He Chose Her Ten Times, I Left Once Chapter 05
“Mr. Whitmore, something terrible happened. Vivian Sterling’s room caught fire. The situation is critical.”
“What did you say?”
The doctor’s words gutted him.
“Which hospital is she in? I’m coming right now.”
Before he could leave, Sienna, dressed in the wedding gown, grabbed his arm.
“Elliot, the ceremony isn’t over yet…”
“You’re not the woman I’m marrying!” he shouted. “And Avery is in danger!”
“Wait.” Sienna blocked him with a rustle of silk. “Don’t you get it? Avery is putting on an act.”
“She pretended to be generous and gave me the gown. She set this whole scene just to pull you away at the altar. She just wants to humiliate me.”
As she spoke, tears gathered in her eyes, pitiful and helpless.
Elliot hesitated.
What Sienna said did make sense.
After all, how could Avery have handed over the wedding gown so easily and let Sienna become his bride?
Unless she had planned all of this to embarrass Sienna and win his sympathy at the same time.
“You’re right,” Elliot said, halting his retreat.
“No wonder she didn’t show up to the wedding she’d been dreaming of. No wonder she kept ignoring my messages. I never knew she could be this calculating.”
Sienna slipped her hand through his arm as if it belonged there, her expression brightening at once.
“Then we should just play along and finish the wedding.”
“I think Avery will get jealous and show up on her own.”
Looking at her harmless face, Elliot’s frown eased.
“You’re still the clever one.”
Although he agreed to continue the ceremony, his gaze kept drifting toward the chapel doors.
After all, he had waited for so many years and imagined countless times what Avery would look like walking toward him in a wedding gown.
A faint regret rose in his chest.
The wedding ended smoothly, though Elliot’s mind was never fully there.
The guests whispered among themselves.
“So Mr. Whitmore really loved Sienna all along. He even changed brides at the last minute.”
“Of course he did. He picked Sienna ten times in a row. That kind of fate is hard to argue with.”
“They look perfect together. Sienna is so much better than that crazy woman’s daughter.”
…
Hearing those comments, Elliot felt a hollow ache in his chest.
If Avery heard them, she would lose her mind.
With that thought, he tapped his flute.
“Everyone.”
“The woman I truly intended to marry was Avery. Sienna only stood in for her to complete the ceremony.”
“As for the ten previous blindfolded selections, I only did it to satisfy Sienna’s little wish. We had agreed on signals beforehand.”
“The truth is, every time I followed my instinct, the person I chose was always Avery.”
The room erupted.
“So that was what happened?”
“Then the marriage certificate trending last night was just for show?”
Sienna, who had been basking in triumph only moments ago, went pale. In her panic, she blurted out, “Avery isn’t coming back. I am the lawful Mrs. Whitmore now!”
Elliot frowned, confused.
The next second, someone from the asylum called him again.
“Mr. Whitmore, you need to come here immediately. After we cleared the debris, we found a body. It’s time for ID.”