Five Years His Secret, Now Someone Else’s Bride

Orion's POV

The butler hovered nervously. “Boss, should we go after her? Miss De Luca seems serious this time.”

I stared out the floor-to-ceiling window, my face a mask of stone. “No.”

It wasn’t the first time she’d thrown a fit.

I lit a cigarette and took a long drag.

Her last words echoed in my head: I wish you and Sienna a happy marriage. May you grow old together.

That wasn’t like her. The Evangeline I knew would be heartbroken but defiant, stubbornly silent.

This… this was a challenge. A gamble. The most venomous curse she could think of.

Smoke curled from my lips as I let out a low laugh. I understood.

She was bluffing. Trying to force my hand.

She was so sure I couldn’t live without her, so sure I loved her more than anything. So she staged this dramatic exit right before my wedding, waiting for me to make a choice.

The moment I destroyed my own alliance for her, she would come running back.

“She’s just my spoiled little wildcat, throwing a tantrum,” I muttered, confidence flowing back into me.

She was my treasure, the woman I had cherished for five years. Where else could she go but back to me?

Her tears, her tantrums—they were all just little games to make me love her more.

“Let her go,” I told the butler. “Let her cool off for a few days. She’ll be back on my wedding day.”

The next day, St. Mary’s Cathedral was under heavy security.

The century-old Gothic church was a fairytale of white roses and crystal chandeliers.

Every person who mattered in Chicago was there.

Politicians, business tycoons, and the heads of the major crime families. All waiting for the wedding of the century.

But my mind was elsewhere.

I stood at the altar, checking my watch again and again.

Each time I looked, my frown deepened, the irritation on my face growing more obvious.

2:00 PM. The wedding was supposed to start.

But there was no sign of her.

“Boss,” Marco leaned in, whispering. “Should we start? The guests are getting restless.”

“Wait,” my voice was tight.

My eyes scanned every corner of the church, desperately searching for her.

She’ll come.

She has to come.

She was just throwing a tantrum, trying to make me prove how much I cared. Just like every other time for the past five years. No matter what I did, she would pout, but in the end, she always came back to me.

2:30 PM.

The guests were starting to fidget. The whispers grew louder.

Sienna’s father, old man Rossi, was starting to look furious.

“Orion,” he hissed, his voice laced with a threat. “What the hell are you waiting for?”

“Nothing. We’ll start in a minute,” I said, forcing a smile.

But my eyes were still glued to the entrance.

She had to be on her way.

Maybe there was traffic. Maybe she was getting ready, planning to make a grand entrance, to show me she was more beautiful than any bride.

3:00 PM.

The guests’ patience was wearing thin.

People were talking openly now, checking their phones.

“Orion!” Sienna stormed over to me, her beautiful face twisted in anger. “Who are you waiting for?”

“No one,” I said, avoiding her eyes.

“Are you waiting for that bitch?” she spat, her voice a venomous whisper. “She’s not coming! She ran away!”

The color drained from my face.

“Marco!” I yelled for my right-hand man. “Get every man we have out there! Find Evangeline! I don’t care if you have to tear this city apart, you find her!”

Marco hesitated. “Boss, we’ve already looked. She’s not at the penthouse, not at any of her usual spots.”

“Then widen the search!” I roared, my voice echoing through the church. Guests turned to stare. “Search all of Chicago!”

Sienna’s face was livid. “Orion, are you insane? It’s our wedding day!”

“I know!” I growled, yanking at my tie. “But I need to be sure.”

3:30 PM.

The atmosphere in the church was painfully awkward.

Some guests were getting up to leave.

Old man Rossi couldn’t take it anymore. He marched toward me.

“Kid, you better have a good explanation!” he bellowed. “You’re humiliating my entire family!”

Just then, Marco ran back in.

He was pale, like he’d seen a ghost.

“Boss…” his voice trembled. “Miss De Luca… she…”

“Spit it out!” I grabbed him by the collar.

Marco swallowed hard. “Her private jet took off from JFK an hour ago. Destination… unknown.”

My blood ran cold. The world stopped spinning.

“Impossible…” I muttered, my hand falling away from his collar. “Impossible…”

“Boss, what do we do now?” Marco asked timidly.

I acted like a madman. I bolted for the exit.

“Orion!” Sienna screamed from behind me. “Where are you going?”

But I didn’t hear her. I burst out of the church and jumped into my armored Cadillac.

“To the airport!” I roared at the driver. “Now!”