THE SPITEFUL BRIDE: Marry To Rival's Son novel Chapter 77

Chapter 77

Cameras flashed endlessly. Stefan had requested the media to do their job. This moment was theirs. Anyone with the best picture would have a reward. He wanted the whole world to witness their union.

Mothers touched their chests. Friends smiled through tears. Even strangers who had only come out of curiosity couldn’t help but whisper, “She’s beautiful,” like it hurt to say it out loud.

At the altar, Stefan felt like the air had been knocked out of his lungs.

His eyes never left her.

His jaw clenched out of restraint. Because if he allowed himself, he might break the composure he’d fought hard to maintain. His hands were tightly laced in front of him, but his thumb involuntarily brushed over his ring finger, where soon, a symbol of this moment would live.

Mose, standing beside him, leaned slightly and whispered under his breath, “Breathe, man.”

Stefan didn’t respond. He Couldn’t. She looked like the kind of bride men wrote poems for.

Stefan’s heart did something unfamiliar… it twisted. Tight. Like it was waking up for the first time.

He watched her…… no…… studied her, the way one does when witnessing something they didn’t know they’d always been waiting for.

And then…

His eyes flicked to the man beside her. Samuel. His brow twitched… just slightly.

A thousand thoughts flashed through Stefan’s mind. What was he doing here? What game was he playing? But as he looked at Mia’s expression…. calm, unreadable, but not afraid… he forced himself to look past Samuel.

Back to her. She was what was important. No one was.

As she neared the altar, Stefan could see her eyes glistening her lips parted slightly like she was steadying her breath. She wasn’t smiling….. but she wasn’t frowning either. It was as if she was holding herself together with invisible thread.

The world around him blurred.

He didn’t blink. He couldn’t. His eyes were locked on her as she became so close to her, he could feel her.

At that moment, she wasn’t just beautiful. She was unforgettable.

Their eyes locked.

Mia’s heartbeat was pounding. She could feel it all the way in her throat, her ears, her chest. She was sure Elena could hear it from behind her.

Stefan stood tall, immaculate in a black suit that hugged his broad shoulders perfectly. His tie was deep wine-red, and a subtle silver pin held it in place. His jaw was clenched but his eyes… those light brown eyes… were searing through her veil like they could feel her.

He wasn’t smiling. He wasn’t blinking either.

But his stare was everything.

He looked at her like she had just rewritten every plan he ever made, like she was the only person in that church.

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As she neared, she almost tripped. Not because of the heels But because of the way he was looking at her, like she was breaking him and rebuilding him all at once.

At the front row, Elena’s lips curved into a soft smile.

When Samuel finally placed her hand in Stefan’s, there was a long pause.

Samuel leaned in, close to Stefan’s ear. “She’s your responsibility now.” Stefan’s gaze didn’t shift.

He simply replied, calm and low, “She’s not a responsibility. She’s my wife.”

Samuel stepped back, startled for half a second. He gave a short, almost imperceptible nod before taking his seat near the front row.

Stefan took Mia’s hand, his fingers curling gently but firmly around hers. It was the first time he touched her that day.

A subtle breath escaped him.

Then, quietly, just for her, he leaned closer.

“You look…” he paused…. swallowed, then met her eyes again, “like the world would stop for you.”

Mia blinked. Her heart stopped for a minute. Her knees weakened. Her breath caught.

The corners of her lips parted, but no words came. She was completely speechless. She never expected this type of compliment from Stefan.

Her heart was slamming against her ribs.

“Ready?” he asked quietly, his voice just for her.

Mia manage to give the faintest of nods.

“I’ve been ready since the day I walked into your office” she whispered back. Trying to lighten up the mood. Which helped because they both smiled.

Then, they turned to face the officiant, while the entire church sat in hushed reverence, watching a chapter they didn’t understand begin in the quietest, most powerful of ways.

The church was quiet again…. but not the kind of quiet that felt empty. It was reverent. Like the very walls were listening.

The officiant smiled gently. “We will now hear the vows, written by the couple.”

Mia froze for a moment. Her palms were slightly damp. The paper she had folded and refolded was tucked into her bouquet. But now, holding Stefan’s hand, she didn’t want to read from anything.

She just wanted to speak. She took a slow breath, then looked into his eyes.

“I don’t really know how to say this right,” she started, her voice shaking. “When this whole thing started, I didn’t know what I was walking into. I didn’t know you, Stefan. And to be honest, you scared me.”

That earned a few soft chuckles from the guests.

“But the more I saw you… the real you…” She took a pause then continued. “not the headlines, not the cold stares, not the name people whispered… the more I realized you weren’t just the man I was marrying… You were the man I was learning to breathe beside.”

Her voice broke slightly. She cleared her throat.

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7 AND IN THAT CAN WAS EVERYTHING THEY COULDN’T SAY

“I never planned for any of this. But somehow… you became home. Even when you were silent. Even when we fought. Even when you drove me mad. I still felt safe.”

She smiled at him softly. “I don’t know what the future holds. But if I get to face it beside you, then I’ll be okay. So, today I vow… to walk beside you…. not behind, not ahead….. always beside. Through the calm, and through every storm.”

There were tears in her eyes now, but she was smiling.

The officiant turned to Stefan. “Your vow?”

Stefan took a deep breath. He didn’t look at the guests. Just at Mia, with those looks that could melt anyone.

He spoke slowly. Deeply. Like every word cost him something to release.

“I don’t write vows,” he began. “Because promises have always been hard for me to make. Too many were made to me… and broken.”

He took a pause then continued.

“But today, standing in front of you, I want to make one.” His thumb lightly stroked her knuckles.

“I can’t promise I’ll always get things right. Or that I’ll always know the right words to say. But I promise that if the world turns its back on you… I won’t.”

He exhaled…. eyes still locked on hers.

“You weren’t part of the plan, Mia. You were the storm that broke it. But for the first time in my life… I’m glad something did. Because somehow, from all that chaos, came you.’

He leaned slightly forward, his voice quieter.

“You changed me. And I didn’t even notice… until I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

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