Surrounding them were relatives and friends who knew both Cheryl and Jeremy well.
Even with all those familiar faces, not a single person had let her know about the wedding.
Every breath carried the fragrance of fresh roses mixed with a deep woody scent.
The perfume filling the air was called Surrender. Cheryl had created it herself and intended it to be a wedding gift meant for Jeremy alone.
That same fragrance, once meant to represent devotion and belonging, now filled the wedding venue where Jeremy was taking another woman as his bride.
At the end of the red carpet, Jeremy wore a custom-tailored white suit. His eyes rested gently on Danica Pearson, the woman who had taken Cheryl's place in the Pearson family for more than twenty years.
Cheryl was the Pearson family's biological daughter. She had only been reunited with them three years earlier after finally being found. Years ago, her grandfather and Jeremy's grandfather had fought side by side and made a promise that their grandchildren would marry one day.
Because of that agreement, Cheryl became Jeremy's wife as soon as she returned to the Pearson family.
What no one else knew was that Jeremy had already lived in Cheryl's heart for seven long years.
She once believed fate had finally smiled on her. She truly thought she would spend the rest of her life as the happiest woman alive.
Instead, reality shattered that dream without mercy.
Wrapped in a white wedding gown, Danica held tightly to Jeremy's arm. She looked so weak that even a gentle breeze seemed enough to knock her over.
The gentle notes of the Wedding March stumbled before breaking into a harsh screech as Cheryl stepped into the venue.
One by one, every gaze turned toward her.
The smiles on the Pearson family's faces disappeared.
"How did she end up here?"
"We made sure no one told her."
"Who let this slip? This is going to ruin everything."
Whispers spread through the crowd as everyone stared at Cheryl.
Although she was Jeremy's lawful wife, she was treated like someone who had no place at the wedding.
For a brief moment, surprise showed in Jeremy's eyes when he noticed her. However, he quickly regained his usual calm expression.
After whispering a few comforting words to Danica, he gently placed her hand into the bridesmaid's before walking straight toward Cheryl.
The familiar scent of fir drifted over Cheryl as Jeremy approached.
For years, that fragrance had been the one she treasured most.
"Why are you here?" he asked, choosing to question her instead of explaining himself.
Her eyes settled on the man she had loved for the past seven years.
His sharp features, his deep eyes, and the cold line of his lips suddenly felt unfamiliar.
Only then did the cruel irony of the situation sink in.
"Why shouldn't I be?" Cheryl replied calmly, as though they were talking about something ordinary. "My husband is marrying someone else today. Don't I have every reason to come and offer my congratulations?"
A deep frown formed between Jeremy's brows, revealing the impatience he was trying to hide.
Without another word, he reached for her wrist and led her into a quiet corridor away from the crowd.
After making sure they were out of everyone's sight, he finally let go of her hand.
"Cheryl, don't turn this into something bigger than it already is," he said.
Jeremy took a cigarette from the case inside his suit pocket. Instead of lighting it, he rolled it between his fingers. "Danica doesn't have much time left. The doctors diagnosed her with terminal liver cancer. They said she has no more than half a month to live."
Not a single emotion crossed Cheryl's face. "And what does that have to do with me?"
"All she wants before she dies is to put on a wedding dress and become my bride." Jeremy looked straight at her with complete certainty. "This wedding isn't legally binding. It's only a performance to fulfill her final wish so she can leave without any regrets. Surely you can understand that."
A moment later, he spoke again in a gentler tone that sounded more patronizing than comforting. "Cheryl, it's nothing more than a ceremony. Do you really need to hold this against someone who's already dying?"
Cheryl shifted her attention toward the lawn beyond his shoulder, where the guests laughed and chatted as if nothing were unusual.
Nearby, her mother, Laura Pearson, held Danica's hand while gently wiping away her tears. Not far away, her father, Walter Pearson, watched Danica with unmistakable concern.
And her brother, Nicholas Pearson, stayed close to Danica and quietly offered words of comfort.
Every one of them shared Cheryl's blood, yet they had secretly joined forces with the adopted daughter to hold this absurd wedding with her own husband.
In the end, Cheryl was the only person left outside the truth.
The irony was almost laughable.
Although her eyes began to burn, she stubbornly held back her tears.
After taking a moment to steady herself, she swallowed the pain in her chest. Then she lifted her eyes to meet Jeremy's and spoke with forced composure.
"Jeremy," she whispered. "If this wedding is nothing more than a performance, then why did you keep it from me?"
A trace of impatience appeared on Jeremy's face as his lips tightened. "Would you really have accepted it if I'd been honest with you? I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to make unnecessary assumptions. Besides, Danica is far too fragile to handle any emotional setback. I couldn't let anything upset her."
So he had gone to great lengths to protect Danica from heartbreak, yet he saw nothing wrong with deceiving his own wife.
In Jeremy's mind, marrying his wife's adopted sister in a ceremony was acceptable, yet his own wife was not even worthy of hearing the truth. Instead, he saw her as someone who might lose control at any moment and ruin everything.
A cold smile touched Cheryl's lips. "Jeremy, if I hadn't shown up tonight, when were you planning to tell me?"
"After Danica was gone," Jeremy replied without the slightest pause.
"What about everything in between? What happens after this wedding?"
Without changing his expression, he answered, "I'll stay by her side as her husband until the very end. That's the role I promised to play. But don't worry. I know where the boundaries are, and I won't cross them."
For a long moment, Cheryl simply looked at the handsome man standing before her. Then a quiet laugh escaped her, filled with nothing but ridicule.
He was willing to play the role of another woman's husband.
So where did that leave her?
What place was left for the woman who was legally his wife?
"When she's gone, everything will return to normal. You'll still be Mrs. Barrett, and your place beside me won't change," Jeremy said.
His words only sounded more absurd to Cheryl.
Silently, she lifted her eyes to the handsome man standing before her.
For the past three years, she had sacrificed countless things because she wanted nothing more than to be a good wife to him.
Since his stomach was sensitive, she spent her time learning recipes that were gentle, nourishing, and suited to his health.
Because he struggled to sleep at night, she searched everywhere for aromatherapy blends that could help him rest peacefully.
She had always believed her sincerity would eventually reach him. Even if his heart was as cold as an iceberg, she thought her unwavering devotion could one day melt a small part of it.
Only then did Cheryl realize that every bit of his kindness and compassion had always belonged to someone else.
Just to fulfill another woman's dying wish, he had cast aside his wife's pride as though it meant nothing.
"Jeremy, you're more selfish than I ever imagined."
A deep sense of weariness washed over Cheryl.
The emptiness inside her was so overwhelming that even the simple act of breathing weighed heavily on her chest.
Instead of crying or losing control, she faced him with quiet composure. "I want a divorce."
Jeremy's fingers stopped moving the instant those words reached him. The cigarette remained motionless in his hand.
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