Falling for the Billionaire

Keeping in mind how hard my heart was pounding in my chest, I wouldn't be surprised if it leapt out of the cavity any moment now. To say I was having a mild panic attack would seem as though I was exaggerating, but only I knew how terrified I felt inside.

As we slowly ascended, the imbalance in my ear was beginning to grab my attention now. I was too focused on minding my breathing to even bother grabbing a hold of my ear plugs that were inside my purse.

I should've known better than to travel alone. Especially when I was well aware of my qualms when it came to flying in an airplane.

In a desperate attempt to keep my mind off things for a while, I closed my eyes and pondered upon the thoughts that first arrived in my mind.

Back in high school, I was always sure what I wanted to be and who I wanted to be with. But like all of my other plans, they were put to trial. I no longer wished for them now. These days, I just wished for small things to happen.

Coming home to my family and talking to them about my day, celebrating Christmas and Thanksgiving with close friends and family, accompanying my dad for his general medical check-ups - these were the few things that I knew I wished for the most at this point in my life.

I wished my job didn’t consume most of my time.

Pursing acting wasn’t easy for me. I had taken drama major and studied in acting school in London. After I graduated in high school, I left LA for the best and never came back until it was most necessary.

It had been seven years since I last saw my friends together. I met them separately and mostly bumped into each other in parties. I had missed most of their weddings too, because I didn’t want to see him.

It was seven years ago that I last saw the former love of my life. Ethan. The name I would never forget. He was my first love, of course. And also, my only love. We had a beautiful life together. We loved each other so much, despite the rivalry between my him and my brother. I loved him so much that even now, seven years post my heartbreak, I couldn’t manage to lose my heart to another man.

The day of our graduation was probably the last time I ever looked at him directly. For the past seven years, I’ve kept myself away from him. But seldom did that work well for me. No matter how hard I tried, I would always know about how he’s doing from various sources. My friends would randomly talk about him with me and how he’s coping with our breakup.

Although it had been seven years since we broke up, I couldn’t forgive him for doing what he did. I didn’t find it within myself to have the heart to let go of everything he did and bounce back in time and be with him.

In these seven years, I grew to become an actress, the profession I had always dreamt of taking up. It was probably the only thing from my teenage years that remained concrete in my wish list.

I didn’t want to be like the actresses who would sign every movie that's offered to them - I wanted to do the films that genuinely intrigued me and made me feel like it was a story that had to be told. It was perhaps this notion of mine that worked well for me in the box office.

My friends have always made plans for me to join them on their reunions, but I never showed up because Ethan would be coming there too. He loved his friends and he would not just skip on the reunions because I was going there too. Most of my friends got married, and few are with kids. Apparently, it was just me who was still single and trying to get over her last break up.

Ethan took over his father’s business when he was really young, right out of college. Now, he's twenty-five and from what I knew, he was too good at his job. I had never doubted his abilities - I knew how versatile he was and given any circumstance, he is the kind of person that you can count on to bring a solution. He is the man in the storm. And all the appreciation he was subjected to since he took over the company was completely justified.

Being one of the eligible bachelors in the world, he was always seen hooking up with girls, but he never had a serious relationship with anyone.

I had never paid more attention to him after I learned that he was going to get married in a few weeks. I heard of his engagement and that he was not revealing his wedding date to anyone. He was going to have a private wedding with his fiancé. No one even knew who the girl was.

After knowing it, I felt foolish to ever think he was stuck up on me like I was on him. He moved on and even agreed for a wedding with someone. It was almost heart breaking for me to know that the only guy I ever loved was getting married to someone else.

I blocked every source that would make me aware of what was happening in his life. It’s been a week since I uninstalled every app in my mobile just so I could know nothing about him. I went to Malaysia for a long vacation alone and took my time in relaxing since I didn’t have any work.

I was going to start the filming of my next movie after a few weeks, so I had very little time for myself. Right now, I was flying to Manhattan to attend one of my friend’s wedding. She was my college friend in London, and we used to hang out together. She was a really close friend of mine, but we drifted apart after being away from each other after we graduated. But when she told me just a week ago that she was going to get married, I knew that I wouldn't miss it for the world. At least for old times' sake.

She was 24 too and owned a boutique of her own. Although she dreamt of being an actress, she didn’t actually hold onto that dream for long. While I flowed the path I always wanted to choose, she let her mind sway her passions.

I shook the thoughts off my head as my body yearned for rest. Acting on instinct, I let sleep take over my mind.

***

I entered the villa where Lindsey called me. It was a small cozy house, with numerous plants and trees around. The white marble glistened amongst the pink flowers and ribbons with which it was decorated. I smiled to myself at the beautiful sight and went inside. I quickly spotted the room which read BRIDE in italics on a black plate.

“Look who’s here!” I announced my arrival and rushed into the room with one of my brightest smiles. But much to my dismay, my smile wavered away as soon as I saw the sight of the room and a weeping Lindsey in the middle of it.

The wedding gown was discarded on the floor, the white cloth making a pool of itself. The jeweler was carelessly thrown on the bed, along with the other make up products. Numerous pairs of shoes and gloves were scattered on the floor along with few more clothes.

Lindsey looked relieved as soon as she realized that it was me. It felt as though the blood drained from her face upon realizing that someone just walked in when she was all deranged. When her eyes found mine, tears ran down her swollen cheeks.

“Lindsey, what's wrong?” I asked as soon as I steadied her by her shoulder. Her shoulders were shaking uncontrollably, and I had to pressed my palms tighter so as to stop her shaking body.

“I’m so glad you came,” Lindsey spoke through her wobbling lips. “I really needed you.”

“Tell me what the matter is,” I spoke impatiently. I’ve never witnessed any bride cry like that before her wedding. What was wrong with her? “Why is there no one in here? And where is the wedding happening?”

“In the backyard.” She wobbled. “Skylar, I don’t want this marriage.”

Her words didn’t surprise me. I was kind of looking forward to her saying this. When the girl who was expected to get married stayed in her room in a deranged state, one would get the hint that she wasn’t interested in the wedding.

“I begged my father to not do this, I told him I was in love with someone else. That’s why he called for the wedding early.” She said, wiping her eyes with the hands. “Skylar, I don’t love Parker. He isn’t the one for me. I love someone else.”

“Lindsey, listen to me.” I said, trying to cool her down. “I know that you don’t want this to happen, but it is too late. Stay here any longer and people will come looking for you. So, it's better if you call your father and explain it to him before things get out of hand."

“I’m not going in there.” She said, removing my hands from her shoulders. “I’m not going to get married to someone I don’t love.”

"I'm not asking you to get married. I'm asking you to discuss it with-"

“I’m going to run away.”

My jaw almost dropped on the floor when she said that. “What?”

“I don’t have a choice.” She said. “Please Skylar, you need to understand this.”

“I can’t let you make a mistake you’ll regret for life.” I said, trying to shake some sense into her.

“I’m not going to regret it.” She said.

“You will.” I said. “Do you think running away solves the problem? It's just a temporary escape!"

“Skylar, I’m already in love with someone else. Do you think my father will listen to the end of it? He will force my hand in marriage and Parker will gladly take it."

I sighed and shook my head.

“What do you think I’ve been doing for the past one month? I begged Parker too, but he was too arrogant to even consider my feelings. He wants this business deal as much as I want.”

“But there are so many guests in here. So many close friends and business associates of both the families are here. What if the word gets around that you ran away?”

“I don’t care.” She said. “Maybe my father deserves the humiliation he’s going to get after I run away.”

We heard footsteps trailing towards us. I sucked in a deep breath. Lindsey widened her eyes at me. “Skylar, they’re coming for me.”

“Lindsey...”

“Please help me run away.” She said. “Please Skylar, it’s my life.”

“Lindsey!” Someone banged on the door. Thank god I locked it when I entered.

“I’m running. Please. Help me.” She said.

She was literally begging me to save her life from being pushed into an unwanted marriage. What kind of friend would I be if I ruined her life when I could do something about it?

“Hurry up, Lindsey.” I said, urging her to leave. “I’ll cover up for you.”

She hugged me tightly one time before leaving. “Thank you so much, Skylar. I can never forget this favor from you.”

I nodded and watched her leave through the windows. I didn’t know how she was going to escape from all the security. The pounding on the door grew harder as I hurried to the windows. Lindsey had a car waiting for her, so she quickly got into it and drove away.

I was taken aback as the door blasted open. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I turned around.

My breath hitched in my throat when I looked at the man before me. The same grey eyes, but this time, they grew darker than ever.

“Ethan?”

His otherwise warm eyes, that had always reminded me of how much he loved me, had turned intolerably dark. Visibly paled, he breathed out in disbelief.

“Skylar Summers.”

It almost felt like a dream. There was something inside of me that hoped for it all to be a one of all the other nightmares I had of I meeting him again in an absurd situation, and then waking up to reality where it would just vanish away like air. But it also was so hard to regard as a dream. I was so aware of all the things that were playing through my mind that I have confined to my heart to until this moment.

How could everything that happened around seven years ago just come crashing into my mind like it just happened yesterday? How could just one glance at him stir those deep buried emotions to come back to the surface, brimming with the same level of anticipation. I remained rooted in my place and let the situation take control of it.

My mind was constantly trying to escape to all the past times I’ve spent with him together, with a combination of eventful days that we’ve been through and the pictures of him flashing across like that’s all I could think of at that time. Like my entire life depended on reliving all the emotions and moments that I shared with him.

Was every breakup in the world so heavy on everyone? Did everyone else feel the same that I’m feeling when they met their former love of their life that they broke up with almost a decade ago?

“What the hell are you even doing here instead of my fiancé?” He asked, his voice recuperating from the shock that he received upon laying his eyes on me.

“Lindsey.” I stammered. Where was all the vocabulary inside of my head vanish to? “She ran away.”

It felt so ridiculous to even talk about it. Why was I here in the first place? Why was I being questioned on someone else’s behalf? Why did his looks seem so accusing?

“She ran away?” He widened his eyes at me, his jaw ticking. He approached me in hasty steps and came close enough for me to listen to him whisper in a dangerous tone. “What the hell do you mean by she ran away? We’re supposed to get married in fifteen minutes.”

“Why are you asking me?” I said, raising my voice at him. “Shouldn’t you be asking yourself how you failed to understand that she never wanted this marriage?”

“Her father made a deal with me in return of marrying his daughter off. She knew it and she had no choice!”

“That’s exactly why she ran. Because neither of you would understand her.” I defended her. It was not the concern or love that I had for Lindsey that had me fighting for her. It was probably the urge and the wanting to contradict him that was making me oppose him in everything he said.

“Why the hell are you even here?” He asked me. “Did you know I was getting married?”

“I would have never stepped in a mile radius if I knew you were the one who she was getting married to.” I spat on his face.

His face grew grim and I could sense him heating up. I wasn’t under the control when I was saying it. It took all of my energy to sustain my cool and talk to him like a civil person.

“You shouldn’t have helped her run away.” he said. “You put me in deep trouble.”

“I don’t care about it; you aren’t exactly a man without a tainted name in public opinion.” I said.

“This is not the time for me to fight with you.” he said. “I’m going to send my men to fetch Lindsey.”

“You won’t find her.” I said to him. “I think you can never make it back with her even if you use every power within your reach to bring her back.”

He cursed out loud and broke the vase that rested on the table. The look on his face was murderous and I had to step back in an instinct. I never saw him this pissed and angry. Back when I knew him, he had his anger in control. He never let it on me in a way that would scare me. But I always heard how things changed him through the years.

I remembered my friends telling me how he turned into a ruthless businessman that sees nothing but profit in everything. And that when he was angry, he was uncontrollable.

“Every time you came into my life, you ruined me.” He said. “You ruined everything that I had seven years ago. You ruined the little good inside of me, the part I preserved for someone I love and now you came back to ruin the only piece of hope I was clinging onto. You are at the verge of ruining my career with your stupid revenge plan on getting back to me for what I did to you years ago.”

“This is not a revenge.” I stated. “I would never waste a penny on you or on something that isn’t valuable for me.”

Hurt flashed across his eyes before he masked it quickly. “What a foolish woman you grew to be.”

“You left your impact on me before leaving.” I said.

His eyes grew darker with every comeback I was coming with. “You certainly should be worried of the consequences of ruining my marriage.”

“I’m glad I stopped a friend from ruining her life.” I said.

His smirk played on his face. “How would you ever save yourself from that?”

I frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I have the most important businessmen waiting for me to get married at the altar. And if the news of the bride running away breaks out, my life will be ruined.”

“I don’t care about anything that concerns you.” I said. “I would rather be glad to see you breaking into pieces right before my eyes.”

“You have no clue what you’re getting yourself into, Skylar.” He stated. “I wonder if your feisty mouth is ever going to beat what I’m about to say.”

“You’re quite foolish for someone that’s going to have their career ruined in a few minutes.”

He smirked. “I’m not having my life ruined, Skylar. If anyone’s going to get their life ruined, it’s probably you.”

I frowned at him. “What are you talking about?”

“Now, I can’t afford to lose my dignity in front of the people, now can I?” He said, with a wicked look. “Which means, I shall get married today. By hook or by crook.”

“And how would that ever be possible without a bride?” I snorted.

“I do have a bride, Skylar.” He said, leaning closer to me. “Because I’m going to marry you.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I had no reason to cast myself another look in the mirror, but I did it anyway. And as I lingered there for a while, the reflection of my figure faded into thin air and instead, images from my life began to play before my eyes.

If this was the universe that planned my life, then it did a bloody great job.

When I was young, so young to even remember my age, I lost my family in a separation my parents had. While the divorce built a permanent gap between my parents, it also separated my twin, Nick and me, who had to live with either of the parents. While I stayed behind with my mom, Nick chose my dad.

With the years, our frequent visits came down as did our daily calls. Misunderstandings grew to a point where complete ignorance of each other seemed like a better option. We only met after my mother eloped with one of her lovers leaving me alone for my father to take in.

I moved to LA to be with my brother and father, in other words, the only family I had left. Things started to get better between us, and we finally were leading a comfortable life with each other. That was when I fell in love with Ethan Parker.

He was rude, notorious and also the biggest rival of my brother. His friends and my friends never got along. They had their rivalry going on since the longest time I could ever think of. Things turned different when we started off our relationship as a pretentious one, which later transformed to be real. My friends fell in love with his, and I, with him.

When things turned great for all of us, and when everyone was ready to let go of their rivalry, something so terrible had to happen that separated Ethan and me forever. The gap that formed between us was so huge that we hadn’t met each other until now.

I masked my face with the veil before Ethan could notice my tears. I knew for certain that nothing could change his mind. He absolutely hated me. Which led me to believe that, maybe, it wouldn't matter to him if he called the wedding off, and perhaps, he was doing this because he had found an excuse to hurt me.

Of course, he would never agree with that. But I know for certain that he would go to an extent as that if he knew that getting married to him was the last thing I wanted.

"Are you done?"

I nodded in response. And there he stood in all his glory with not even a worried crease disturbing the calm aura around me. His nonchalance almost created a ripple of frustration within me.

I couldn’t help but remind myself why I had ever agreed to marry him. The words he used to instigate me into marrying him still sounded so fresh in my mind. How he had given me an ultimatum and declared that he would do everything in his power to ruin my life, and if he had to, he would even let the world know that I helped destroy his marriage.

I was well aware of him and how he worked. I knew that he meant every single word he said and that he wouldn't hesitate before making it all come true.

But the question was, did I have the power to fight back? No.

Did I have the will to fight back? Yes.

But I knew all too well that I stood no chance against him in this battle. He rendered me powerless and I knew that I was utterly helpless right then. I simple had no choice but to obey him.

He was capable of putting me in a mess that I could never come out of. He was also capable of ruining the career I had always dreamt of having. It all seemed worth the marriage. Even if I had no clue whether I was ever going to come out of it.

I closed my eyes and tried not to think about how the world would react to this news. How would my brother take this news? How would my friends take this news? How could I ever explain things to the media? It worked for Ethan as he never disclosed who his bride was. It was a surprise even to the people who came to visit the wedding here. The odds were definitely on his side today.

I had my wedding veil over my face, which provided a very unclear image of my face. My hair color matched with Lindsey’s, so it was a plus. I wore the exact same wedding gown she was supposed to be wearing. I had put my face down most of the time, until we reached the altar.

The wedding procedure began as soon as we came since we were already running late. I didn’t care about what the priest was saying since I tried my best to hide my face from Lexi, Ethan’s sister, who surely found me familiar. Our vows were exchanged sooner than we thought, and then came that moment.

I wasn’t ready to bring back all of my burnt feelings with a single kiss that was essential to bind our marriage. But I also had no say in this. With my consent or not, the groom has to kiss the bride. As soon as the priest asked us to seize our marriage, Ethan hesitated just like I did. But he also realized that with every passing second, he was creating more speculations.

He held me by my waist and planted his lips on me.

It was a strong force that glued us together and neither of us dared to move. We remained rooted in our place due to the impact. I couldn't speak for him, but I knew well what I was feeling inside.

It was as though I had untied the knot to the memories I had deep buried down. The ones that haunted me every night when I slept, every time I tried to move on and every time, I tried to let someone else into my life. I felt as though I had been chained to them, and now, right now, I was finally getting rid of them.

I felt liberated.

Because, just for a moment, whilst his kiss transcended me away from reality, I let go of all the qualms I had previously had and claimed what I had been yearning for the past seven years.

I hated him, but I also needed him. I had never loved anyone the way that I loved him, which was why he was the only thing I have ever wanted so intensely in my entire life.

***

The news spread around like wildfire. After the wedding was over, Ethan cancelled all of the further events since he wanted to call for an important family meeting. There was not even a single soul that didn’t look surprised upon seeing the girl Ethan married.

“Where the hell is my daughter?” Lindsey’s father, Luke demanded from Ethan.

“Shouldn’t I be asking you where my fiancé was when I went to fetch her at her room?” Ethan replied, shunning everyone with his dangerously low voice.

“What are you talking about?”

“She eloped with her lover." He said, "Leaving me with no choice but to marry the first woman I could find in her room before this wedding could become a scandal."

“We had a deal that you’d marry my daughter!” Luke yelled at Ethan, looking at me with a disgust. “How could you marry this wench after giving me your word?”

“Hey, watch your words.” Jen, my best friend, said to him, coming to stand beside.

I was surprised to have her by my side at a situation like this. Although it was a complete shock for my friends to find me married to Ethan, Jen has managed to keep her senses.

“Luke, if there is anyone we should be talking about, it’s probably you.” Ethan’s dad said, defending his son. “I’m sure my son was obliged to take this step for the mistake your daughter made.”

“If anything,” June, Ethan’s mom said, “It’s us that should be angry with you."

“I won’t let you get away with this.” Luke said, looking at me with a warning.

“Let’s talk about this outside, Luke.” Ethan’s father said, leading Luke, June and himself outside.

As soon as they left, it was just Ethan, our friends and I that were left in the room. Ethan walked to the window and gazed out of it, leaving me alone answerable to my friends. I looked over at Jen who unconsciously had her arm on mine.

“It was probably eight months ago that I last saw you.” Jen said, an emotionless expression plastered on her face.

“And one and a half for me.” Stella, another one of my friends said. Stella was one of my best friends from high school, and her husband Ben, was Ethan’s best buddy. Back in high school, they hated each other to the core. And I was the cupid between them and brought them together. They completely surprised us by bringing two little girls into this world before they graduated from college.

“I don’t even remember my last time. Was it seven years ago?” Lexi, Ethan’s sister asked.

“Guys.” I said, helplessly looking at my guy friends, Tyler, Ben, Zac, Jordan, Drake and Kyle.

“Don’t.” Tyler said, “We’re blaming this on you, Skylar.”

“You knew I could not meet you guys.” I said, helplessly.

“Why?” Lana asked, “Because you didn’t want to meet Ethan?”

“That surely isn’t a valid reason seeing how you had other plans with him.” Lucy said.

“Can we please not talk about this now?” Ethan’s gruff voice made its way to us.

“Oh, shut up, you dick!” Jordan said, “If there is someone I should be questioning, then it’s probably you!”

“You’re blaming this on me?” Ethan growled.

“Of course, we are!” Tyler said, “You really are a dick to force your ex-girlfriend to marry you as a substitute.”

“Don’t look at me like I had a choice.” He said.

“Of course, you had!” Lexi said. “You could have called this wedding off! You didn’t take an oath that you’d just get married today like your life depended on it. Heck, you shouldn’t be doing it even if your life depended on it.”

“And then what, make a laughingstock out of myself?” He asked her. "Do you have any idea how big of a price I would have had to pay had a scandal like that happened at this point in my life? I'm drowning, Lexi, I'm barely surviving, and I couldn't take another risk."

“But you had no right to bring Skylar into your mess. She doesn't deserve this.” Lucy said.

Ethan growled in frustration and left the room, leaving the silence with a loud bang of the door.

“Guys, shut up,” Lana said, “It's too far gone, we can't do anything now!”

“So, you just want us to ignore the fact that our friends who have been hating each other for seven years just got into a forced and fake marriage?” Jordan asked his girlfriend, which earned him a glare.

“No.” She said, “I mean, look on the brighter side, we all wanted Ethan and Skylar to be together, didn’t we?”

She looked with a bright grin at everyone.

“See, it worked. They’re not just together, they’re now married. I mean, isn’t this cool?”

“You see good in everything, darling.” Jordan said, in a sarcastic tone. “Do you think that’s how Nick is going to be when he learns about this?”

“Oh, Nick cannot control Skylar’s life.” Jen said.

“Yes, but at least Skylar should be doing that for herself right? What happens when he knows that she was forced to marry his one huge rival?” Tyler said.

“We shouldn’t be worrying about Nick right now. We should look at the issue at hand. We need to resolve our problem at hand now.” Stella said.

“Which problem are you talking about?” I asked her.

The girls looked at Stella while she just wriggled her eyebrows at them. The girls beamed as though they understood what they meant. The guys just smirked and left the room, getting the hint from them - leaving me in utter confusion.

“Really Skylar, you were the one that initiated the conversations through eyes. How can you not get what we are thinking about?” Jen said, trying to hide her smirk.

“Please, it’s not like I’m in a mood to deal with all of it when I can hardly figure out what my life is going to be like.” I said, groaning in frustration.

“Fine, I’ll give you a clue.” Lana said, “Why did you think I was excited to marry Kyle?”

“Because you love him.” I answered.

“Not that, silly,” She said. “I mean, why is any woman excited for a wedding?”

“Because she can dress up and not think about looking over-dressed.” I said.

“Right,” Lucy smiled. “now, why is a guy always excited for wedding?”

“Correction,” I said, “The guy is more excited for what happens after the wedding.”

The girls smirked together and wriggled their eyebrows at me. Realization dawned upon me and my mouth hung open. The blood from my face drained when I realized what they had in store or us this night.

“Don’t you dare go any further with your plans.” I warned each of them.

“Oh yea, can you really stop us from doing it?” Jen asked, teasingly.

"I can't believe. I am crying here that my life just turned upside down and you're bothered about my wedding night?" I cried out. “Please don’t make things any more difficult for me."

“Things will become easy for you after this, trust the expert on this matter.” Jen said, giving me one last glance before leaving me in a mess.

Ethan’s POV

“You know you don’t have to be a jerk to her for what happened seven years ago, right?” Lexi asked me as I hugged her goodbye. Skylar was talking privately with my parents while Lexi pulled me to a side for a quick chat. Our friends have planned something for the night, and I knew what was running through their minds. But I won’t let that happen.

“Is that all you’ve got to say?” I asked her.

“If you married someone else, I would’ve asked you to better be careful with your wife. But now, I insist on asking you to handle her with care and to not be a jerk.”

“I’m old enough to know when to be a jerk.” I replied.

“Exactly, but still you act like the most stupid person I ever knew in my life.” Lexi teased me.

“Lexi.” I warned her.

“See,” Lexi said, looking at me in the eye. Her voice became serious and gone was the playful tone she was using. “I know why you did what you did. I also know that you were forced to marry Skylar and that you can do nothing about it now. Even if you plan for a divorce, you still have plenty of time to spend alongside each other and fulfil your part. And if you’re just going to be the stubborn man that you were when you let her go seven years ago, things won’t be great for either of you.”

“You can just expect me to forget what happened seven years ago and move on and get back to being head over heels for her.” I said.

“I’m not asking you to forget any of it. Because it is important in your relationship. You have been through separations so many times and I don’t want this to be one among them. You need to understand a thing here, you made this decision for both of you although you didn’t have any other choice. But it will always be harder on her because she was not supposed to be paying for what her friend did. And you can’t hurt her anymore.”

“Being away from the girl I’ve always loved was not easy for me.” I said, “She accused me of something that I didn’t have control of and chose to let me go. She wasn’t ready to hear me out when I tried to explain and chose to break up with me. You can only imagine how tough it was for me to move on.”

“Ethan, I know what she meant to you.” Lexi said. “I know how much you loved her back then and how much she mattered to you. And just because you hate her now, doesn’t mean it should remain that way. If you, driven by this temporary hatred, do something to her that you will later learn to regret, then there is no way you’ll ever be able to forgive yourself. Remember that you loved her once, it can’t just vanish in a matter of few years. If you truly love someone, even for once, no matter how wrong you might have been to love them, you will always have a little part of your heart that still yearns for them.”

“I don’t intend any harm to her now, because I know I won’t be capable of that.” I said, “I know I can never truly hurt her intentionally because there is still a part of me that remained unmoved by the hatred, I have towards her. You have nothing to worry about.”

Lexi smiled. “I’m glad you said that.”

“Take care of mom and dad while I’m gone. And assure them that their son will not let them down.” I promised her.

“I will.” Lexi smiled. “Goodbye.”

***

I decided to drive by myself. I didn’t appreciate the idea of having a driver witness my first day of marriage. I assured mom and dad that I would go home safely. But they were devoid of the truth. I was supposed to spend the night at Kyle’s Hotel, where the girls planned our night. I could never go there knowing what they already had in store for us. And I highly doubted if Skylar would be interested to go there either.

Instead, I decided to drive her somewhere she would be longing to go. I was taking her to meet her family.

Things have grown bad for me and Nick since the day Skylar broke up with me. We never found a way to sort everything out. Because the problem was from his side.

“We are going to meet you brother and Father.” I informed her, making her flinch in surprise.

“What? “she shrieked. “We’re going to meet them now?”

“Yes.” I answered. “Nick and your dad are in New York. I suggest it’s best for you to let them know about what happened before they learn it from somewhere else.”

“Ethan, he’s going to kill you if he finds you with me.” She said.

“I took my chances before deciding to marry you.” I said, “I’m not worried about him now. Meeting him was far overdue anyway.”

She sighed. “He won’t let me explain.”

“But he’ll know you tried to explain.” I said. “I think it’s best for you to end the things as soon as possible because I highly doubt, you’ll find them together to talk after tonight.”

She looked at me quizzically.

“We’re not going to stay in New York any longer.” I said. “As soon as we meet your brother, we are going to fly back home.”

She remained silent and leaned back. Maybe she was wondering about the same thing that I was thinking about.

Home.

It is a new beginning. We’re going to be a married couple and stay in the same house. We’re going to be together, once again.

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