The CEO's Jilted Bride

"No! No! There was no way this was happening, lest of all on my special day" Serena whispered under her breath.

But it's clearly written on this paper whispered back her subconscious.

Maybe she had read it wrong, maybe it was a mistake? She was probably just dreaming...that's right a dream nothing else.

You can see that the truth is clear for you to see Serena. Open your eyes! commanded my subconscious.

Opening her eyes, Serena unclenched her hands to reveal a little white paper underneath. It had been rumpled from her unconscious squeezing, on it was the neat cursive that she had come to love scrawled on it but the sight of them did nothing but dim the light in her eyes.

Dear Serena...

I don't really know how to say this but here goes nothing. I can't go through with the wedding. I realized however lately that I am hopelessly and irrevocably in love with Bebe and she reciprocates my feelings as well. She's pregnant with our first child and we intend to raise it away from the heat of all the drama that will surely ensue in our absence. Don't take it the wrong way sweetheart because once upon a time I actually did love you but I feel I'm doing this for your sake by not marrying you as it wouldn't be right as I'm in love with another woman and we really don't want to keep our affair a secret anymore. I wish you all the best and I hope that when we do meet again you would have found it in your heart to forgive me.

Yours truly

Melvin

Forgive him? He actually talks of forgiveness. The bastard...

I never expected this from neither him nor Bebe...they were my fiancé and best friend for Christ sake! Why would they do this to me? Most especially today of all days. Why did they choose to lie to me? Why didn't they just come clean to me and tell me that they were in love with each other? I would have never stood in their way if they had decided to say the truth and come clean about it albeit I would have been disappointed but I would never hold it against them.

Chelsea...

Chelsea was right all along. She had tried to warn me several times about them but I didn't listen to her, God I even defended them. I'm so stupid! I was to blind to everything and allowed myself to be led by my emotions.

At this moment Serena felt so alone, so angry and above all betrayed.

****

Steven the best man face looked black. He looked so angry and very uncomfortable that Serena wondered what could have made him to be that way. She looked around to see if Melvin her husband to be was with him but all she could see was Steven clutching onto a angrily white paper as if it was the cause of his annoyance.

Serena walked over to him to ask what the problem was with a smile. "Steven is there any problem?"

Steven looked up from the paper which he held in his hand and fixed them on the lady in front of him. His eyes were unable to meet hers as he whispered back to her. "Serena...Serena there is something I have to tell you.

"What is it?" she asked as Steven gently placed the letter in her hands.

"Melvin said to should give you this."

"Melvin? Where, where is Melvin?" Serena asked confusedly.

"I think you will understand better once you read this note."

****

Steven had always been a bit suspicious of his close friend Melvin when he noticed that Melvin and Bebe were always spending a lot of time together but he put it down to them trying to get along because of Serena's sake. His suspicions grew even further when he caught a scandalously dressed Bebe at Melvin's apartment at two in the morning.

Melvin had claimed that Bebe was there because he had invited her over because they were both working on a surprise for Serena.

"There was no one who could help me pull this off except for Bebe." He claimed. "I want to make this wedding a most memorable one for Serena."

Bebe herself concurred with Melvin and made him promise not to let Serena know about their plans. If only he had known that they would go ahead to do this sort of thing then he would have tried to stop them. How stupid he feels now

Melvin did not show up for the bachelor party he organized for him. Steven had called some of their close friends and met up to relax at a nearby hotel. He tried to call Melvin several times but his number remained unreachable. Later that night, he received a message from Melvin saying that he was feeling under the weather and needed rest.

Stephen laughed in understanding. "Guess he was suffering from the pre wedding jitters."

He didn't think much of the message and went to sleep little did he know that Melvin was up to something else. He received a little white paper on his door step the following morning.

He opened it out of curiosity only to discover that it was message that Melvin had addressed to Serena saying that he was calling of the wedding.

The bastard couldn't even give it to her and tell her the truth face to face and left him to do his dirty work...what a coward.

Now he had no choice but to give the damned letter to Serena and this hurt him straight to the core.

How he wished he could get a hold on Melvin and squeeze the life out of him.

"That son of a bitch! Serena doesn't deserve to be treated in such a way. He only thought of himself and didn't care how much pain it would cost her."

Steven knew there and then that his friendship with Melvin had definitely come to an end.

****

Steven snapped out of his flashback when he saw Serena slump onto a chair.

Serena slowly rose up from the arm chair on which she slumped on and looked up to see the sea of faces of her wedding guests, with a cold smile on her lips.

Her guests stared back at her, expecting her to breakdown...maybe a show of sorts but were amazed when she smiled an addressed them coolly. "Well the deed has already been done, no need to cry about it now."

"You all shouldn't feel disturbed about what has happened after all this could have easily have happened to anyone, I just happened to be one of the unlucky ones. You all should please relax and enjoy yourselves as there's more than enough food and drinks to go around, I mean I should know after all I paid for it." She said with a dry laugh before lowering herself back onto the chair to rest on.

The guests breathed a sigh of relief and within a minute the whole place was set alive with music and vibrant laughter.

Serena gave the room a once over before grabbing a glass of champagne from the waiter that passed by. She pretended to take a sip before feeling a touch on her shoulder. It was her assistant Vicky who whispered softly into her ears. "Are you alright dear?"

Serena nodded calmly. "Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?"

"Maybe it's because your groom who is a miserable excuse for a human being was a no show for the wedding which you planned for six months?" Vicky asked genuinely concerned.

"I'm pretty sure I'm fine Victoria. Now do go on and enjoy the party. I'm sure that fine gentleman in the corner over there wouldn't appreciate me taking up your time." Serena said nudging her head in direction of young dapper man that stood in the corner.

"Are you sure that you're really okay?"

"Yes...now go." Serena said as she gave Vicky a push in the direction of the man.

On Serena's insistence, Vicky left. Not to the direction of the man in question but to give Serena a little privacy.

"Hey Serena!" a guest called out to Serena amidst all the noise

"What is it?" Serena said turning to face the guest with a small smile pasted on her cold lips

"At least the wedding went off without a hitch!" the guest replied her before laughing at his own joke.

Serena smiled back at the guest coolly and even complemented the joke but only Vicky knew how badly Serena was hurting as she watched her completely lost in thought.

****

It was a cool and breezy morning. The sun hidden amongst the clouds did nothing to prevent the cold she was feeling. A strong gust of wind breezed against the window as Serena rose up from her bed.

Today was her wedding day....

A day which she had been waiting for ever since she was a little girl. Today she was going to be Mrs. Smith soon and she couldn't wait.

Serena walked up to her wedding gown hung on the mannequin with happiness clear in her eyes. Her wedding gown was intimidating as well as exciting and she was sure that it was made exclusively for her. It was a beautiful mermaid dress which was fitted all the way through until it hit her knees where it flared out to resemble a mermaid's tail. The sleeves were long and fitted to highlight the curve of her shoulders. The neckline was a sweetheart one and it did a great job highlighting her cleavage. The fabric itself was made out of lace material and was adorned with pearls of different sizes. It was truly the most beautiful white dress that Serena had ever seen. All in all the dress had cost her quite a fortune but it was her wedding and Serena didn't care. Serena quickly took her shower and wore her wedding gown looking every bit a fairy.

Someone knocked softly on the door before entering. It was her assistant Vicky.

"You have to start preparing quickly or you are going to be late for your own wedding." Vicky said smiling cheekily at her boss.

Vicky looked at the wedding gown and was sure that Serena was one of the most beautiful brides that she had ever seen. Vicky had always admired her boss for being self determined and hardworking, always moving ahead of her peers in their business which was the reason why Empire events remained at the top.

"Have you heard from Bebe?" Serena asked Vicky as she smoothened the lines on the dress out with her hands.

"No." Vickie replied.

"I just hope that she won't be late for the wedding" Serena said as she picked up her phone to dial Bebe's number. It was unreachable.

Serena had tried Bebe's number several times the night before but was unable to get a hold of her so she left her a message stating that Bebe should be punctual for the wedding on her answering machine,

Bebe was always late for everything so little reminder wasn't anything out of the ordinary.

The wedding ceremony was set to take place at the way field villa in the heart of the city. The venue was filled with lots of lights, candles and flowers. It was truly beautiful and one could easily tell that it had been well thought of and organized. It was truly going to be the wedding of the year.

Serena had just finished having her makeup done and looked completely stunning in her white gown. Her face was covered with a beautiful lace veil to seal the look.

The guests soon started to arrive in quick successions and soon they were already seated waiting for her to grace them with her presence.

Serena closed her eyes, took a deep breath and walked out of her dressing room in hopes of walking down the aisle but sadly that hope was short lived because her groom and maid of honor were nowhere to be found.

****

Now Serena was faced with the hard truth that a clear rejection was always better than a fake promise.

'Now nothing will ever be the same' thought Serena as the feeling of emptiness engulfed her from deep within.

Vicky looked at Serena with eyes filled with concern. She noticed that Serena was making great efforts in trying not to break down in front of everyone.

She looked so calm and collected on the outside but Vicky knew that deep down inside Serena was plagued by turbulent emotions.

'Serena was such a beautiful soul both inside and out. She really doesn't deserve to be treated this way' thought Vicky.

Vicky thought back to the time where she had first met Serena. She had first met Serena just a little over four years ago when she applied to become her assistant. At that point Serena had just opened up Empire events and took Vicky under her wing. She taught Vicky everything about event planning and the business behind it, slowly the business picked up and soon they were the best in the country.

To be honest, Vicky had never really cared much for Bebe who happened to be Serena's best friend. In her opinion Bebe was selfish and self centered person who cared for nothing but herself. She had tried to bring it to Serena's attention several times regarding Bebe's demeanor but Serena always chalked it up to Bebe being a revered top model in the industry. Typical Serena, always trying to see the good in everyone if only she knew that the venomous snakes always hid in plain sight.

"You don't have to stay here anymore you know, you can secretly sneak out the back door. I'll cover for you." Vicky whispered into Serena's ears as she crept closer to Serena again.

Serena paid her no attention as she stared at the wedding cake in front of her but not really seeing it at all.

Serena had ordered the cake from the renowned pastry chef Juliana cross who was said to be a cake goddess with over a decade worth of experience. Ordering from her cost Serena quite a fortune but she left no stone unturned in preparing for the wedding. The cake itself was dreamy, contemporary and completed with a sleek finish. It screamed elegance and complemented the feminine fete of the wedding.

Not just cake but the décor, the venue, the lighting and exotic flowers had cost Serena quite a large sum of money but she didn't mind it after all it was her wedding day and she thought that she deserved nothing but the best.

Serena had paid for all the expenses for the wedding out of her own pocket. Normally both the bride and the groom were supposed to split expenses for the wedding of their dreams but that hadn't been the case for Serena. Melvin had insisted that Serena foot the bill of the entire wedding claiming that he was trying to get a loan from the bank to add to his savings in order to buy a house for both of them. He promised to pay her back later and Serena being the naïve woman that she was went along with his suggestion after all he was her soon to be husband so she had no reason to doubt him.

She remembered the conversation she had with Melvin just before she started to prepare for the wedding.

****

"Darling I promise you that as soon as I get the loan, we will be able to get the house of our dreams and I will pay you back my own share of expenses." Melvin said with a smile

"But we-"

"No buts my dear, I want a grand wedding filled with only the finest things that life has to offer. No expenses shall be spared in the course of this wedding. I want the entire community to know that I, Melvin Delaney intend to make you my lawfully wedded wife."

"Well that's all wonderful Melvin but the budget which you are clamoring for seems a little too much though...wouldn't you agree?"

"I know sweetheart but I don't care, I want our wedding to be the talk of the town. I want our wedding to be the only thing on everyone's lips and for everyone to be envious of us on our special day"

"I know but still you-"

"Sssssh. Relax sweetheart." Melvin said as he lifted Serena up and into his arms. "Everything will be just perfect, I know it."

****

Now she realized why Melvin had been so reluctant to pay for the wedding! Who would want to pay for something that they would later abandon ship for? He really never had any intention of marrying her from the start.

The cheat!...

All her hard earned money that put in the preparation of the wedding had now disappeared without a hope of her getting any of it back.

Now not only had she been jilted on her wedding day but she was also cheated, betrayed and left penniless.

How she yearned for her mum now, who would comfort her with soothing words and warm hugs but alas she had passed away just the year before. People who still have their mum have no idea how blessed they are what she would give to hear her mums voice her sweet laughter, her sense of humour her mum was everything to her. Her dad died not quite long after her birth so she never quite got the chance to meet him. Her only family was her sister Chelsea who lived quite far away.

She couldn't blame anyone; she could only blame herself for being foolish enough to trust in her love for Melvin over her relationship with her sister. Now all she could say was if only she had known.

Serena got up slowly from her chair and looked around her surroundings for the last time. The venue was still lively and bubbled with excitement even though it was the late hours of the night.

'They all seem so happy and care free. I'm sure no one would want me too ruin their night with my bad demeanor. Maybe they wouldn't notice if I left for a while right?' thought Serena as she tuned to look towards the backdoor.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before slowly creeping out the back door of the venue. Thankfully, no one saw her sad figure leave and she disappeared into the night without looking back.