The Transient Wife

Chapter 7

It was only the night before the wedding that she was able to really read Philip's profile. He was twenty-nine years old, graduated at Stanford—top of his class. After his father's death and William decided to retire in 2005, he took over the family empire. And by empire it meant countless corporations that ranged from malls, real estates and many others. For a moment she wondered where her father fit in in all of it.

He was never married, no children either. He had one sister, Chanty. His grandparents from his mother's side were deceased. Hope and William were his only living grandparents.

Apart from the basic family background, nothing much in the profile told her anything personal really, so she did not bother to read through it again.

She was more concerned of how she should act at the wedding. She was actually getting jitters. If she tried to analyze everything, one thing only came to mind: Crazy.

She had tried to call her father but he never answered or called back. Her mother was unreachable as well. That was something new, she thought.

She decided not to call Harrison yet. She'd do that after the wedding. He would not be happy about it for sure. She had a lot of explaining to do to him by the time their talk would happen. Or maybe she did not have to tell Harrison anything at all. She can consider this marriage as the same one celebrities did in Vegas—a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing.

Before going to bed, she made some calls for additional plane reservations. Philip gave her his passport and visa earlier and his name was a great help with her transactions. After all, Strindberg Industries always had a way with almost everyone and everything. After finally printing the ticket she got for him, she made more international calls to change her hotel reservation and ask a friend for some favors. After almost two hours, she looked down at Philip's plane tickets, passport and visa with a wicked grin.

Oh, I bet he's going to love his plane ride.

She was not hard at heart, but with everything Philip Strindberg and her father did to her, she thought she deserved to play little pranks.

The wedding would go according to Philip's way, but the honeymoon would play out exactly as how she planned it to be. That was the only reassuring thought she held on to as she went to sleep.

*****

Her parents arrived the next day. God, she totally forgot they'd be actually present at the wedding. Her mother was skeptical about the sudden wedding, but that was overpowered by her immense joy. When most mothers would demand explanations as to why their daughters decided to tie the knot all of a sudden, Valerie Anders was just plain ecstatic about the whole thing. Maybe it was because the family name Strindberg came along with it.

"Oh, dear, I'm so happy for you. It's okay, don't explain yourself. I know why you kept it from us," she said as she hugged Cassandra.

"You should have seen her face when I told her the news," her father said behind them. Cassandra chose not to answer. Kurt Anders understood how she felt and decided to step out of the picture just a little and let his wife do all the talking.

"Honey, shouldn't you be getting ready?" her mother asked. It was only then that Cassandra noticed that her parents were already dressed for the wedding.

This is really crazy, she thought. Her eyes went back to her father who couldn't hold her gaze for more than five seconds. "Can I have a few moments alone with dad?" Her question brought a frown on her mother's face but the lady eventually shrugged and stepped back.