Chapter 364 Marriage

Chapter 364 Marriage

"Daniela, don't worry, I'll never leave you for the rest of my life, and I want to be with you in the next life too. Daniela, thank you, thank you!"

Oliver was speaking incoherently.

He was clearly happy, but somehow, tears he couldn't hold back started flowing at that moment.

"I'm happy, I'm really happy, I'm not crying."

Seeing Daniela staring at him with those watery eyes wide open, he hurriedly tried to cover it up. However, just as his fingers wiped away the tears, new ones came flowing out.

Daniela pulled his hand over, stood on her tiptoes, and before Oliver could react, she leaned in close. Her warm tongue swept across his eyelids, like an electric shock.

He froze completely.

But Daniela seemed very calm.

"How's that? Feeling better now?"

She stepped back, putting some distance between them, her cool face looking calm and composed.

Oliver's heart was so excited, like a pebble dropped into a lake, creating countless ripples.

The tears stopped flowing, but the bubbles in his heart started rushing to his head.

"Daniela..."

He murmured, his large hand grabbing Daniela's arm and pulling her forcefully into his embrace.

Then, with one hand supporting her slender waist and the other cradling the back of her head, a passionate kiss was born.

Mary and Barry, standing beside them, looked deeply into each other's eyes, then moved closer and naturally kissed as well.

Turns out, they were already a couple.

When Zachary approached Barry, he agreed right away and invited his wife to play along in this act.

Sure enough, competition creates motivation.

Their performance was so convincing that it immediately broke through that thin veil between Oliver and Daniela.

Daniela closed her eyes, her body trembling slightly. This was her first kiss.

There was a sweet taste, like strawberry ice cream.

Finally, when they reluctantly separated, Oliver discovered that the couple beside them was kissing even more passionately.

"What's going on with them?"

Daniela frowned, looking puzzled.

"Mary, what's the situation with you two?" He was confused too.

Barry laughed heartily, "Mary and I are already married. Mr. Jennings asked us to help you two out. Romance is beautiful, keep it up! Mary and I have plans, we're leaving now."

With that, he and Mary held hands and quickly walked out.

Daniela didn't like being manipulated or deceived, so her expression darkened slightly.

Oliver naturally hadn't expected Zachary to pull off such a stunt either, but he felt grateful in his heart. If it weren't for Zachary's dramatic push, he probably wouldn't have been brave enough to do what he just did.

He took Daniela's hand, holding it tightly and firmly.

"Daniela, whether this was planned or not, you're the only one I'll marry."

"Fine, if that's the case, then marry me."

Daniela made up her mind.

She lacked trust in people, but just moments ago, she felt she could trust Oliver.

"Really?" Oliver cried out in delight.

He grabbed Daniela's hand and rushed outside.

"Where are you taking me?"

Oliver didn't answer. They quickly reached the car, and Oliver pulled out documents from the car's drawer.

"Daniela, let's go to the courthouse right now."

Daniela was stunned. "It's evening now. The courthouse won't open until tomorrow morning."

Oliver nodded firmly. "I know. I can't wait. As soon as they open tomorrow morning, I want to go register our marriage with you."

This sounded crazy, something Daniela had never experienced before.

Seeing Oliver's determined and confident eyes, she couldn't help but be moved.

"Are you sure you want to marry me?"

Daniela asked anxiously again.

"I'm sure, one hundred percent sure and certain. You're the only one who can be my wife."

They got in the car and first returned to Maple Estate.

Daniela went inside while Oliver waited for her in the car.

Seeing Daniela return, Martha poked her head out from the kitchen. "Did you eat dinner?"

Daniela ignored her and went straight to her bedroom.

Since starting college, she'd kept her ID documents separate.

Finding that certificate, Daniela immediately headed out.

Martha stood at the door. "Where are you going so late?"

Daniela didn't respond and walked out quickly.

Martha chased after her. "You stubborn girl, I'm talking to you. Where exactly are you going?"

Daniela had already reached Oliver's car. "I'll tell you tomorrow morning."

"Martha, I'll take good care of Daniela, don't worry." Oliver stuck his head out the car window to speak to Martha.

Martha was both reassured and worried.

The car zoomed away.

Daniela placed her document together with Oliver's papers. For some reason, she felt particularly calm inside, that kind of settled, grounded calm.

She turned to glance at Oliver. His face was beaming with smiles, his mouth unable to close.

Neither of them spoke. The car moved quickly and stopped directly in the parking area at the courthouse entrance.

"Want to eat something? I'll go buy it."

Oliver said.

Daniela shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

"Are you tired? If you are, lean on my shoulder and sleep for a bit."

Oliver said again.

"Okay." Daniela agreed.

She rested her head on Oliver's shoulder. It was the first time she'd been so close to a man. Her heart kept pounding, and the narrow space was filled with his strong masculine scent.

The car lights stayed on. She closed her eyes, as if falling asleep, resting her head on his shoulder. At first, she didn't dare put her full weight on him, afraid he'd find it heavy.

He held her hand tightly and never let go.

Later, Daniela gradually relaxed.

The temperature in the car was comfortable, the seats reclined, and they stayed like that, leaning against each other all night.

As dawn broke, Oliver was already awake, while Daniela was still sleeping.

She slept deeply, her eyelashes curved in a beautiful arc.

He turned to look at her carefully. This was the first time he'd observed her at such close range.

Daniela's skin was beautiful, fair and delicate, with no visible pores.

Her cherry-red lips were red and soft. Oliver's heart stirred with the memory of kissing them yesterday.

That feeling had been absolutely wonderful.

Right now, he had an urge to kiss her again.

But the urge remained just that. He couldn't bear to disturb Daniela's sweet dreams.

When Daniela woke up, it was already past six o'clock.

As soon as she opened her eyes, he lovingly reached over to adjust his jacket draped over her. Only then did Daniela realize that at some point, Oliver's jacket had been placed over her.

A warm feeling spread through her heart.

"I'm sorry, I slept too deeply."

Daniela apologetically sat up quickly.

That night, afraid of disturbing Daniela's sleep, Oliver had stayed in that same position without moving the entire night.

The half of his shoulder that Daniela had been leaning on had long gone numb and sore, but he'd been enduring it all along.

When Daniela sat up, he still couldn't move.

"Do you need my help?"

Daniela noticed something was wrong and asked.

"Yeah, help me rub it." Oliver said.

Daniela raised her hand and started massaging Oliver's shoulder. Her fingers were slender but strong, though with all his muscles, it was quite difficult for her.

After a good while, his shoulder finally recovered.

"Let me go buy some coffee. What do you want for breakfast?"

"I'm not very hungry." Daniela refused.

But Oliver insisted, "Just rest a bit more, I'll be right back."

He closed the car door and left. Daniela leaned back in the car seat, watching Oliver walk away.

He was tall with a solid build, his back giving her a grounded sense of security.

About eight minutes later, Oliver returned, almost jogging back.

"The coffee shop wasn't open yet, so I got milk and sandwiches. Eat them while they're hot."

He doted on Daniela like she was a child.

He took out the milk, put in a straw, then handed it to Daniela, and opened the bag with the sandwiches.

"You eat too."

Oliver nodded. He looked out the car window, which happened to face the courthouse entrance.

Just past six-thirty, there wasn't a soul around, only a few scattered cleaners passing by with their brooms.

At seven o'clock, Oliver saw someone walking toward the courthouse. He panicked, threw open the car door, and sprinted to the entrance at full speed, claiming the first spot.

The person was startled by Oliver. He pulled out his phone and started making a call, his attitude hostile and tone impatient.

"Are you here to register too?"

The man asked.

Oliver nodded. The man asked again, "Let me go first, okay? I'm in a hurry."

Oliver refused, "I'm in a hurry too."

The man glared at Oliver angrily and pulled out some green bills from his pocket. "Come on, can you do me a favor? I have a business trip later, a nine o'clock flight."

Oliver shrugged. "I can't help you with that."

The two men stood there eyeing each other, neither willing to give in.

Around eight o'clock, courthouse staff started arriving one after another, and several couples had lined up at the entrance.

Daniela got out of the car and came to Oliver's side.

"Why don't you just let him go first?"

After Oliver refused him, the man seemed to be in a bad mood, constantly sending messages on his phone. He really did look urgent.

"No way. I promised you we'd be the first to get our marriage certificate today. At such an important moment, I wouldn't give up my spot even for God."

However, when numbers were called, the man rushed ahead of Oliver.

"Sorry, buddy, I'm really in a rush."

Oliver hadn't expected someone to be so rude. He was about to argue when Daniela held him back.

"No rush, we're still first."

She pursed her lips, gesturing for Oliver to look in the distance. A flashily dressed woman stood there on the phone, her voice sickeningly sweet.

The man standing in front of them kept glancing at that woman, his eyes full of disgust.

Sure enough, when his number was called, the man took it and went straight to the divorce processing area.

While Daniela and Oliver went to the marriage registration office.

The seed of resentment in Oliver's heart finally settled down.

"Daniela, you're so smart."

A smile returned to his face.

The registration process was quick, just about ten minutes, and they each had a certificate in hand, officially becoming husband and wife.

On the way back, Daniela stared at the certificate for a long time.

She'd grown up in a single-parent household from birth, never experiencing a man's warmth, but now, Oliver had appeared, giving her a real home in the true sense.

"Where are we going now?" Daniela asked, staring at the red booklet.

Oliver answered with immense pride, "Home, of course, honey."

Hearing "honey," Daniela's ears immediately turned red.

In Daniela's mind, only really cheesy people would use that term.

But now, the legal husband sitting next to her had turned on the cheesy mode with her.

"Just call me Daniela."

She corrected him.

Oliver refused, "No, I'm going to call you honey. Honey, I'm taking you home."

The car drove straight toward the Maple Estate villa area. Daniela didn't think much of it. Now that she and Oliver had registered their marriage, they naturally needed to tell everyone.

But she never expected that Oliver would bring her to an unfamiliar villa.

"Honey, this is our home."

Oliver happily took Daniela's hand and walked forward.

Daniela's eyes widened. She never imagined this would be her and Oliver's marital home.

"When did you buy this?"

Daniela blurted out.

Oliver stepped forward and placed the key in Daniela's hand. "After I found out that person was you, I bought it. I thought we could live here, close to Martha too, so it'd be easy for her to come home anytime."

Daniela's heart was pierced again with bittersweet pain.

"Weren't you afraid I wouldn't marry you?" Daniela asked with reddened eyes.

"Not afraid. Even if you didn't marry me, I'd still live here to take care of Martha for you."

Tears had already gathered in Daniela's reddened eyes. In all her life, no one had ever thought of her this way.

"Come in and take a look."

Oliver took Daniela's hand and walked inside. The door opened, and a new world opened its arms to Daniela.

The interior was very warm and cozy. She loved it.

"Take your time looking around. I'll go to the kitchen and make something to eat to celebrate our marriage."

With that, Oliver rolled up his sleeves and headed to the kitchen.

"I'll help you." Daniela followed, but Oliver stopped her.

"Honey, you just rest. I'll handle this."

Only then did Daniela realize she'd really found a treasure.

She toured the entire villa. It was larger than Zachary's place at Maple Estate, and the rooms were very personalized.

In short, she was extremely satisfied.

By the time she finished touring the rooms, Oliver had already prepared lunch.

"Honey, wash your hands and eat."

He wore an apron around his waist, carrying plates in both hands to the dining table. The food on the plates looked absolutely delicious.

"I never imagined you could cook so well."

Daniela praised.

Oliver wasn't modest at all. "Of course! When I was abroad, I studied with a Michelin chef for over a year, just so I could cook for my wife one day."

Sweet words never get old.

Daniela's heart felt as sweet as honey. "You're going to spoil me."

"I want to spoil my wife. Even if I spoil you rotten, I'll still love you."

After the meal, Oliver went to clean up the kitchen.

Standing by the window, Daniela couldn't help but sigh. In just one night, she'd gone from single to married, from someone who feared marriage to someone enjoying it.

So really, what in this world stays the same forever?