Chapter 751
Chapter 752
Ten minutes later, Ben arrived at the pergola.
“Mr. Young-Johnson,” Zachary greeted as he stood up.
“I apologize for intruding.” With a flight back to Wiltspoon scheduled for tonight, Zachary steeled himself to approach Ben, knowing his time was limited.
Ben smiled warmly. “It’s no trouble at all. Please, have a seat, Mr. York p>
After Zachary sat down, Ben signaled to his brother, and Remy instructed the butler to bring out tea and snacks.
“How may I assist you, Mr. York p>
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Zachary replied, “Mr. Ben, it’s a personal matter. I need your advice because our marriage happened so quickly p>
Ben was taken aback; he had no idea that Zachary had married on such short notice.
Remy had never mentioned anything to the family about it.
Ben looked at Zachary in surprise.
It was hard to believe that someone as reserved as Zachary would opt for a whirlwind marriage.
“How long have you been married? Have you developed feelings for your wife?” Ben already suspected he knew the answer.
If Zachary were not genuinely in love, he wouldn’t be seeking Ben’s counsel so soon after the wedding.
“We’ve been married for three months. She saved my grandmother’s life, and my family wanted to show their appreciation. My grandmother seems to have taken a liking to her, especially since there haven’t been many daughters or granddaughters in our family p>
After a brief pause, Zachary added, “You could say my family is similar to yours; we have more boys than girls p>
official member of the family p>
Zachary’s thoughts drifted back to his nana’s persistent pleas, which ultimately led him to sign the marriage papers. “Out of all my brothers and cousins, except for the youngest two, anyone could have married her. But Nana specifically chose me for the task. I refused, of course. I was furious. I believed she was scheming to use my nana’s gratitude as a way to secure wealth and power. Nana insisted that this was entirely her own idea.
“I didn’t want to hear any of it and firmly decided she was a gold digger. I warned Nana repeatedly not to be deceived, but she wouldn’t listen. As the matriarch, she insisted that I marry her p>
The days leading up to the wedding were incredibly frustrating for Zachary. His nana was relentless in her pursuit of what she wanted. With her sights set on Serenity, she repeatedly drilled into Zachary the notion that he could repay Serenity’s life-saving kindness through marriage. His refusal would only brand him as an ungrateful grandson, a fact she emphasized repeatedly.
Zachary, raised in privilege, felt that his nana’s coercion would only tarnish his image of Serenity further.
Remy served tea to Zachary and his brother before pouring himself a cup. He enjoyed the canapés and savored the tea as Zachary vented.
“So, you ultimately agreed to marry her?” Ben inquired.
Zachary nodded. “My nana called me ungrateful, so I felt I had no choice but to marry her.
“I told Serenity the day we got our marriage license that we should keep our marriage a secret since it wasn’t born out of love. I didn’t mention that I’m the heir of the York family p>
Ben looked at him with a mixture of surprise and understanding.
Zachary was keeping quiet about his true identity, similar to how he had previously been dishonest with Jane.