He Skipped Our Wedding License 10 Times but Married My Bestie Chapter 06

He Skipped Our Wedding License 10 Times but Married My Bestie Chapter 06

From the moment he stepped out of that cramped apartment, Derrick had been completely distracted.

His mind kept flashing back to how Nevaeh looked tonight.

She had been entirely too calm.

The eyes that used to light up whenever she saw him were like a pool of stagnant water, completely devoid of emotion.

He felt as if something vital was slipping away from him.

A heavy weight pressed down on his chest, making it hard to breathe, and he ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

“Derek…” Saylor murmured, leaning in close. Her alcohol-laced breath brushed against his ear,

breaking his train of thought.

She reached out, her fingers trailing suggestively across his cheek, her voice dropping to a seductive purr. “Tonight… is our wedding night.”

Derrick’s brow furrowed slightly, and he instinctively turned his head away to dodge her touch.

“You’ve had too much to drink. Let’s get you home,” he said dryly, his eyes fixated on the gridlocked traffic ahead, his mind completely elsewhere.

“I’m not drunk!” Saylor pouted. Bold with alcohol, she suddenly lunged across the console, cupping his face in her hands and pressing her lips firmly against his.

Her lips were soft and warm.

Under normal circumstances, he would have responded. This was the woman he had chased for years, the one he had schemed so hard to win.

But right now, her perfume only made his head ache.

The kiss itself felt hollow.

Instead, his mind filled with the memory of Nevaeh’s faint, clean scent of laundry soap, and the way her face would flush red whenever he stole a kiss, glaring at him in mock annoyance.

His body went rigid. Didn’t kiss her back.

Saylor instantly sensed his coldness and detachment.

The haze of alcohol drained from her eyes, replaced by disbelief and a creeping sense of panic.

Trembling, her voice cracked as she asked a question she never thought she would have to utter.

“Derek… have you fallen for her?”

“Don’t be ridiculous!” Derrick snapped instantly, his tone sharp and defensive. “How could I ever fall for her? She’s a boring, high-maintenance charity case. Stop letting your imagination run wild, Saylor.”

He spoke rapidly, as if trying to convince her-or perhaps, himself.

“Everything I did was for you. You were the one who didn’t want to see her go to college, so I spiked her water. You made the bet for me to pursue her, and I played along for five whole years. The debt is paid, the game is over. There is zero chance I have feelings for her.”

His words spilled out faster, his voice rising as if the sheer volume could drown out the sudden

terror clawing at his heart.

Saylor smiled, though it was tinged with bitterness and sorrow.

“I knew it. My little cupcake only has eyes for me,” she whispered, leaning up to press her lips to his

once more.

This time, Derrick didn’t pull away.

He closed his eyes and returned the kiss.

Yet inside, his mind was a chaotic storm that refused to settle.

How could he possibly love Nevaeh?

Impossible.

Absolutely impossible.

He was just making amends for what he did.

Yes, it was nothing more than guilt.

Only a sophisticated, elegant woman like Saylor belonged by his side.

The next morning, Derrick rushed back to our apartment, desperately brainstorming a lie that would smooth things over with me.

It wasn’t until he was stopped at a red light that he remembered to call.

But after checking every single pocket, his phone was nowhere to be found.

An inexplicable panic gripped him, and his only instinct was to get to me as fast as possible.

As he neared the apartment building, his heart hammered violently against his ribs.

“Nevaeh, I’m home! My friends dragged me out for drinks last night, so…”

The words died in his throat. Derrick froze in the doorway, utterly paralyzed.

The cozy little apartment was reduced to absolute ruins.

His heart dropped, and a suffocating wave of fear washed over him.

The lock on the door hadn’t been forced; there was no sign of a break-in.

Which meant only one thing: I’d done this.