Marrying the Man in the Dark

A smile tugged at Cherise’s lips as she caught sight of Blake’s lovesick, goofy expression. Back during her memory-loss days,
he’d been like a brother to her
With her memories trickling back, she vividly remembered how utterly boring he’d been five years ago. Seeing him like this now
made her realize how much time had changed him.
Ponytailerella finished scribbling on a page and looked up, surprised to see Cherise standing by the stairs. She jumped up and
blurted, “Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Lenoir!”
A hush fell over the room as all eyes turned to Cherise and Damien.
Damien gave a small smile. “Sorry we kept you waiting, folks.” He wrapped his arm around Cherise’s waist and led her down the
stairs. “Ready to go?”
With Damien’s cue, the group was set for departure. Not many people joined them on this trip to Shawbury-just Mr. Hampson,
Otto, Blake, two drivers, and two bodyguards.
Ariana leaned over to Cherise in the car and whispered curiously, “Mrs. Lenoir, do you remember me?” Cherise’s smile was like
sunshine. “Of course! You’re Blake’s ‘Ponytailerella.”
The girl blushed at the playful nickname. “It’s Ariana Madix, actually. You can call me Ariana.”
She looked away shyly, trying to break the awkwardness. “Um, actually, it’s my cousin’s wedding today. Thank you for letting me
crash your ride... How about I invite you to the wedding?”
She beamed, her cheeks flushed pink. “Blake mentioned you’ve been stuck inside lately, and maybe need a break from the
routine. It’d be awesome if you came and had some fun with us!”
Cherise had been bored out of her mind lately, with no exciting events to break the monotony. She readily agreed, “Sounds like
an idea!”
She turned to Damien in the passenger seat and asked, “Honey, what do you think?”
Damien folded his arms and stared out the window, his voice a low rumble of indulgence. “Of course, I still owe you a real
wedding ceremony anyway. Attending one before ours could be a good inspiration. You can see what you like and plan our
wedding however you want when it’s our turn.”

Cherise stammered, flustered. “I, uh, I just thought it would be a fun outing, not for...”
Following Ariana’s directions, they headed to the hotel where her cousin’s wedding was happening. Stepping out of the car,
Cherise scanned the names on the colorful archway. Her brows furrowed slightly as she mumbled, “Savannah Seagal...bride...
the groom...Steve Orborn...”
Something about those names rang a bell, but she couldn’t quite place them.
Just then, a harsh female voice cut through her thoughts. “Hey, Ariana! You said you were coming back today; your uncle must
be kicking rocks at the station waiting for you now. But hey, look at you rolling
Cherise was lost in her own world until a shrill voice shapped her out. She frowned and followed the noise to see a woman in a
red dress, around her age, gawking at their car.
The woman seemed to ignore Cherise entirely, focusing solely on Ariana. “You’ve been keeping a lot under wraps,” she
remarked, her voice carrying across the room. I thought getting into Adania University would have you nose-deep in textbooks,
but this? Seems like there’s a whole other side to this new life’ that hasn’t been shared. If it weren’t for Savannah’s wedding,
we’d all still be clueless about your fancy new life with some rich Adania boyfriend
She pressed on, her tone dripping with curiosity. “That must be his car, right?”
Her voice cut through the air, turning heads and igniting gossip around Ariana.