Chapter 23

Regina stood by the window in her luxurious apartment, anxiously glancing at the clock on the wall. The hands seemed to move slower than ever before. She took a deep breath and smoothed her white dress, her fingers trembling slightly. Today was the day she would marry Giannis, the man who had shattered her heart once before. But it wasn’t the grand wedding her mother had always dreamed of. This was going to be a secret ceremony at the courthouse, attended only by Sandra, her husband Matthew, and Giannis’s best friend Nikolos.

As if on cue, a car pulled up outside her house, and Regina’s heart skipped a beat. She walked up to the door and swung it open. There he was, Giannis, waiting for her with a smile that stirred up so many emotions in her. Dressed in a charcoal gray suit, he looked as dashing as ever. His eyes sparkled with a mix of excitement and something else she couldn’t place a finger on.

“Regina,” Giannis said, his voice filled with tenderness. “You look absolu