The Ultimate Revenge: Saying "I Do" to His Rival

On the day of my wedding, my fiancé told me to ride in the trailing SUV. His excuse? His secretary got carsick. I was the bride. Kicked out of my own lead car.

I looked to my future motherinlaw and his sister, Delaney, expecting someone to intervene.

Instead, they chimed in with sickening harmony. "Just be the bigger person, Monroe." The crowd of relatives and friends watched, waiting for the punchline.

My jealous coworkers already had their phones out, lenses focused, ready to rip me apart in the group chats. I didn't argue.

I just turned around, walked right past them, and slid into the passenger seat of Vance's car. I looked at him. "Didn't you say you'd hate to see me marry someone else?

Want to go to the courthouse right now?" Vance's hands locked onto the steering wheel, a grin completely splitting his face. "Say less." By the time Julian and his family found out I was already legally bound to another man… the panic finally set in.

Chapter 1 I had been up since dawn. After hours of prep and photos, we were finally ready to head to the venue.

I gathered the heavy layers of my wedding dress and reached for the door of the lead bridal car.

Julian’s hand clamped around my wrist. "Hold on." He stepped in my way. "Take the trailing SUV." My brain completely shortcircuited. "What?" "Mackenzie gets carsick.

She needs to sit up front." He didn't even blink. "Just deal with it, Monroe. The venue isn't that far." I stared at him. "Julian, it's our wedding day. I'm the bride.

You want me in the back while your secretary rides with you in the bridal car?" "Besides," I added, "people who get carsick roll down a window or ride shotgun.

I've never heard of a medical condition that requires sitting in the lead car of a wedding procession." Mackenzie peeked out from behind him.

The corners of her mouth twitched upward before she forced a pitiful pout. "I'm so sorry, Monroe. My vertigo is just really specific.

Julian felt bad for me and insisted I ride with him." She placed a hand on her chest. "I really didn't want to.

I know how it looks." My nails dug into my palms until the skin stung. "You know exactly how it looks." A crowd of our guests lingered on the sidewalk.

I forced my voice to stay deadpan. "The lead car is for the bride and groom.

You put Mackenzie in there with you, people are going to think she's the one wearing the ring." Julian scoffed. "Why do you care so much about what other people think?

The guests know who I'm marrying." I dropped his gaze and turned to his mother standing a few feet away. "Mom, Julian wants his secretary in the bridal car.

He's telling me to find a seat in the back." Before his mom could open her mouth, Delaney bumped shoulders with her. "If my brother tells you to sit in the back, just sit in the back.

It's not a big deal, Monroe. Are you seriously whining to our mom right now?" His mother finally gave a dismissive wave. "Monroe, Julian is a busy man.

He needs his assistant on hand.

If an emergency pops up on the road, it's more efficient for them to be together." "You're about to be his wife," his mother added. "You need to be a little more accommodating." The realization hit me like a splash of ice water.

The entire family was circling the wagons to protect the interloper. I glanced back. Julian had already opened the door to the bridal sedan.

He hovered over Mackenzie as she slid into the plush leather seat. Whispers rippled through the gathered crowd.

A few guests looked genuinely shocked, but most of them just watched with sharp, eager eyes. They were waiting for the punchline.

The girls from my office—the ones who always excluded me from their group chats—didn't even try to hide it.

They had their phones out, cameras panning from the bridal car straight to my face.

I could hear their running commentary over the street noise. "Karma works fast," one of them narrated into her phone. "The stagefive clinger finally forced a ring out of the boss, but he won't even let her in his own car." Another girl let out a sharp laugh. "Mackenzie is his real rideordie.

Who cares if the clinger got the paperwork? She doesn't even have the clearance to sit next to him." Chapter 2 The chatter grew louder, the words sharper.

I slammed my hand against the side of the SUV. "Shut your mouths." Phones slowly lowered, though the smirks remained. "Monroe, you can manipulate Julian into a marriage certificate all you want," one of the girls scoffed, stepping forward. "But you'll never touch Mackenzie's place in his life." "Exactly," another chimed in. "If I were you, I’d rip that dress off right now.

If you have any selfrespect left, you’d just go home." My jaw locked. "Why would I leave?" I met her eyes deadon. "I'm getting married today." If I walked away now, I’d just be handing him over to Mackenzie on a silver platter.

Everyone thought I bullied him into this wedding. They had it backward.

When Julian first asked me out, he rented an entire luxury yacht, lighting up the harbor with hundreds of fireworks. He proposed eighteen separate times.

The final time, my terrifiedofheights boyfriend threw himself off the highest bungee platform in the state, just because I casually mentioned that if he jumped, I'd say yes.

All those grand, romantic gestures were dead weight now. Just another punchline for the crowd.

I broke away from the staring eyes, yanked open the passenger door of the nearest SUV, and climbed in. "He kicks his own bride out of the lead car, and you're still going through with this?" My head snapped to the left.

Vance. The guy I'd grown up with since we were in diapers. "Are you here to watch the trainwreck, too?" I asked.

When I first announced my engagement to Julian, Vance fought me tooth and nail.

We blew up at each other so many times we barely spoke for a year. "I'm not that bored." He stared straight through the windshield.

The engine idled in the heavy silence. "Say the word, and I'll put this car in drive and take you anywhere else." "Take me to the venue." "He's treating you like trash, Monroe.

You're still marrying him?" "Drive." Vance’s fist slammed against the steering wheel.

He shifted into gear, the tires biting into the asphalt as we peeled out toward the wedding hall.

Halfway there, a silver coupe swerved out of a blind intersection, cutting straight into our lane. Vance jerked the wheel hard. The tires shrieked.

Metal scraped against metal as we barely clipped their bumper. A girl in a tight miniskirt stumbled out of the driver's side.

She stomped over and hammered her fist against Vance's window. "Are you blind? You wrecked my car!

Nobody is leaving here until you pay for this!" Vance unbuckled his seatbelt. "Stay in the car. I'll handle it." I stared at the girl through the glass.

Her face snagged on something in my memory, but I couldn't place her. My phone buzzed in my lap. Julian's name lit up the screen.

I answered it. "Where are you?" His voice was clipped. "We've been here for twenty minutes." "I was in an accident." A female voice echoed in the background of his line.

Mackenzie. "A car crash on her wedding day? That's awful luck, Julian. Maybe the universe is trying to tell you two something." "Don't be ridiculous," Julian muttered to her.

He spoke back into the receiver. "Monroe, just call an Uber and get here.

Don't mess up the schedule." My chest tightened, breath catching in my throat. "I just told you I was in a car crash.

Your first thought isn't to ask if I'm bleeding, but to worry about the schedule?" "You're tough, you're fine. Just grab a ride, everyone is waiting." The line went dead.

I pushed my door open and stepped onto the pavement. Fingers immediately locked around my wrist like a vise. "You're not going anywhere!

None of you are leaving!" It was the girl from the coupe. As she yanked my arm, pulling herself into my personal space, the hazy recognition in my brain snapped into sharp focus.

I finally remembered who she was. Chapter 3 I didn't know her name, but I’d seen her face at the office once. She was Mackenzie's best friend.

Vance stepped in front of me, shielding me from her grasp. "This is my car.

You have a problem, you talk to me." "No way." She crossed her arms, blocking the door. "Nobody is leaving this scene.

For all I know, you hit me on purpose to run an insurance scam!" "Lady, there are traffic cams all over this intersection." Vance pointed a thumb at the streetlights above us. "You swerved into my lane." "I don't care!

Nobody is going anywhere." A dry laugh scraped up my throat. I stepped around Vance and looked dead into her eyes. "Did Mackenzie send you to stall me?" The girl froze.

Her eyes darted away, clearly not expecting me to recognize her. "Who's Mackenzie? I don't know any Mackenzie." My phone buzzed in my hand. A FaceTime request lit up the screen.

The caller ID was Mackenzie. I accepted the call. The video feed connected, and the air completely left my lungs.

Mackenzie was looking into the camera, wearing my customfitted wedding gown.

Behind her, my personal makeup artist was carefully pinning up her hair. [ "Do you like the fit, Monroe?" ] Mackenzie smiled warmly into the lens. [ "Don't get the wrong idea.

Julian said you probably wouldn't make it in time. He didn't want to ruin the strict schedule, so he asked me to stand in for the ceremony." ] [ "No need to rush over now.

I'll livestream the whole thing for you." ] [ "Gotta go. The music is starting." ] I sank back into the leather passenger seat of Vance's car.

The screen filled with the live feed of my own wedding. I had handpicked every single detail of that venue, down to the exact shade of the floral centerpieces.

Now, someone else was walking down my aisle. The ceremony hit its peak.

The officiant’s voice echoed through the phone's tiny speaker. [ "You may now kiss the bride!" ] Julian didn't hesitate for a single second. He leaned down and captured her lips.

The camera operator zoomed in for a tight closeup. When they finally pulled apart, a thin string of saliva visibly stretched between their mouths.

Bile burned the back of my throat. I shoved the car door open, fell to my knees against the rough asphalt, and dryheaved. Acid choked my breath.

Vance was beside me in an instant, his hand rubbing heavy circles into my spine. "Whoa, hey, what's wrong? I'm taking you to the ER." I waved him off frantically.

My chest heaved as I snatched the water bottle he held out, rinsing the sour taste from my mouth and spitting it onto the pavement.

The heavy, embroidered silk of my bridal dress suddenly felt like sandpaper against my skin. It was suffocating. I needed it off my body.

My eyes landed on a plastic drycleaning bag tossed in the back seat. I dragged it over. Inside was a fresh buttondown shirt and a pair of dark dress pants belonging to Vance.

I ripped the heavy bridal pins out of my hair. I stripped off the suffocating silk right there in the backseat and pulled on his clothes.

They swallowed me whole, but I rolled up the sleeves, roughly cuffed the pant legs, and cinched the waist tight with a spare hair tie.

The phone on the dashboard suddenly lit up with audio again. [ "Wasn't our wedding beautiful, Monroe?

Julian and I are about to go toast the guests." ] [ "Your family doesn't seem to care about you very much, do they?

They haven't even noticed the bride changed." ] [ "I won't stream the reception. It drains my battery. Bye." ] The screen went black.

Vance slid back into the driver's seat. "That girl is out of her mind.

I'm not wasting my time arguing with her, my assistant can handle the insurance claim." He turned to look at me, his gaze dropping to the oversized collar before snapping back to my face. "What are you…" I looked down at the oversized cuffs. "You don't mind if I borrow these, do you?" Chapter 4 Vance’s eyes tracked the oversized cuffs as I rolled them up. "No.

I don't mind." He swallowed. "Does this mean the wedding is off?" "Julian and Mackenzie already walked down the aisle." I snapped the hair tie into place at my waist. "Vance.

You said you didn't want me marrying him. Still want to hit the courthouse?" The engine idled. Vance just stared at me. "You and me?

Legally?" I gave a single nod. "If you're backing out, just say it." A grin broke across his face. "Say less. Put your seatbelt on." The tires squealed.

Vance floored it all the way to the county clerk's office.

Thirty minutes and a stack of paperwork later, I was legally bound to another man. "Alright," I said, shoving the stamped certificate into my purse. "To the venue." Vance coughed, the back of his neck flushing dark red. "Damn.

We skipping straight to the honeymoon? I haven't even held your hand yet." I rolled my eyes. "Get your head out of the gutter.

Take me to my wedding reception." "They're probably still doing toasts.

We need to drop off a wedding gift for the happy couple." Vance threw the car into drive. "On it." Once we hit the hotel venue, I grabbed a blank envelope from the guestbook table and shoved a single crumpled onedollar bill inside.

Vance and I slipped into the back of the banquet hall and took a seat at an empty table in the shadows. We didn't have to wait long.

Julian and Mackenzie were working the room, clinking champagne flutes. They almost walked right past our table before Julian paused. His eyes narrowed as they landed on me. "Monroe?

When did you get here?" His gaze dropped to my rolledup sleeves. "Whose clothes are you wearing?" I leaned back in my chair. "Someone else was standing at the altar.

Did you expect me to keep the gown on?" Julian’s jaw tightened. "Don't start.

You got into an accident and couldn't make it in time." "I had Mackenzie step in so we didn't blow the schedule. We had two hundred guests waiting, Monroe.

Be reasonable." I gave a slow, flat nod. "I understand completely." His mother and Delaney materialized behind him.

Delaney sneered, pointing a manicured finger at my collar. "Wow, Monroe.

Borrowing from a men's rack?" His mother crossed her arms. "Monroe, I hate to say this, but throwing a tantrum and skipping your own wedding just because Julian asked you to ride in the back?

You were trying to humiliate him. You are entirely too old for these games." "If Mackenzie hadn't stepped up to save face for this family, it would have been a disaster.

Pull a stunt like this again, and I don't care how much Julian spoils you—I will not tolerate it." I tilted my head at Julian. "You didn't tell your mother I was in a car wreck?" I shifted my gaze to Mackenzie. "By the way.

The girl who Tboned me? She's your best friend." "The cops already dragged her off in cuffs. I'm pressing full criminal charges." The color drained from Mackenzie's face.

Julian instantly stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body. "What are you talking about?

You're making it sound like Mackenzie orchestrated a hitandrun." "Didn't she?" I asked. "That's insane!" Julian snapped. "I know Mackenzie better than anyone." "She doesn't have a malicious bone in her body.

There is zero chance she told her friend to ram your car!" Mackenzie choked out a sob, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "Julian, thank you for believing me.

If you didn't, my reputation would be ruined." Julian patted her shoulder. "Don't worry about it.

Some people just love to bite the hand that feeds them." I stood up, the metal chair scraping loudly against the floor. "So I'm the ungrateful one now?" "I'm saying you need a reality check," Julian shot back. "Mackenzie did you a massive favor today." "You should be thanking her, not throwing baseless accusations in her face.

Apologize to her.

Right now." "I was actually considering hosting a makeup ceremony for you, but if you don't apologize, the wedding is permanently off." A short, sharp laugh tore from my throat. "You can cancel whatever you want.

Someone else already took the job." I glanced over my shoulder. "Right, honey?" Vance stepped out of the shadows.

He wrapped an arm around my waist and pressed a soft kiss to my temple. "Obviously." Julian's face went completely blank. "What the hell did you just call him?" "My husband," I said, holding his stare. "Legally binding." I reached into my purse and dropped the marriage certificate right onto the tablecloth between us. "Thanks for the free pass, Julian.

I'm Vance's wife now." Chapter 5