Chapter 352: SS3 09: The Glory of Traditions

"Well, well…, look who's back," Richard said in his seat before taking a sip of champagne.

On top of the grand staircase, Ambryan and Eve made their way down to their designated seats. Avery had instructed Eve to change to her reception dress so it would cover up their absence. It was a good thing they served food before they had left, managing to distract the guests.

The small pins on Eve's small hair bun were taken out. Her wavy scarlet hair fell to her upper back. Her reception dress had almost the same neckline as her wedding gown. Beaded metallic ribbon decorated the bodice down to the flared skirt that reached the floor—all done in periwinkle color.

It was almost a shame she would only wear it once.

Ambryan and her parted ways behind the sofa so they'd walked around on either side. They flashed smiles at each other's face, acting too engrossed with each other. Their hands laced together once again when they sat down. 

All of it was according to someone's words—a PR expert skilled enough to divert the crowd into the right direction, allowing them to come up with safer conclusions than what actually happened.

Jordan shook his head beside Richard. "They couldn't wait for the honeymoon, huh?"

"Heard they also left their phones," Mikael added. "So they probably didn't plan to bolt just yet."

"Just a quickie then?"

Rose leaned over the back of her chair. Their tables were actually beside one another. Directly behind her was Jordan. Her voice spoke loud enough for those nearby to hear. "You need to be clearer, Jordan. I don't think Mikael knows what that is."

Cale covered up his snort. He drank from his water glass. 

He may or may not have had too much to drink. 

Mikael gave Rose a deadpan expression. "Stop or I get a restraining order."

Her brows shot up. "So you really don't know what a quickie is?"

"I know what it is!" He sneered back.

Jordan whistled at the exchange. "Do you now, Mikael? Has my little boy grown up?"

Radiant blue eyes glared in response. "I'm not your little boy."

"He's a tough one, Rose." Andie laughed from her side of the table. She and Jarrett enjoyed their time mostly by themselves, talking about wedding details at times. They planned for a small scale but appreciated a few things about the current wedding. 

Surprisingly, the majority of the guests were still around.

Rose beamed at her friend. "That's what makes him more special."

"I can hear you, you know."

"May I have your attention please?" Mishta asked from the podium stand near the orchestra. "I would like to invite the newlyweds to cut their cake. For everyone's information, it's a five layer moist chocolate cake with soft vanilla frosting. The couple chose to decorate it with edible red roses and pink hydrangeas in memory of the first bouquet given by the groom to the bride."

"Aw," Cale gushed. "I remember that day. The flowers were gorgeous."

Jarrett tilted his head to one side. "What an odd choice to make. Wasn't that also the time they thought Mikael had given her those flowers and present box?"

"You're right!"

The couple of the evening seemed to have forgotten about that incident. The servers rolled out the cake on a push cart. Ambryan and Eve stood up, heading towards it. Everyone waited in anticipation as the servers grabbed the top tier and set it down for the newlyweds.

Ambryan and Eve held the same knife together, counting to three in whispers.

Mishta watched from her spot. "They said the bigger the piece you feed your partner, the bigger is your love for them. I wonder who loves who more?"

Eve lifted the small plate and jokingly stabbed the whole piece they sliced. It fell apart when she raised it to her husband's lips. A small chunk was left on the fork which she fed to him. Bemused, Ambryan copied her method but since the slice had broken apart, he easily managed a bigger piece to feed his wife.

"Ambee…!" Eve exasperated.

He grinned as he chewed on his cake piece. "This is my love for you, dearest wife. You're not going to reject it, are you? Because it's too late."

Eve nearly choked when she bit the whole thing. It filled her mouth, barely letting her close her lips. She clamped down her teeth ang gobbled it up as fast as she could. Ambryan helped her brush off the loose hair strands from her face.

When they finished eating, a round of applause came from their guests. 

"The dance floor is now open to everyone who'd like to join the bouquet toss."

"Wish me luck, guys," Cale said, rising to his feet. 

He grabbed Rose along the way and dragged her with him to the dance floor. Eve stood in front of the loveseat, bouquet in hand. She waited for everyone to gather around before spinning on her heel. Chants in her head reminded her to toss lightly. 

If it's too hard, it could cause an accident.

And no one wanted that to happen.

"Ready?" She shouted over her shoulder. As they responded, she turned her head back around and threw the bouquet above her head. Yelps of surprise came from the crowd. Fingertips brushed the petals before the flowers officially landed on someone's hands.

Andie covered her mouth.

Mishta joined the group and escorted the lucky winner to the platform. "I'd usually ask for the name but I already know yours. Give it up for the lucky lady tonight, everyone! Ms. Rose Taylor!"

Rose waved at the audience, raising the bouquet for everyone to see. Her enthusiasm easily won them over. Eve clapped as she sat down beside Ambryan. A fit of laughter flowed out of her mouth. 

Oh, this had to be good. 

"Now, would the groom please take off his wife's garter? Only using your teeth, of course."

Not a moment to lose, Ambryan pulled up Eve's legs on the couch. Her brown eyes bulged out of their sockets. The skirt of her gown was fitted near the hips and thighs. With little space, it was easy to see the bump of Ambryan's head when he went in.

Eve faced away from the crowd, hiding her immense blush.

It didn't help that Ambryan bit her as he came closer to the blue garter.

She felt a kiss on her thigh before Ambryan yanked the garment with his teeth. He pulled back in one smooth motion, straightening his wife's leg for faster results. He looked up as soon as he was done and made eye contact with Eve. 

Ambryan grinned cheekily.

"Today, I had the privilege to witness that CEO, Ambryan Hathaway, get things done fast," Mishta joked. "First hand experience of the infamous claims people made about him. May we please have the single men take over the dance floor?"

Jordan clamped his hand on Mikael before the latter could escape. Richard snatched Mikael on the other side. They marched to the dance floor until they were surrounded by other men. Mikael glowered the whole time. He made the mistake of looking at Rose.

She merely smirked and blew him a kiss.

Oh, this had to be the worst.

Ambryan stood up and twirled the garter around his finger. Eve buried her face in her hands. Who knew he'd act this way in public someday? Did he have too much to drink? This was beyond what she could take. 

"Normally," Ambryan began to say. "I wouldn't want any man to touch my wife's undergarments."

His words received a couple of laughs.

"This has to be the only exception. As per my mother's request, I will give this to one lucky gentleman," he continued, raising the garter higher. "And who would that be? Let's find out."

He flicked the garter towards the dance floor. It landed smack right into someone's face. An angry hand wiped it off but it was too late. Mishta called him up to the stage. Congratulatory pats came from the others as he forced his legs to move.

A smirking Rose greeted him when he made it up the platform.

"And they say that fate doesn't have a sense of humor," she told Mikael. "Yet, here we are."

"Nothing is amusing about this," Mikael retorted.

"So I should take fate seriously?" Rose gasped. Then, she placed a hand over her chest. Her eyes widened by a fraction. "Are we meant to be?"

Mikael scowled. "I'd rather eat raw bitter melons."

Ambryan and Eve guided Rose to the loveseat. They stood at the side while she and Mikael took the center of attention. Ambryan embraced Eve from behind. For once, it was their time to enjoy the show rather than be in it.

Mishta cleared her throat. "I believe most people know what comes next. The lucky gentleman now has to slip the garter up the lucky lady's leg. And he can't stop until the audience says so."

Rose pressed her lips together, Mikael kneeling in front of her. Since he had his back to the guests, only she could see the blush in his cheeks. This man couldn't be more adorable. He acted tough but he had the innocence of a young boy.

This man had so many sides to him.

And he never failed to make her more curious.

She leaned down so only he'd hear her. "I'm wearing a long gown so you only have to pretend. I'll react so they'd think you reached high enough. Pull up every once in a while too."

His radiant blue eyes squinted in suspicion. "And why would you do that?"

"I like teasing you, Mikael, but I won't force you to do something you clearly don't want to do." Rose snorted. She took off the shoe for her right foot and extended her leg. 

"Could have fooled me," Mikael muttered, slipping the garter to her ankle. The chants behind him could barely reach his ears. The opposite effect her voice had on him.

"Trust met. There's a lot of things about me that you don't know."