After the wedding ceremony, the reception followed. It was held at a hotel near the beach, and just like at their wedding earlier, reporters and various well-known personalities were scattered around.
“Congrats, man,” Jeru greeted Beckett as he entered the hotel with Vivianne.
“Congrats!” Paige also congratulated, her smile reaching ear to ear, then she looked at Vivianne. “I hope you will be able to handle him,” she joked.
Vivianne just smiled in response. She didn’t know what to say. Plus, there seemed to be a pang in her heart right now, especially when she saw how Beckett smiled at Paige.
‘Beckett has been a model since forever, and now that he’s become even more famous, his connections have widened too, so what are you feeling, Vivianne? Stop that!’ Vivianne scolded herself in her mind while restraining herself from hitting herself.
“Are you okay?” Beckett suddenly asked, bringing Vivianne back to reality.
“Huh?” The girl blinked in surprise.
“You’re spacing out,” the guy said, holding Vivianne by both arms and looking at her. “What are you thinking?”
“Nothing,” the girl lied. She looked away and cleared her throat to calm herself. Her heart was also lamenting the way Beckett was holding her. “Where’s Jeru and the girl with him?” she changed the topic.
“They went back to their seats.” Beckett pointed to a table where Jeru and Paige were sitting, enjoying dessert.
The two of them were also smiling at each other, and because Jeru was also a famous model, they had also caught the attention of other reporters. Beckett couldn’t help but grin at that.
He was sure that if Paige wasn’t there, Jeru would have gone home by now because he couldn’t stand the reporters’ pestering. In contrast to his facade, he hated crowds, same as Beckett.
“Anyway, her name’s Paige. Paige Dimagiba, Trace’s younger sister,” Beckett said to Vivianne, who was still staring at Paige now.
Vivianne’s lips pursed. So that’s why the girl’s face seemed somewhat familiar to her. She was one of the names on Alfred’s list when he became interested in Foedus.
Nonetheless, no one could touch Paige because they would be up against the whole Foedus.
“Why are you looking at her like that? You’re acting like you’re jealous, my dear wife,” Beckett remarked when he noticed Vivianne’s lingering gaze on Paige.
But when Vivianne didn’t respond, Beckett’s lips pursed. “Wait, are you…?”
“No.” Vivianne averted her gaze to avoid letting Beckett see her expression, hoping he’d stop teasing her as well.
But Beckett didn’t stop there.
He lifted Vivianne’s chin and tried to make her face him. “Are you really jealous of someone else now that you’re my wife?”
“I told you I’m not,” Vivianne bit her lip.
She was annoyed with herself, too. Was she really jealous? She was the one who left Beckett, yet here she was feeling jealous?
“Ah, fuck. You’re so cute,” Beckett said before kissing Vivianne’s forehead. It made her cheeks flush even more. “Why don’t we ditch this reception already and go straight to the honeymoon? I’ll f. uck you hard.”
“Beckett!” Her cheeks felt like they were turning tomato-red.
“Right. That is how you’ll moan for my name later,” Beckett replied unabashedly before grinning. He even winked, teasing Vivianne further.
‘I feel like I’m in the past while we bicker like this, but my heart feels so happy too,’ Vivianne thought to herself, realizing she was already smiling.
On the other hand, Beckett was astonished to see Vivianne smile genuinely. She often frowned or furrowed her brow when they were together, so he didn’t expect her to smile like that.
However, Vivianne’s smile quickly faded when she looked past Beckett. He also scowled when he followed her gaze and saw that she was looking at Alfred.
“Hey,” Alfred greeted them with a smirk on his lips. “Congratulations on your wedding.”
“Thank you,” Beckett responded on behalf of the couple.
He could see Vivianne’s mood right now. Beckett was annoyed because the joy had vanished from her eyes again, and he knew why.
They were in public, and his mother, Ella, was guarded by bodyguards. Alfred had made an excuse, saying he was hands-on in taking care of her because his wife was sick.
Vivianne felt like throwing up when she remembered that. She would never be proud that Alfred was her father.
“Lily’s there. Do you want to hang out with her first?” Beckett suggested, pointing to Lily not far from them.
Lily waved and smiled when she saw them, which Vivianne returned.
Vivianne liked the idea of getting away from Alfred and being able to breathe freely, but… “What about you?” she asked Beckett, furrowing her brow.
“I will just talk to my father-in-law for a moment. I’ll come back to you afterward,” Beckett assured her before stroking her cheek. “I want you to enjoy our wedding and stop living up to everyone else’s expectations. Cut off whoever you want to.”
Vivianne grinned. “What about you?”
“Except me. I’m your husband,” he replied firmly.
Beckett’s voice suddenly turned cold. Vivianne couldn’t help but laugh when she noticed. “Just kidding!” she chuckled lightly. “I’ll go there first, okay?” she said before gesturing to Lily that she would join her.
“Sure…” Beckett replied, still somewhat dazed as he watched her. It felt like his heart was about to leap out of his chest, so he forced himself to calm down. “Enjoy, love.”
Vivianne just smiled before leaving. She looked completely different now compared to when they used to see each other. She seemed much lighter and happier than when she was under her father’s control.
Beckett will eliminate everyone who will take that smile away from his wife.
“What a lovely husband you are, taking my daughter away from me,” Alfred suddenly remarked in a deep tone, causing Beckett to glance at him. His gaze was sharp.
“I just don’t want her to sulk at our wedding,” the young man shrugged. “I’m not unaware of what’s really going on in the Allamino family now. A broken, ruined family…”
“Yeah. The same as yours,” Alfred’s lips curled up.
This prompted Beckett to raise an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, come on. You can’t fool me, Clainfer. Do you think I’ll believe that all of this is true?” He laughed sarcastically.
Beckett clenched his fists, his expression darkening further.
“Just because it happened fast doesn’t mean that it isn’t true. Vivianne and I love each other,” he said in a deep voice.
He didn’t appreciate what Alfred seemed to be insinuating – that the happiness he felt now wasn’t genuine.
“Of course. I know,” Alfred nodded, grinning. “And even though I didn’t like the idea, I still agreed to this marriage.”
“And that’s why I want to thank you for being here, and for giving your permission for this marriage,” Beckett said, his tone sincere.
Because of this, not only did Vivianne get closer to him again, but his connection with Alfred also deepened. He had shares in the Allamino Corporation as well, thanks to Alfred’s generosity.
Next, he would try to infiltrate the Allamino Mafia. But before that, he needed to earn Alfred’s trust, also to protect Vivianne and Ella.
“Of course. This marriage benefited me the most, too,” Alfred replied. “Foedus Corporation, huh?”
Beckett just grinned in response, causing Alfred to clench his fist and grit his teeth.
Alfred didn’t like the idea of Beckett being a member of Foedus and Vivianne’s husband at the same time. It made him feel inferior.
He planned to have Beckett killed once and for all, but he changed his mind. For his future plans, he needed to endure Beckett’s presence.
‘Keep the enemies closer,’ Alfred thought to himself as he stared at Beckett intently. ‘I will keep you in check so you won’t be able to take any action when you find out about me.’
Little did he know that Beckett had the same plan to prevent Alfred from further endangering the lives of others.