Stella slowly shifted her gaze toward Westonâs wedding ring in the box and reached out to take it.
She lowered her head and looked at his hand as she slipped the ring onto his finger.
The next moment, Weston grabbed her hands.
The crowd roared in applause.
Weston lifted her chin and gave her a deep, lingering kiss.
Stella could only yield, with no way of opposing him.
Her hands were still bound by his tie so tightly that it left red marks on her wrists.
She lifted her chin and received his punishing kiss.
Her arms drooped helplessly before her torso , swaying gently between them.
Everyone could see that tie around her wrists clearly, but no one dared to whisper a word about it.
In full view of all the guests, their marriage was solemnized, with Stella as the captured and shackled bride.
The news spread like wildfire online.
Very soon, their grand wedding had alternative headlines to it.
âCaged Wedding.â âThe Shackled Bride.â
The image of Stella and Weston exchanging rings was as if Stella was trapped in a golden cage, locked up with nowhere to run.
The image was beautiful yet cruel at the same time.
Depraved yet decadent, glorious yet darkly mesmerizing. The diamond âstudded wedding gown seemed entwined by piercing thorns embellished by the brideâs fresh blood that the naked eye couldnât see.
Everything had been finalized and set in stone. They were now man and wife, never to be parted by anyone else.
Weston released Stellaâs lips and leaned his forehead against hers as he declared hoarsely in her ear, âThis is me branding myself on you. You can only stay by my side your entire life, and Iâll be your only man.â
Stellaâs eyes trembled as she stood silent without any resistance.
The ceremony came to a close.
Guinevere was completely drained of all energy and lay slumped on the floor.
She covered her face and sobbed sorrowfully.
She initially tried to control her volume, but her sobs eventually descended into loud, racking wails. Old Mr. Ford could no longer be bothered about her.
He wasnât in a good mood and decided to return to his hotel room, not wanting to see Weston and the rest of the family for the time being.
The next program was toasting the newly wedded couple.
At the guest aisles, Chris was unable to take it any longer and he stood up. âIâll go out and take a look.â
âYouâre going to look for Guinevere, arenât you?â Wendy asked grimly. âYouâre giving the toasting ceremony a miss?â
Chrisâ face was dark.
He had no idea why Wendy had been so volatile and unreasonable as of late.
âItâs the same with you representing both of us. Whatâs more, Iâm just taking a peek and will be back very soon.â
Moreover, he wasnât keen on having Stella as his daughter âinâlaw.
He didnât want to see both of them together and have Stella call him Dad.
He didnât want to be Stellaâs dad.
The clueless Zack simply looked in the direction that Chris left. He jumped in Wendyâs lap and babbled.
He could walk and even run a little, albeit still shaky and unstable, though following him around simply made things more challenging.
He was also stronger and more energetic than before, and his caretakers had to tire him out with much time and effort.
Wendy looked at his face of innocence and reached out to pinch his cheeks with slight force. âYou chubby cheeks... ignorant and blissfully unaware.â
She looked at the scene before her as mixed feelings arose in her heart.
It was an intricate amalgamation of hatred and anger.
...
Fearing that Guinevere might cause further trouble, Ben stayed back to watch over her.
Chris walked over and asked, âWhat are all of you doing here?â
Ben was slightly taken aback to see Chris arrive. Wasnât he supposed to be at the toasting ceremony?
âMr. Ford arranged for this so that we can keep an eye on Ms. Cohen.â