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Alfred.

"Please," Sebastian replied, taking both my hands in his. "Though I've already made mine in my heart a thousand times over."

The minister nodded and began the traditional ceremony, but I barely heard the words. All I could focus on was Sebastian's face, the way his eyes remained fixed on mine throughout, as if memorizing every detail of this moment.

Everyone in the room joined in applauding as the minister pronounced us married, the sound almost deafening in the intimate space. The ceremony had indeed been remarkably fast, much quicker than I would have expected for such a significant life event, but somehow it felt right - like the culmination of a journey that had already contained enough delays and obstacles.

"You're mine now, officially," Sebastian whispered as he leaned in for another kiss. "No take-backs."

"Wouldn't dream of it," I whispered back, just before our lips met again.

The celebration shifted seamlessly from ceremony to reception as waitstaff appeared with champagne and elegant hors d'oeuvres. Music began playing from hidden speakers, and Sebastian led me to the center of the room for our first dance as married partners.

"I can't believe you arranged all this overnight," I murmured as he held me close, guiding me through a simple waltz. "The flowers, the music, everything."

"Money and power have their advantages," he replied with a small smile. "Though I admit I had my assistant crying on the phone at 3 a.m. trying to find a decent caterer willing to work on such short notice."

"Poor woman," I chuckled, following his lead as we moved gracefully across the floor. Everyone watched us, but for once, I didn't mind being the center of attention.

Sebastian danced with me for one special, magical song, our bodies moving in perfect harmony as if we'd been dancing together all our lives. As the music faded, he kept me close, not ready to let go just yet.

"I wish we could stay like this forever," he said softly, his breath warm against my ear.

"We have forever now," I reminded him, squeezing his hand.

Instead of releasing me back to the party as I expected, Sebastian leaned even closer, his lips barely brushing my ear as he whispered with surprising sweetness, "I have something special waiting for you upstairs. A surprise I think you'll enjoy much more than dancing with these people."

His voice held a promise that sent a pleasant shiver down my spine. Before I could respond, he was already pulling me toward the exit, his eagerness evident in every step.

"Sebastian, wait!" I protested weakly, glancing back at our guests who were still mingling and chatting. "We can't just leave our own wedding reception!"

"Watch me," he replied with a mischievous grin, continuing to drag me toward the grand staircase with determination. "This is enough social interaction for one day. It's our time now."

I tried to resist, planting my feet and pulling back against his insistent tugging, but Sebastian was unstoppable when he set his mind to something. He practically ran up the stairs, pulling me along like an excited child with a new toy.

"Sebastian, people will talk!" I hissed, though I was laughing despite myself.

"Let them," he replied carelessly. "They know exactly what newlyweds do after the ceremony anyway."

Upon reaching our bedroom, Sebastian pushed me inside with surprising gentleness, his hand at the small of my back guiding rather than forcing. I stumbled slightly at the unexpected entrance, my mind racing with anticipation of our first moments of privacy as a married couple.

Instead of the romantic scene I'd imagined, however, I was startled to find we weren't alone. A woman stood in the center of the room, her posture rigid and professional. She was undeniably elegant in her tailored suit, but there was something distinctly masculine about her bearing and short-cropped hair. Beautiful in an unconventional way, she appeared to be in her mid-thirties, her expression unreadable as she assessed me with sharp, intelligent eyes.

"Who on earth is this woman, Sebastian?" I demanded, narrowing my eyes suspiciously as I turned to face my new husband. "What's going on here? Why is there a stranger in our bedroom on our wedding day?"

My mind raced with possibilities, none of them particularly comforting. Was she from his work? A reporter who had somehow sneaked in? The way she stood so confidently in our private space suggested she had every right to be there, which only confused me further.

Sebastian's expression remained neutral as he watched my reaction, offering no immediate explanation. His silence only heightened my growing unease as I looked back and forth between them, searching for some clue to understand this bizarre situation.

"Sebastian?" I prompted again, my voice taking on an edge of concern. "You're scaring me. Please explain what's happening right now."

"She's my second wife!" Sebastian suddenly announced with a completely straight face, folding his hands dramatically in the air. His tone was deadly serious, though a gigantic, mischievous grin began spreading across his face as he watched my reaction.

If he was trying to give me a heart attack on our wedding day, he was doing an excellent job. I felt the blood drain from my face as my jaw dropped open in absolute shock.

"What in the world do you mean by 'second wife'?!" I spluttered indignantly, my voice rising with each word. "If this is some kind of sick joke, Sebastian, it's not funny at all! Don't play games with me right now!"

I looked frantically between Sebastian and the stoic woman, searching for some sign that this was indeed the horrible prank I suspected. The woman's expression remained completely neutral, which only added to my growing panic.

"Is this even legal?" I demanded. "We literally just got married thirty minutes ago!"

Sebastian maintained his serious expression for several more agonizing seconds before finally bursting into laughter, clearly enjoying my distress far too much.

"Come on, Alfred! Don't look so horrified!" he chuckled, stepping closer and placing his hands on my shoulders. "This is the special surprise I arranged just for you! I hired her to serve a very specific purpose in our married life."

He gently pushed me a few steps closer to the woman, who still hadn't spoken a word or changed her professional demeanor in the slightest.

"What purpose?" I asked warily, not entirely reassured by his amusement. With Sebastian, anything was possible.

"Oh my God, you actually scared me half to death for a minute there," I exhaled deeply, placing a hand over my racing heart. "So you mean she's going to be a surrogate mother? We'll have her visit a fertility clinic, they'll use your sperm for artificial insemination, and she'll carry our child for us while living here?"

The prospect immediately seemed more reasonable, even appealing. Starting a family with Sebastian was something I'd thought about but assumed would be years in the future.

"That actually sounds wonderful," I continued, warming to the idea. "Though you could have discussed it with me first instead of springing it on me literally hours after our wedding."

Sebastian's expression shifted slightly, and I felt my newfound relief begin to evaporate. Something in his eyes told me I still wasn't understanding correctly.

"No, that's not quite what I meant," he clarified, his tone suggesting I was being deliberately obtuse. "I mean she'll be like a second wife in the traditional sense. Obviously, we can't legally marry her, but functionally speaking..."

He paused, seemingly searching for the right words before continuing with disturbing directness: "How could I possibly be certain that the child would truly be mine if we used clinical methods? There are mix-ups, mistakes... No, I'll need to sleep with her myself until she conceives, ensuring the child is definitely an Evans."

He delivered this explanation so matter-of-factly that for a moment I just stared at him, unable to process what I was hearing. The woman remained expressionless, as if this conversation was perfectly normal to her.

"You can't be serious," I finally managed, my voice barely above a whisper.

"What the actual f*ck?!" I exploded, unable to contain my shock and rage any longer. "Is this your idea of a wedding gift to me?! Announcing you plan to sleep with someone else literally hours after we've exchanged vows?!"

I backed away from both of them, my hands held up as if warding off an attack. My mind was reeling, unable to comprehend how Sebastian could possibly think this was acceptable.

"Who ever said I even wanted children right now anyway?" I continued, my voice rising with each word. "We've never once discussed starting a family! And even if we had, who gave you permission to sleep with anyone else? What kind of twisted marriage do you think this is going to be?"

Sebastian's expression remained frustratingly calm in the face of my outburst, which only fueled my anger further. Did he really think I would just accept this arrangement without question?

"This isn't the 1800s, Sebastian! We don't need to 'ensure the bloodline' or whatever medieval concept you've got in your head! If we decide to have children someday, there are modern, ethical ways to do it that don't involve you cheating on me on our wedding night!"

My hands were shaking with fury now, and I felt a disturbing urge to throw something heavy at his smug face. How dare he ambush me with this after everything we'd been through to get here?

"Have you completely lost your mind?" I demanded, searching his face for any sign that this was still somehow an elaborate, tasteless joke.

"I simply have to do this, baby. It's just for tonight, I promise," Sebastian said with infuriating casualness, reaching out to condescendingly pat the top of my head as if I were a pet whose concerns could be easily dismissed. "Now be a good husband and wait here in our room. Get some sleep, and I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."

Before I could formulate a response to this outrageous statement, Sebastian grabbed the woman's hand and actually started pulling her toward the door, clearly intending to follow through with his absurd plan immediately.

"Tonight?" I gasped, stunned by his audacity. "You're planning to sleep with her on our actual wedding night?"

Sebastian merely shrugged as if this detail was inconsequential, continuing his path to the door without looking back at me.

"Wait just one minute!" I shouted after him, my voice echoing off the bedroom walls. "Sebastian, stop right now!"