Chapter 9 A Stand-in Bride-to be

Emmett froze, watching Curtis head upstairs.

Alice, unable to convince her father, whined, "Mom!"

Emmett reminded, "Enough. Right now, you need to focus on the engagement. Don't sweat the small stuff."

Alice silently blamed Natalie for her troubles. She couldn't bring herself to tell Emmett that she'd used Natalie and wasn't a virgin before that night.

She vowed to kick Natalie out of her family after the engagement!

Over the next period, Natalie was busy juggling school and hospital duties, avoiding the Cullen family as much as possible until the night of Adrian and Alice's engagement.

The engagement party was held at the most luxurious hotel in Vachilit, attended by the city's elite.

It was a grand event for the Cullen family. However, Curtis and Emmett were in a panic at the hospital!

Alice had gotten drunk with friends the night before and had an allergic reaction to the alcohol. She was still unconscious in her hospital bed, and the engagement party was about to start.

On such an important day, this mishap was a disaster!

Emmett was at a loss, muttering, "What are we going to do?"

Curtis, furious, snapped, "This is all thanks to your brilliant parenting!"

Emmett paced up and down the room, saying, "Yelling won't help! The engagement starts in an hour. We need a plan."

The Howard family was powerful in Vachilit, and the Cullens couldn't afford to offend them.

If the Howards found out why Alice was in the hospital, the engagement would be called off!

Suddenly, Emmett stopped in her tracks. "Wait, where's Natalie? She can stand in for Alice!"

Curtis thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. "Alright, I'll call Natalie. You go to the hotel and handle things."

Soon, Natalie was summoned to the bride's room at the hotel.

Emmett couldn't believe that the face she usually despised could now save her family. However, Natalie and Alice had very different vibes, and it would be easy to slip up.

In terms of appearance, Natalie's natural double eyelids were more convincing than Alice's surgically enhanced ones.

Emmett explained everything Natalie needed to do and warned her, "Natalie, after this, we'll arrange a specialist for your mother. But you can't breathe a word about today. You know the consequences."

Natalie clenched her fists, shocked that they wanted her to take Alice's place and get engaged to Adrian.

This was risky. One wrong move, and he might recognize her from that night.

However, with her mother's illness worsening, she couldn't delay any longer and had to make a decision.

"Alright, I agree," she said.

With the help of two assistants, she donned a million-dollar custom wedding dress, adorned with sparkling diamonds. It was stunning, but since Natalie was slimmer than Alice, they had to pin the dress at the back to fit.

Finally, a lace veil obscured Natalie's vision. Curtis took her hand and led her downstairs, slowly walking her to Adrian and placing her hand in his.

Through the glove, she felt the warmth of his palm, making her heart flutter.

This lavish engagement, the million-dollar dress, and the handsome man before her—it all felt like a fleeting dream to her.

"Alright, let's have the bride-to-be and groom-to-be exchange rings!" The host's voice snapped Natalie back to reality, and she instinctively looked up into Adrian's eyes.

Adrian smiled, looking at the shy woman before him. A strange sense of happiness washed over him, making him think that maybe marriage wouldn't be so bad after all.