In the private room at Allure Club, smoke hung heavily in the air.
With one leg draped over the other, Jared Willis, Braydon's friend, sprawled across the couch and swirled the wine in his glass.
"Braydon, you're seriously marrying Caroline?"
Resting against the leather couch, Braydon held a cigarette loosely between his fingers.
Jared continued, "I looked into her already. She's spoiled rotten, quick-tempered, and always stirring trouble. Just recently, she fought someone over Jacob, and the whole city's talking about it. Honestly, Vivian sounds like the smarter pick. Yeah, she's illegitimate, but she listens, keeps her head down, and she's not bad to look at. No drama, no hassle. Marry someone like that and life's easy."
"Life's easy? That just means she's dull," Braydon replied in a calm yet distant tone.
"So that's it. You want someone who keeps things interesting."
Braydon crushed his cigarette out in the ashtray. "I've already decided. It's Caroline."
"Everyone knows she's hung up on Jacob. You're really going to marry her? That's embarrassing."
"I said I'd marry her, but how I do it—that's up to me."
That answer made Jared uneasy at once. "What are you even thinking? Don't pull something reckless. The Palmers are respected people, and Caroline's been raised like a princess. If you treat her like one of your street deals, that's crossing the line."
Braydon stood and walked out.
Still seated, Jared called after him loudly, "At least give me a heads-up. Braydon! You hear me?"
Word of both Palmer sisters getting married soon spread through Praginia in no time.
Three days passed before Caroline received a marriage certificate along with a wedding photo.
The image showed her seated beside Braydon. Her smile looked forced, while his expression stayed blank.
But the thing was, the wedding never happened in the first place.
Instead, the Lewis family arranged for her to take the photo alone, edited Braydon into the picture afterward, and used it as proof of a supposed wedding to apply for a marriage certificate.
From start to finish, it all wrapped up in under two hours.
With the certificate gripped tightly in her hands, Caroline kept her eyes on the poorly edited wedding photo.
Her thoughts drifted back to her previous life, when Vivian became Braydon's wife and the Lewis family hosted a grand celebration that lasted three full days, drawing every elite figure in the city.
Back then, Vivian stepped out in a custom-made gown, walking beside Braydon along a lavish aisle while everyone watched in admiration.
Now that she was the bride, all she had received was a fabricated image.
Even so, the reason behind it was clear to her.
Across Praginia, everyone believed she was hopelessly devoted to Jacob, and that rumor had already tarnished the Lewis family's name.
Because of that, Braydon chose to humiliate her in return.
As for her previous life?
Since Vivian was an illegitimate daughter, Braydon had arranged an extravagant wedding to raise her standing.
That display ensured no one would dare to mock Vivian for her origins ever again.
In the end, it all came down to preserving the Lewis family's image.
Love had nothing to do with any of it, since the marriage existed only as a calculated deal.
Caroline felt no concern over Braydon's treatment of her.
What mattered to her was simple: she wanted the authority and reach that came with the Lewis name.
Meanwhile, Vivian's situation wasn't much better.
Because Jacob's condition was so fragile, he never even appeared at the City Hall, and their marriage registration felt just as hollow.
Before long, the night arrived.
Caroline reached the entrance of the Lewis estate with her suitcase beside her.
A soft rain had begun to fall.
The gate before her, however, remained firmly closed.
There were no festive touches anywhere, and there was no wedding.
Wanting to avoid attention, the Lewis family had instructed her to come alone and settle in quietly.
Standing by the gate, the butler regarded her without emotion. "Are you Mr. Lewis' newly wedded wife?"
"Yes. I came to see him."
"Mr. Lewis has no intention of meeting you."
A slight lift of Caroline's brow followed. "He refuses to meet me? Then where do you expect me to stay?"
Holding out an umbrella, the butler explained, "Mr. Lewis wants you to head back to the Palmer residence for now. If he decides to see you, someone will be sent to bring you over."
Caroline accepted the umbrella, yet her feet stayed rooted in place.
A short laugh slipped out as she glanced at him. "So the Lewis family summoned me here, and now they're sending me away? Do you really think this is funny?"
Unfazed, the butler answered, "Mr. Lewis doesn't mean it that way."
She pushed the umbrella back toward him. "Go back and tell him—I will step inside tonight no matter what it takes."
"Mr. Lewis made it clear. If you refuse to leave, you may wait outside, but he still won't meet you."
Hearing that, Caroline gave a small nod.
She already understood how stubborn Braydon could be.
He thought he could keep her out? She had no plans to play along.
Without another word, Caroline strode toward the gate, slipped off her heels, and grabbed onto the iron bars before climbing up.
The butler stared in shock, his composure cracking instantly.
The alarm system started wailing without pause, but Caroline kept climbing without sparing a glance.
Several guards rushed over, yet they stopped short the moment they recognized her.
Uncertainty held them back, and none of them dared to act.
Wasn't she supposed to be the refined daughter of the Palmer family? How did she end up scaling a gate like that?
"Madam, what are you doing?"
"I'm Braydon's wife now. I'm entering my own home. Who dares to stop me?"
Caroline's eyes swept across everyone in front of her.
Not one guard stepped forward to interfere.
Caroline picked up her heels and strode straight into the house.
The house was huge. Lights filled the living room, yet the space sat completely empty.
She paused at the center, scanned the surroundings, and then moved toward the staircase.
A voice suddenly cut through the silence just as she reached the bottom step.
"Stop right there."
The tone carried a sharp chill.
Lifting her gaze, Caroline looked up.
Braydon stood by the railing on the second floor.
A black robe hung loosely on him, his collar open, and his damp hair clung slightly to his forehead.
From above, he stared down at her with a faint frown. "Who gave you permission to come in?"
"I did." Setting her suitcase aside, Caroline faced him calmly. "Braydon, we're legally married now. Where do you expect me to sleep?"
Braydon's eyes narrowed at her words.
At that moment, the butler and several guards rushed inside.
Hurrying forward, the butler said nervously, "My apologies, Mr. Lewis! Your wife climbed over the gate to get in. We tried to stop her, but we failed."
She climbed over the gate?
Braydon's gaze dropped to Caroline's legs.
A short white dress clung to her, while her heels were stained with dirt. Mud streaked across her legs. Nothing about her appearance matched that of a refined young lady.
Braydon walked down the stairs and stopped in front of her. He lifted his hand, and the butler, along with the guards, quickly withdrew.
Standing so close to him, Caroline caught the faint scent of alcohol mixed with tobacco.
Looking down at her, Braydon let out a quiet laugh. The chill behind it sent a sharp unease through her.
"Caroline," he said in a low voice, "do you really think you're my wife now?"
Caroline refused to step back. Meeting his eyes, she answered slowly, "We're legally wedded now, so I am your wife."
A slight arch appeared in Braydon's brow.
"Alright," he said as he set his glass aside. "Then tell me this. As my wife, where should you be spending your night?"
A sudden grin appeared on Caroline's face.
Turning away, she walked to the couch and dropped onto it.
"Right here," she replied.
That answer caught Braydon off guard, and he paused.
Leaning back, Caroline tossed her dirty heels straight into a nearby trash bin. "You won't let me go to your bedroom, so I'll sleep here instead. I'm still your wife no matter where I stay. Whether it's here or anywhere else, that won't change."
