Chapter 2

I sneered and texted back: "Great. Wait for me."

Angelica, you won't be waiting for me today.

But you will get a wedding you will never forget for the rest of your life.

At 7:00 AM, the wedding planner called me.

"Mr. Carter, we've arrived at 12 Lakeside Drive with the limo as you requested. When will you be arriving?"

"I won't be coming. Just go ahead without me," I said calmly.

There was a long pause of sheer confusion on the other end. "Mr. Carter, you..."

"Don't worry, the final payment will be wired to your account in full."

Hearing that, the planner let out a sigh of relief. Then, I contacted the live-stream team I had hired.

I told them to set up the cameras at the venue and start streaming from the moment the bride arrived in the limo all the way to the stage.

Since I paid them generously upfront, they didn't ask any unnecessary questions.

Before boarding the plane, I sent Angelica a quick text, telling her that there was an emergency at home and I might not make it on time.

I told her the limo had arrived and she should get in first.

Angelica called me immediately. "Leo, what the hell do you mean?"

"Babe, it was a sudden accident. My car got rear-ended right outside my neighborhood."

"I've sent a professional team to pick you up. Just go through the ceremony first. I'll meet you at the venue."

"I have a massive surprise waiting for you there!"

Hearing this, Angelica's anger melted into excitement. "Aww, babe! You better not be lying to me!"

"I'm not. I promise you'll never forget today."

"Hmph, you better make it up to me!"

Her voice was still a bit raspy. Last night must have been quite wild.

I hung up, turned off my phone, and the plane took off.

I had booked myself a long vacation. My first stop was a beautiful beach resort. It was time to relax.

As for the rest, Angelica could handle it herself. I was officially done.

Two hours later, I landed. I turned on my phone and immediately opened the live-stream link.

The wedding hall was packed with local influencers and drama-loving onlookers I had invited. Angelica was starting to realize something was wrong.

None of my friends or family were there. The venue was only filled with her relatives and strangers holding up phones.

Panic-stricken, she began calling me repeatedly.

My screen was flooded with dozens of missed calls and frantic text messages.

Even her bridesmaids and Chloe were calling, leaving angry voicemails cursing me out.

Finally, when her call came through again, I picked up.

Angelica screamed hysterically:

"Leo! Are you playing me?! If you didn't want to get married, you should have said so! Why aren't you here yet?!"

"Where is your family? And why is everyone here live-streaming?!"

"Angelica, I'm so sorry. I'm still dealing with the car accident."

"But don't worry, the ceremony is about to start. Your surprise is coming."

"Those people with the cameras are my friends. I hired them to document our special day."

Without waiting for her reply, I sent her $500 via PayPal.

Angelica let out a cold snort. "You think you can just throw $500 at me after pulling a stunt like this?"

"Be patient. When the ceremony begins, I'll give you the most sparkling gift of all."

Only then did she calm down. "I'm warning you, Leo. If you pull any more tricks, I will ignore you for the rest of my life."

I didn't bother replying. I hung up, checked into my beachfront hotel, changed into swim shorts, put on some sunscreen, and slid on my sunglasses.

I sat on a beach lounge chair, taking in the view.

The blue sky, white clouds, the ocean, and girls in bikinis—everything was beautiful.

Meanwhile, my phone screen was playing the live stream of my own wedding.

The onlookers and streamers were buzzing with excitement. None of them knew what was going to happen, but they knew this wedding was about to go viral.