Chapter 218 His Ex Showed Up At The Wedding
“He’s practically insulting the entire Chadwick family! Laurie, don’t stop me. He needs to be dealt with!” Austen fumed, his anger rising by the second.
It made no sense to him–why would the Chadwicks, with all their wealth and influence, need William to be Laurie’s brother and take care of her?
This nonsense had to be stopped!
The guests erupted into murmurs.
“This is outrageous! Did the wedding just turn into a family reunion?”
“The bride and groom are becoming brother and sister out of nowhere? If this gets out, people will never stop talking about it.”
“Talking about it? Who would dare?” someone scoffed.
“We’re talking about the Mitchells and Chadwicks here. You’d have to be crazy to laugh at them.”
“I wouldn’t dare, but when in private and no one could hear me…”
Eric’s face burned with fury. His fists clenched at his sides, his whole body vibrating with barely restrained rage.
With a sharp gesture, he signaled the staff to remove William from the stage. But how could a handful of unarmed staff possibly move William?
William stood firm, as immovable as stone, his gaze locked on Laurie, waiting for an answer.
Austen’s expression darkened, his displeasure clear in the tight set of his
jaw.
“William,” he said, his voice clipped, “out of respect for our families ‘friendship, I was willing to let this slide. But don’t you think you’ve taken this humiliation a little too far? If you didn’t want to marry my daughter, you should have said so from the start!” Austen’s voice thundered through the hall. “There are plenty of people eager to be part of this family! You Mitchells should feel honored!”
“Dad, please, stop,” Laurie’s voice wavered, barely above a whisper.
Austen placed a steady hand on her shoulder. “Laurie, don’t be afraid. I’m right here.”
William exhaled slowly, keeping his tone measured. “Mr. Chadwick, I never meant to humiliate your daughter. I didn’t even know about this wedding until today, let alone agree to it. Miss Chadwick is an incredible woman— she deserves someone who loves her, someone she loves in return. Isn’t that what you want for her? A lifetime of happiness?”
“Well said! Bravo!” Denton shot up from his seat, clapping loudly.
The applause started hesitantly, a ripple of uncertainty spreading through the room. Then, one by one, the guests joined in, until the hall echoed with
cheers.
To an outsider, it might have sounded like cheering to a heartfelt love
confession.
After all, everyone was mindful of the Mitchell and Chadwick families
reputations. There would be plenty of opportunities for future partnerships, and if they could smooth things over, they would. No one wanted to openly mock these powerful players in town.
“Congratulations! Laurie, you’ve gained a brother! And William, a sister!” Denton let out a quiet chuckle, amused by the sudden shift in tone.
But the moment he caught William’s sharp glance, he cleared his throat and quickly added, “Well then, let’s move forward with the new ceremony!
Miss Chadwick, maybe you should head backstage to change.”
With the way things were unfolding, Austen hesitated. The confidence to challenge William any further seemed to slip through his fingers.
Just as Laurie turned to leave, a voice rang out from the crowd. “Wait–look! Isn’t that Renee?”
At the mention of her name, heads snapped around, scanning the room.
“It really is her!”
“What’s she doing here?”
“I knew it! The Mitchell–Chadwick wedding was just a business deal. William backed out because his ex–wife is here!”
“Ex–wife? She’s not just any ex–she’s his first love, the one he never got over!”
“Everyone knows William has been pining for Renee all these years!”
The murmurs swelled into a frenzy, speculation spreading like wildfire.
Just as the Chadwick family had started to regain their composure, this was too much. A public embarrassment, right in their own home.
With his ex–wife here, William was backing out of the wedding.
All that talk about wanting Laurie to be his sister? Just a convenient excuse.
“Hah! Eric, what do you have to say for yourself now?”
