Lost to Cherry Trees and the Wrong Man

Lila's POV

I suddenly came to my senses.

I grabbed the bride's hand and said, "You're wrong! I'm the one who is going to marry the Don! The fiancee that ran off? That's me!"

She looked at me in a baffled daze.

I quickly added, "We've been promised to each other ever since we were ten years old. I secretly ran off because I wanted to prove to him that I was smart! I wanted to head over to the new place first to wait for him. I liked him so much, so how could I possibly run away?"

She looked at me for a few seconds before breaking into a wide smile.

She pressed a platinum ring into my hand and exclaimed, "That's right! They had a marriage agreement since they were ten! He's supposed to marry you!"

She quickly slipped out of her wedding gown, exchanging clothes with me.

Then, she did my hair and said, "Quickly, get in the car. I have to go! When you see the Don, you have to explain it all to him. I don't want any trouble from him!"

I nodded and got into the limousine. The entire procession continued, much livelier than I imagined.

In the car, I smiled. Who knew that Angelo would hold our wedding in such high esteem. The procession he sent was nothing short of magnificent.

The estate was decorated lavishly for the wedding with white flowy drapes fluttering in the breeze and a tall champagne tower glimmering in the middle of the field.

My gaze, through the veil, was pulled to the man in a black tuxedo at the end of the red carpet, his broad-shouldered back facing me. He seemed taller than the last time I saw him.

I nervously held the hem of my gown. My heart was thumping with anticipation, waiting for him to turn around.

Right at that moment, one of his men in a black suit quickly rushed in and whispered something in his ear.

He stiffened. When he turned around, I was so nervous I lowered my head, not daring to look at him.

Before I could process what was going on, he had already grabbed his coat on the back of the chair and headed for the entrance.

When he walked past me, he stopped in his tracks and said apologetically in his low thundering voice, "I'm sorry. Something came up at the casino. I'll have to deal with it. Why don't you get some rest at home? Don't wait up for me."

I was stunned at first, but I soon quickly replied loudly, "Don't worry! Go quickly!"

I was very used to waiting for Angelo. What was waiting a little while longer?

He paused for a while before replying with a light chuckle. "Alright. I'll be back as soon as I can."

I took off my veil, about to find a room to wait, when a housekeeper walked over and smiled apologetically.

"Ma'am, please don't take it to heart. He has no choice. Someone crossed the line and thrashed the casino. They even hurt two of our men. This matter has to be resolved."

I shook my head. "I don't mind. It would be worse if this matter got out of hand and more people got hurt."

The housekeeper sighed in relief that I was not mad. She took me upstairs to a room.

In the middle of the night, one of his men came saying that he had to bring fresh clothes for the Don to the docks.

I opened the closet and realized that most of his clothes were old, and some even had holes in them. There was one jacket whose shoulder was stained with what seemed to be dried-up blood.

When it was soon dawn, I was so sleepy that I could not take it any longer. I fell asleep on the desk surrounded by a pile of folded clothes.

While I slept, it felt like someone was sitting next to me, watching me for a long time. After gently sweeping my hair back behind my ear, they put a soft woolen blanket over me.

I did not wake up. I could only hear someone gently closing the door and saying to the housekeeper outside, "My mother is coming over tomorrow afternoon. She has quite a bad temper. Please don't let my mother torment her."