Chapter 3

Meanwhile, Ryan was feeling anxious at the wedding.

He kept worrying that the rushed ceremony would get out of hand. And on top of that, he was afraid Emily might show up and stir things up.

His gaze drifted toward the spot where their mutual friends were hanging out.

As expected, they were probably giving Emily a heads-up again.

Once Emily got the news, she'd probably come running.

After all, she never allowed any other woman near him.

But this was the last thing Ryan expected. For days, he'd been flaunting his relationship with Olivia, showing up everywhere together.

Surprisingly, Emily still hadn't shown up.

'Is she still working off the cost of those designer bags she had to pay for a few days ago?' Ryan wondered.

Emily was too stubborn. If she'd come and ask nicely, it would all be so much simpler.

Instead of always throwing tantrums and causing drama, she could try being more like Olivia, who was gentle, sweet, and coaxing him a bit. Maybe then he'd actually soften up.

"Emily still hasn't shown up? That's pretty unusual."

"Yeah, but I bet she's totally freaking out right now. Wanna check out my chat history with her?"

"Damn, did you actually manage to get in touch with her? Smooth move."

"Of course. With Ryan and me being so tight, she's gotta butter me up, right?"

The guys exchanged glances and snickered knowingly.

Ryan immediately asked for the chat log.

As he read through it, he burst out laughing. "Hope they stay happy together forever, huh?"

'Did Emily really say that?' Ryan thought.

"Just wait. She's probably cooking up something big. I'll have the security keep an eye out so she doesn't mess up my wedding to Olivia," he said.

"Dude, are you seriously marrying Olivia?"

Ryan raised an eyebrow. "Of course. Her family matches mine perfectly. Marrying her is a win-win for both families. Come on, I can't really marry an orphan, right?

"As long as she keeps her head down, I'd be happy to look after her. Honestly, having a cute kid together wouldn't be the worst thing."

Ryan had seen every move Emily could pull.

If she wouldn't play nice, he'd have to get a bit more creative. She'd come around eventually.

He glanced at the time. "Alright, the wedding's about to start."

As he finished speaking, a security guard rushed over to report, "Mr. Lee, there's a strange car at the entrance. The driver says it's Ms. Grant."

Ryan's face fell. "I knew she'd show up to cause a scene.

"She actually dares to crash my big day? That's out of line."

The others quickly followed him, striding after him.

"Seriously? Emily actually showed up?"

"What if she ends up wrecking the whole wedding?"

As they got to the entrance, Olivia showed up.

Her heavy, luxurious wedding dress trailed behind her as she walked slowly toward them. "Ryan."

He stopped right away, his face growing gentle. "Olivia, let me handle something first. Wait for me, okay?"

Olivia gripped his arm, unable to stop herself from shaking.

She was well aware. There was only one person who could make Ryan this angry.

She felt anxious, but forced herself to smile. "I'm so happy today."

Ryan looked at Olivia, her eyes shimmering with tears.

In Ryan's mind, Olivia really was nothing like Emily.

She was always polite, knew how to carry herself, and honestly, girls like her were one in a million.

With someone like Olivia by his side, he'd always have the kind of woman who made him look good in front of everyone.

Seeing Olivia was scared, Ryan kissed her forehead to comfort her. "Don't worry. I'll make sure the wedding goes smoothly. wait for me, okay?"

Hearing this, Olivia felt much more at ease. "Okay, I'll wait for you."

The guys following Ryan jumped in, backing him up.

"Yeah, Olivia, what are you worried about? Ryan's not into Emily."

Ryan paused mid-step. "Wait, you guys actually think I don't like Emily?"

The guys didn't notice anything weird about Ryan.

"Isn't that right?"

"Yeah, at the birthday party, when we joked about you proposing to Emily, we were stirring things up for fun."

"Totally. You've always been annoyed by how Emily clings to you. No way any of us thought you actually liked her."

Ryan froze, completely dumbfounded. 'So, is that what they really think?

'Is it really that bad between Emily and me?

'We used to be so close... didn't we?'