A Replacement Bride

As soon as Keith finished speaking, he suddenly felt a chill down his spine and trembled in response.

He scratched his nose in confusion and quickly sensed someone boring a hole into his body with their

gaze alone. He turned his head and was even more aghast when he met Joaquin's eyes and saw the

mirthless smile on his face.

Their reactions highly amused Katherine as she hurriedly explained, "Grandma, it's true. Why would we

lie to you about this? H-He is indeed that man back then."

When she confirmed Joaquin's words, the huge living room suddenly fell quiet, falling into a strange

and awkward silence. Keith and Jennifer's eyes simultaneously flicked back and forth between Joaquin

and Katherine. Then, they stared at Joaquin as if seeing him for the first time.

After a while, Jennifer finally spoke, "Joaquin, are you really that man from back then?"

Joaquin's heart skipped a beat when she addressed him as Joaquin instead of Joe, and he quickly

figured out that something would go wrong if he didn't explain himself. Therefore, he nodded solemnly

and recounted the events from five years ago before Jennifer turned into a rampaging bull. "Grandma, I

know it's too late for me to say anything now, but I didn't mean to hurt Kathy. In fact, I swore at that time

that I would love Kathy and only Kathy for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, something happened, and

we missed each other's path for five years. I can assure you that my oath has not changed. Please

believe me."

Jennifer didn't expect that something so complicated had occurred five years ago. Although she knew

he wasn't entirely at fault, she still couldn't accept this. Instead, she felt furious and saddened for

Katherine because she saw first-hand how that incident had hurt Katherine.

When she thought of the hardships and grievances Katherine and Noah had endured in the past five

years, she felt irritated and conflicted.

Keith felt the same way too. His only family in the world were Jennifer and Katherine. So, when he

learned the truth, he naturally felt biased toward Katherine, his sister.

No one could bring themselves to break the silence. Thus, the atmosphere suddenly became tense

and heavy. The air seemed stagnant, and everyone in attendance was like frozen statues.

Joaquin stood rooted on the spot, and his breathing turned light as he waited for the verdict to fall. This

was the first time in his life that something could make him more nervous and anxious than being

inspected by his superiors.

Katherine sighed when she sensed the awkwardness hanging in the air and spoke softly, "Alright,

Grandma, Keith. We have already cleared the air about what happened five years ago, and I've

forgiven him for what he did. But things happened, and he didn't do it on purpose, nor did he intend to

hurt me. So, let’s just let bygones be bygones. We should focus on Noah's illness right now. She needs

us right now."

Jennifer and Keith pursed their lips upon the mention of Noah, and their expressions changed slightly.

Finally, Jennifer let out a long sigh, and her wrinkled face was full of helplessness and sorrow. "Well,

things happen for a reason. Who would have thought that you guys would meet in that bar five years

ago and that something so bizarre would happen? Even more unexpectedly, you guys were engaged

ages ago and are legally married. Noah is also the byproduct of that night. There are too many

coincidences between you to wave things away and force you apart. There is no right and wrong

regarding this matter."

"Grandma..." Joaquin was touched when he heard her words.

Nonetheless, she cut him off with an austere tone, "I'm going to ask you a question, and I expect you to

answer me truthfully. Can you do that?"

Joaquin nodded without hesitation. "Yes!"

"Everything that happened in the past was absurd, to say the least. So, I want to ask you, what are

your feelings toward Kathy?"

This is the one thing that bothered her the most. She desperately wanted to know how Joaquin viewed

his marriage with Katherine after knowing the truth.

Joaquin's usually calm and stern expression changed slightly when he heard the question, and he was

momentarily struck dumb.

Regardless, he immediately curled his lips into a genuine smile, and his expression practically radiated

sunshine and contentment. "Grandma, I understand your concerns. You are worried that I'm choosing

to be with Kathy because of the guilt I hold toward her. I can reassure you right now that you have

nothing to worry about. The moment I proposed to Kathy, I'd already made up my mind to love her and

adore her no matter who she was, what kind of woman she was, and what kind of status she had. She

will always be my wife, who I will cherish and love for the rest of my life."

At this point, he seemed to recall something, and his smile deepened. "Besides, I admit that I was a

little apprehensive before because I made an oath five years ago that I would never take that woman

for granted. Because of this, I struggled with my feelings for Kathy and that oath, but I could never bring

myself to hide my affection for Kathy. Later, when I learned that Kathy was the woman five years ago.

The woman I love and the one I wanted to protect are the same person… I feel very blessed by the

gods. I've never been one to believe in superstitions, but I can't deny that, at that moment, I felt truly

fortunate to have met and fallen for Kathy."