Without delay, the marriage between the Avery and Powell families was fast-tracked. The main Powell Group might have filed for bankruptcy a few hours prior, but the family still held secret offshore assets and secondary businesses. They were down, but they weren't entirely out.
"Sweetheart, I'm so incredibly happy to finally be your wife," Zeenat whispered, leaning into Simon. "I will stand by you. Together, we'll rebuild our business empire from the ground up and utterly crush anyone who ever dared to look down on us."
Simon smiled back tightly, but his eyes remained dead. The only thing running through his mind was the vow of vengeance he had made. He was marrying this woman for one reason only: to make her life a living hell. She would deeply regret the day she ever chose him over her delivery boy.
The wedding hall was a masterpiece of design, draped flawlessly in a sophisticated theme of forest green and white. Looking at the luxury surrounding them, the guests easily chose to overlook the recent scandals—the fact that Zeenat had cheated on her fiancé, and that the multi-billion-dollar Powell Group had disintegrated in a single day.
Yet, an unspoken question still rippled through the crowd: Who exactly was the mysterious fiancé Zeenat had abandoned?
The emcee's voice boomed through the microphone, cutting off the high-society gossip. "Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome the bride and groom! Oh, wait—our handsome groom is already waiting on stage. Let's welcome the beautiful bride!"
The massive mahogany doors groaned open.
Zeenat walked down the aisle, her steps perfectly timed to Sebastian Guy's "Believer." The guests exchanged confused glances. A song about pain and struggle playing at a high-society wedding? It was an ominous choice, dictated entirely by Simon to signal the beginning of her punishment.
But despite the strange music, Zeenat was breathtaking. Her gown wasn't the traditional, voluminous white dress that swallowed up fabric. Instead, it was a striking forest green, tailored from an incredibly rich, heavy silk and overlaid with a delicate net gauze that shimmered under the chandeliers. It was a daring bodycon silhouette that tapered into a dramatic mermaid tail. It was an absolute sight to behold. For a fleeting second, the sheer beauty of his bride managed to quiet the burning rage in Simon's chest.
The priest stepped forward, raising his hands. "Zeenat Avery, do you take the man standing before you to be your lawful wedded husband? Do you promise to love him in wealth and in poverty, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"
"I absolutely do," Zeenat beamed.
The priest then turned to the groom. "Simon Powell, do you take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife? Do you promise to love her for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, and vow never to stray outside this holy matrimony for as long as you both shall live?"
"I do," Simon replied, his voice flat and devoid of emotion.
"Exchange the rings," the priest instructed.
Once the bands were placed, the priest smiled. "By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."
The ceremony concluded flawlessly. The entire event was broadcast live across the upper-class networks—and far away in a luxury estate, the Greens family watched every second of it.
But just as the reception began, the atmosphere shattered.
A woman dressed in the tattered, stained uniform of a cleaning lady walked calmly into the venue. She was a worker from the low-end bar where Xander had spent his nights mixing drinks. Yet, despite her pathetic clothing, there was an unmistakable aura of high education and nobility about her. She was tall, slender, and effortlessly elegant—possessing a striking beauty that put the third-class wealthy women in the room to shame.
"Well, well, well. I see I made it just in time for this gorgeous wedding," Audrey Reeds announced, her voice cutting through the soft violin music. "The fiancée of my former coworker is getting married! Xander hasn't shown up for his shifts in months, and he was a dear friend of mine. Since he clearly isn't the groom, I came to make sure you hadn't forced him to be a servant boy for your guests."
Instantly, a wave of venomous whispers swept the room.
"Look at that filthy girl. How dare a peasant cause a scene here?" "She must be suicidal to crash a Powell event." "Absolutely pathetic. Look at her clothes." "Thank God Zeenat dumped that delivery boy," one socialite scoffed. "Imagine being associated with low-class trash like this."
The insults targeted her from every angle, but Audrey stood perfectly unfazed, her posture straight and proud.
Zeenat's face twisted in anger as she stepped forward, her green train rustling against the floor. "Miss, I am the bride. I don't know who you are, and I certainly don't know why you're coming into my wedding to pick a fight with me."
Audrey ignored the hostility, her eyes scanning the room. "Where is Xander?"
Even as the question left her lips, Audrey felt a pang of confusion inside her own mind. Xander is just a poor, ordinary delivery boy, she reminded herself. So why am I standing in a room full of tycoons, risking my own reputation to defend him?