They almost got away with it.
Ready to make their romance official six years in, Beyoncé and Jay-Z had set a date (April 4, a nod to their shared love of the number four and their Sept. 4 and Dec. 4 birthdays) and an ultra-exclusive, VIPs-only location: His seventh-floor 13,500-square-foot penthouse in New York City’s spendy Tribeca neighborhood.
She had a dress; he chose a tux and, with a whole team at their disposal, the 51-time Grammy winners the very definition of a power couple, it was easy enough to pull together the flowers, the DJ, the tent and all sundry wedding requisites.
There was just one small—but very crucial—detail that needed tending to.
Trying to quietly procure the necessary marriage license just ahead of the 24-hours-before deadline, they traveled to Scarsdale, N.Y., some 25 miles north of his city digs, on April 1 in hopes of flying under the radar.