Chapter 3
Alden saw Maren before the ceremony began.
He did not greet her.
He stared.
That was worse.
Maren stood near the edge of the ballroom, beside a banquet table decorated with white roses and gold-rimmed plates.
Guests moved around her with careful curiosity.
Some recognized her name.
Some recognized her face.
A few military guests recognized more, but said nothing.
That silence was professional.
Respectful.
Alden mistook it for ignorance.
Griffin came first.
Her older brother looked older than she expected, though his smile had not changed.
It was the same smile he wore when Alden chose him over her in arguments.
The same smile that said, I survived by agreeing with power.
“Well,” Griffin said, looking at her gown. “You clean up well.”
Maren looked at him calmly.
“Hello, Griffin.”
“No uniform?”
“No.”
“Probably for the best.”
She let that pass.
Men like Griffin depended on reaction.
Without one, he became ordinary.
Alden approached next, tuxedo perfect, white boutonniere pinned neatly, face already tight with contempt.
“You were invited out of courtesy,” he said.
“I know why I was invited.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Yes.”
That irritated him.
Alden wanted the old rhythm.
Attack.
Defense.
Tears.
Exit.
Maren no longer moved to that music.
The bride noticed from across the room.
Her name was Elise, though most guests simply called her “the bride” that day, as if a wedding dress erased all previous identity.
But Elise was not ornamental.
She watched Alden’s posture.
Watched Griffin’s smirk.
Watched Maren’s stillness.
And her hand tightened around the microphone resting near the cake table.
Because Elise knew exactly who Maren was.
Not everything.
Not the classified chapters.
But enough.
May you like
Enough to know Alden Rowe was standing in front of one of the most respected officers in the room and calling her unwanted.
Read the full story 👉 Alden thought Maren’s civilian gown made her vulnerable, but the bride already knew the truth behind her silence.
