When My Ex's Worst Enemy Became My Sanctuary novel Chapter 364

Aldin drove Dorothea to Carmen’s house, making sure she arrived safe and sound. Carmen wasn’t at The Clark Estate today. To keep things from getting awkward, she chose to have the wedding from her parents’ villa, which also meant Albert wasn’t around. Not that it mattered to Dorothea. These days, even if he stood right in front of her, she’d just treat him like he didn’t exist.

Once Dorothea was inside, Latham had Aldin drive him out to Pearson’s place. He tagged along at the very back of the wedding convoy, circling around until they made it back to Carmen’s.

Carmen stood there in her wedding dress, looking so different and yet so familiar. Dorothea felt her nose prickling, trying not to get emotional. “Carmen, I can’t believe you’re actually getting married.”

It brought back those days lying on the grass at university, the two of them talking about the future and daydreaming about their wedding days. Now, somehow, both of them had grown up, each with new families and new lives.

Carmen let out a soft sigh, a little smile tugging at her lips. “Dorothea, do you think I’ll be as happy as you are?”

Dorothea hugged her gently, rubbing circles on her back. “You will be. I mean it. Carmen, your godson and goddaughter are going to keep you safe and happy, always.”

Carmen laughed, wiping at the corner of her eye before any tears could mess up her makeup. “No crying, no crying... I woke up at the crack of dawn for this look. I can’t let all that effort go to waste.”

Soon the groom’s party arrived, the usual chaos unfolding. Pearson was made to do twenty push-ups at the door, then sing Carmen’s praises for a full ten minutes before anyone would let him inside. Latham stood in the back, hands stuffed in his pockets, acting like he had nothing to do with anything. He raised his eyebrows at Dorothea, but she ignored him on purpose, busy plotting the next challenge.

“All right,” she declared, “you want to marry Carmen, Pearson? You’ve got to get through three challenges first. Number one, the blindfold lipstick test. The groom has to hold this lipstick in his mouth, put on a blindfold, and put it on one of his groomsmen. But it has to look good, or it doesn’t count.”

Pearson’s friends groaned. “Come on, Dorothea, give us a break. That’s impossible!”

Latham grinned, clearly loving every second of this. “Not a problem! Pearson, you’ve got your guys here to help, right?”

He turned to the bridesmaids. “You all want to see our two most handsome groomsmen take the challenge for him, don’t you?”

Wade glared at Latham, fully aware he was being set up. Patrick, unfazed, shrugged. “I’m good either way.”

Patrick didn’t flinch. He adjusted so that his lips were right where Wade could reach, and the lipstick left a perfect swipe of red.

There was a burst of cheers and laughter in the room. When the bridesmaids finally called it a win, Wade practically sagged with relief. He whipped off the blindfold to find Patrick already wiping away most of the lipstick. Part of Wade felt disappointed it didn’t last longer.

Latham teased, “No need to be sad about it. I caught your whole moment on video, and after the ceremony, it’s going straight into the group chat. You can replay it as many times as you want.”

Wade’s face went bright red. He glared at Latham. “You try sharing that and see what happens.”

Latham grinned, totally unbothered. “Want to bet?”

The wedding games finally wrapped up in a flurry of laughter and applause. Since Dorothea wasn’t a bridesmaid, she skipped the bridal car and left with Latham in their own ride. The excitement had everyone caught up in celebration. No one seemed to notice that, just a mile away, a van with temporary plates had quietly parked, watching it all from a distance.