid of embarrassing the Montgomery family?”
Serena chimed in, her tone dismissive.
“Cassidy, that’s enough. Damian’s anger has passed. Just apologize, and this whole thing can be over.”
“Excuse me. We need to go. I’m taking my husband to pick out a wedding dress.”
I cut them off directly, my voice devoid of emotion.
Hearing me address Liam so intimately, Damian completely exploded.
“Cassidy! Have you forgotten how you begged me to be with you? Forgotten how you said you’d only love me your whole life?!”
“How long are you going to keep up this charade with that idiot? Are you seriously not going to marry me?!”
I stared back at him, then calmly replied,
“That’s right, Damian. I don’t want you anymore.”
As his face drained of color, I shielded Liam and walked past him.
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