The Wrong Bride (The Windsors, #1)

by Catharina Maura

“I can’t believe that asshole,” Sierra says as she storms into my office.

Lol. Oh? Gee, i wonder whom she could be complaining about...

Sierra is the only woman alive who continuously gets away with that, and I doubt she even realizes that the only reason that happens is because he lets her.

Lmaooo...the man does more than that, he actively helps her. Lmaoo, aahh man. He's so down bad for her.

My phone buzzes and I reach for it absentmindedly, freezing when I read the caller ID. Ares.

I lowkey like the name Ares. Idk why, its just really pretty. *adds to list of boy names.*

It’s always been Hannah he loved. From the moment she walked into his life, she’s been all he could see.

Aahhh. I get it now, she likes him, he likes the older sister. I get it

Ares knows he has to marry someone of our grandma’s choosing…but the one she initially chose for him wasn’t Hannah. It was you.”

Ohhh. I didn’t know that. Hmmm, nice.

You would never understand what it’s like to be an actress. All you need to do is stand still and look pretty all day. It isn’t the same for Hannah.

Ouch. Damn mom.

“I’m sorry,” Mom says, her voice strained. “The wedding has put so much pressure on me, and I took it out on you. I’m sorry, Raven.

Mmmmm, well well. At least she apologized but mmmm, im not sure. I didn’t like what she said.

“You aren’t staying for dinner?” “No. I’m shooting early tomorrow.” Mom nods. “Oh, good. Don’t want to look too fat in your maid-of-honor dress either.”

Ok bitch, im officially over you. WTF?! You’re suppose to be her mother !

This. This is why I keep coming home, despite my mother’s attitude. Because Dad is right. Deep down, they do love me.

I like your dad. I too am a daddys girl. But also, he needs to stand up for you more.

I tense involuntarily and narrow my eyes at Lexington. Since when does he think Raven is beautiful? She’s always been like a little sister to all of us. Has the way he sees her changed?

I love that Lex is causing his brother grief. He always knows wassup w/ them and their true feelings. Lmaoo.

Lex chuckles at me, his gaze unreadable. “Tell Raven I said hi, will you?” I nod, knowing I’ll do no such thing.

Lmaaaooo. Lex is such a menance

just haven’t found a guy that can keep me captivated. I’m not willing to settle for anything short of complete devotion. I want epic love, and I’m willing to wait for it.”

Period. Absolutely.

We won’t work with him again, and let it be known that any actor or actress who works with him will never work with Windsor Media again. The same goes for anyone who gives him funding.”

Damn. Bro is blacklisted. Gots to be mo careful.

“Did you ever even give a fuck about her?” I snap. He laughs, the sound grating. “I did, and I still do. My wife and I both love Raven as though she’s family, and we always will.”

You know Silas, your Book is sounding better more and more.

“By the way, you should probably know that Raven has unknowingly had my protection for years now—for free. You just paid one hell of a premium just to keep men’s advances at bay,

Lmaaaooo.well well. Im gonna have to read Silas book for sure ! Yeesss Silas !

I can vividly remember the sounds coming from Hannah’s bedroom. Our rooms are right next to each other, and both of our beds are pressed against the same wall. I heard them together, all night.

Ouch.😬.. that’s gotta hurt man. Damn. Omg, I’m kinda sad for you.

I sigh when I find my sister asleep on my kitchen floor, clutching a block of cheese that she’s clearly taken a big bite out of. What’s wrong with both of my girls tonight?

Lmaaaooooo. Girl not on the floor. Been there. And awwwwwww, he said my girrllssss

“In vino veritas,” he tells me. In wine lies the truth. Yeah, that certainly is true for me. I nearly spilled all my secrets because I had too much to drink.

Thats how it goes sometimes darling.

I groan as my lips come crashing down on hers roughly. I’ve been wanting to taste her for longer than I dare to admit, and this kiss is everything I thought it’d be and more.

So clearly you both wanted each other at some point until l her sister came into the picture...so WTF happened ??

undress her slowly, my heart pounding in a way it never has before. I need her with a desperation foreign to me, but I’m scared to fuck this up. If we do this, I need it to be perfect for her.

Awwwww, and this is the dream you've been having for yeeeaarrssss...again i ask, WTF happened ? What changed ?

“Marry me,” I whisper. “I know my grandmother and your parents have already agreed on it, but you and I have never spoken about it. Raven, will you marry me?”

Damn. All of this happened and yet it still doesnt answer myy qestions...ugghhh. The fact that he still dreams about it..is wild. This clearly happened and he’s just relieving it.

This fucking dream again. It’s tormented me for years now. I might not remember much of Sierra’s twenty-first birthday, but I remember the morning after. And it wasn’t Raven I woke up to—it was Hannah.

GASP ! Thats why she begged you to talk to your grandma and ask to marry her instead of Raven...oh that sneaky bitch ! She knew how you felt about Rven all long. Daammnnnn.

I might love Ares, but I have no intention of accepting her sloppy seconds.

And thats on period !

“So long as it’s within my power, there’s nothing I won’t give you, Raven. No matter what you ask, it’s yours—and that includes me.”

Whew...welp...here we go...i guess.

“This is it,” I whisper. “From this moment forward, you’re my wife. Mine to care for, mine to cherish, and mine to protect. I know this isn’t what you wanted for yourself, but I swear I’ll give you my all, Raven.”

Welp....so that happened. Idk why i expected more tears or anger or something. I know i would be pissed the entire time.

She’s my wife now, and I have every intention of treating her as such. This kiss is a vow, it’s reassurance. From this day forward, I’m hers. It isn’t what she wanted, but we’ll make the best of it.

Awwwww. Thats nice.

“But you should know that I don’t want her hand-me-downs. I don’t want to be surrounded by the remains of your relationship with her.

Thats feally gotta fuck with yo mental man. Smh, i feel so bad for Raven right now.

I once told one of my close friends that if I ever thought I had a chance with the man I love, I’d give it my all, and I’d fight dirty if I had to. This is it. This is my chance.

Well go get yo man girl !.

“How could you marry my fiancé?” she asks in disbelief. “How could you possibly agree to marry someone who will never love you? Why would you do this to me, Raven?

The audacity this girl has is baffling . Smdh. You dump him and then doubled down and gambled that they wouldn't move forward..this is your consequence..get over it.

Seeing Hannah made me feel even worse. I’ve planned a future with her for so long, yet now I’m married to her sister.

You've been dreaming of Raven for years while at the same time planning a future w/ her sister ??? Smdh...confused

For at least the next three years, Raven will be my wife. She told me she didn’t want to live in Hannah’s shadow, and I need to ensure that she doesn’t.

Thats right ! Remodel and redecorate that house man.

“You selfish little girl,” she snaps. “You’ll never change, will you? You will never have it in you to be the bigger person. Can’t you see that this is going to ruin your relationship with your sister?

Woooooow...annndddd were bck to mama bitch.

Why can’t I ever be anyone’s priority? What makes me so undeserving of that? Why can I never measure up against Hannah in my parents’ eyes? In Ares’s eyes? What is it that she’s got and I’ll never have? Why is my best never enough?

Oh sweetie. This is sad thinking. Don’t think like that. I feel so awful for her.😔

“It’s just too much, Ares. I feel…I feel so unwanted. So unloved. I just…I feel like a failure, like no matter what I do, I won’t ever be what anyone wants me to be.

Smsh. uuuugghhhh, I hate this for you Raven. No one deserves to feel these things. Especially not you. You’re too sweet for this.

should be heartbroken over the way my relationship with Hannah ended, and perhaps I should be somewhat resentful about my marriage with Raven, but I’m not, and I’m not sure why.

Boy please........you know why.

You better believe I’d be pissed as fuck if you were going around calling your ex, so yeah, I did do something wrong. If it’s not behavior I’d accept from you, it isn’t something I should be doing myself.

Yeesssss. We like this. Good job.

I sigh as I upload all my photos with family and friends to the cloud before navigating to my settings and pausing on the factory reset button.

And while we at, BLOCK HANNAH TOO !.

I don’t want to be petty and jealous, but I can’t help myself. I don’t want anything related to our marriage to be tied to her,

Thats fair. I wouldnt either.

The whole world thinks you’re this sweet and innocent woman. What would they think if they knew how much you’re loving the way I’m fucking your face?”

Teehee.🤭

I nod, never taking my lips off his cock. “Finger yourself for me, Raven. I want to see you riding your own hand while I fuck your hot little mouth.”

Oop-....the mouth on you Ares.👀🤭

“How could you!” she yells. “How could you post something like that, Raven? You did that on purpose, you fucking bitch. You’re trying to come between Ares and me, aren’t you?”

Guurrrllllll, hang it uuuupppppp....sweetie. He was mine first if you wannabe technical…you stole him from me..but life always balances out. 💁🏽‍♀️

Raven steels her spine and stares at her sister. “I’m trying to come between you and…my husband?” Well, fuck.

Periooodddd. Let her stupid ass know Raven ! Lmaoo. Hold on cause Raven ate that !👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

“Don’t think I never noticed the way you always looked at him, Raven. The only reason I never said anything was because I knew he’d never want you—not when he could have me.

Mmmmmmmm...oh word ? Knock that hoe in her head Ravennnnnnn

“Raven,” I murmur. “I’m sorry. She shouldn’t have said all that. I think she’s just been having a hard time with everything that’s going on. You know her heart is in the right place, right? She’s just hurting and lashing out.”

Dont defend that bitch Ares...shes selfish is what she is. Manipulative. And just mean. And just annoying all around.

“Don’t,” she says, her voice trembling. “Don’t defend her like that, Ares. It kills me when you do that, can’t you see?

This part❗️

“Listen to me,” he pleads. “You’ve been ignoring my calls all day. I can’t take this, baby. This is not what I want our marriage to be like, okay? Didn’t we promise to communicate?

Hhhmmmmmmm...he has a point. Its important to talk and be honest...

“You told me you want happiness of your own, and I swear that I’ll try my best to give you that if you’ll give me a chance. Will you, Raven? Will you give me a chance?”

Mmmmmmm....iddkkkk. You gotta do better Ares. Put all that shit aside with Hannah🙄 and step up more with your wife ! Make her feel secured and loved in your marriage. And not just with sex !

“It means that I want more than just your body. I want a chance to prove that I truly do want it all with you, the past be damned. I want a chance to win your heart,”

Mmmmmmm, I like it❗️🤭 Im down for it, let’s do it baby. ♥️

I glance down at my phone, ignoring Hannah’s text messages as I walk into my house. Ever since I asked her to leave, she’s been texting me incessantly,

I dont understand why you havent blocked her number yet ?!??????🤦🏾‍♀️ Why does she still have an access to you ?! Lets get it together please...EXPEDITIOUSLY !

“Hannah,” I murmur. “It isn’t my intention to hurt you, but I made my boundaries very clear. Things will never be the same again between you and me. There’s no going back to what we used to have,

This bitch is truly persistent. I’ll give her that.