The Wrong Bride (The Windsors, #1)

by Catharina Maura

“It’s just…do you remember that night you got drunk, and I picked you up at the bar? You said something that night that I can’t get out of my mind. That night when I gave you your new tablet too, you mentioned working as an escape. You were clearly trying

get someone out of your system, and I need to know…are you over him now?” Her eyes widen, and then she looks away. “No,” she says, her smile bittersweet. My heart wrenches painfully, and I take a steadying breath. Raven’s eyes find mine, and she leans in, the back of her hand brushing over my cheek. “I don’t think I’ll ever get over you, Ares.” “What?” She chuckles and tilts her head, a vulnerable expression on her face. “It’s always been you. Maybe it’s wrong and fucked up, but I wanted you long before you were mine. I loved you long before I said I do.”

“I’m scared I’ll have to watch you fall for her all over again. I don’t want to watch

“I’m scared that just isn’t true. I’m scared I’ll lose you to her all over again. How do I compete with the child you’ll share? The bonds between you are endless, and no matter what angle I look at this from, I’m what stands between two people who have always loved each other. I was always just her stand-in, and she’s finally ready to take her place by your side. This is everything you’ve ever wanted.” I take a deep breath and look away, wishing I could take

back the words I just uttered. I hate it when

“But you have,” I snap, my eyes burning with unshed tears. “You have, and I’m terrified you’ll do it again. I barely survived it the first time, but it’ll destroy me this time around, Ares. I can’t do this again.” He cups my face with both hands and frowns. “What are you talking about?” “Sierra’s twenty-first birthday,” I whisper. “I…I came to your room at night. We’d both been drinking too much, but the drinks were exactly what I needed to gather my courage. At that point, we’d been informally engaged. Your grandmother and my parents had both agreed on it, but you and I hadn’t discussed it. We’d both just kind of been dancing around the subject, and you’d been treating me the same way you treated Sierra, the way you’d always treated me, with playful kindness and nothing more. I…I came to your room that night to ask what you thought of me and our engagement.”