Chapter 1 One

• Note to self: DO NOT MARRY THE MAN WHO CAUSED YOUR DOOM!
• “Do you, Tessa Solomon, solemnly declare to take Sorren Montgomery to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
• Hmmm. Let me think about that. I don’t. Nope.
• “Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and keep him for as long as you both shall live?”
• Keep him? Wide-eyed and a little shaky, I stared straight ahead as the officiant said the words I was dreading. Was I really doing this? Was I really marrying the man who had turned me into a slut amongst my peers and family, got me pregnant and had my mother send me off to a convent? Was I really marrying the big brother of the man I was originally supposed to marry?
• Yes, I guess I was. I need to marry him if I ever want to see my child. My Leah
• Almost on the verge of passing out, I sucked in deep breaths, my hands in Soren’s getting sweaty. My eyes momentarily met my mother’s and I shivered in fear as she shot me a death stare, silently telling me the consequences of once again embarrassing her.
• “Yes, I do…” I whispered, pressing a smile to my face I know made me look deranged.
• Being the eldest child of one of the most prominent families in America, one would think I had everything. Whilst I constantly wore a smile on my face, I was distraught on the inside. My life was a constant whiplash, with one headache to the next, the most recent being my ongoing marriage to Sorren. Because even as I had just said yes to being united with him forever, I still forced a smile on my face, though I was crying on the inside.
• My sister, Denise, was my maid of honour, and Abel, Soren’s younger brother and my ex-fiancée, was the best man. Denise smiled at me, the hypocrisy of it making my skin itch. And Abel, the asshole, unable to meet my stare too.
• “You may now say your vows,” the officiant added. I took the ring from the small baby blue pillow-like box Denise held. I raised Sorren’s hand so everyone could see.
• “I, Tessa Solomon, take you, Sorren Montgomery, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to respect, obey and cherish you for as long as we both shall live,” I spoke those words bitterly, intentionally not mentioning anything about love. I could obey Sorren, but loving him was almost impossible.
• He shot me a smile and unconsciously, my gaze dropped to his plump kissable lips. His amused gaze still locked on mine, he took the ring on the same pillow-like box Denise held.
• He raised my hand in the air and said: “I, take you Tessa Solomon to be my wife. As for loving you, that will never happen. I cannot love someone who doesn’t love them self. I am here today because of my mother. The most I can give you, is respect,” Sorren murmured bitterly, making the crowd gasp in disbelief.
• My heart squeezed at his words, tears pooling up in my eyes. Sorren is known to be the cruelest and coldest of the Montgomery kids, but why did he have to be so cruel in his words, during our wedding ritual at that? Why couldn’t he like me, lie? Now, the whole world knew I wasn’t loved, or in the least bit, respected by the man I married.
• Sorren smiles at the look of hurt on my face. With my tear-stained eyes, my gaze shifts to Denise. She failed miserably to mask the smile on her face. And mother, she could care less about how I felt, so long as I didn’t embarrass her.
• The priest, ignoring Sorren’s cold declaration, proceeded to pronounce us husband and wife. I guess mother must have paid him quite a huge sum for him to be here.
• “By the powers vested on me, I now declare you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride,” he added. Sorren took a step closer to me, wetting his lips. My heart dropped to my chest. As though sensing my unease at the thought of kissing him with everyone watching, he grabbed my face in his hand, forcing me to meet his stare.
• “Let’s get this over with,” and before I could process what he meant, he sealed my lips with his, the crowd erupted in a cheer, suddenly forgetting the cold words he had whispered to me earlier.
• When he pulled away from the kiss, my heart dropped to my chest. I despised him, so my skin shouldn’t be shivering from his touch. I shouldn’t miss the way his lips felt against mine. But then Sorren, being as cold as he is, left me on the altar after the kiss that sealed our fate and got into the car headed for the reception. I hopped into the empty seat next to him and didn’t utter a word to him, thankfully, he maintained the silence in the car as well. All through the drive, I kept replaying the way he held my face in his hand and kissed me.
• By the time reception had begun, I was exhausted from the numerous congratulations that came my way. At some point, Sorren had disappeared, leaving me all along at the high table to wail in the misery that was now my life.
• I sat there, watching the crowd enjoy themselves. Denise sat next to me at the high table, but she too, could care less about asking if I was okay or if I needed anything. How could she? When she’d betrayed me in the worst possible way by marrying the man I loved?
• When no one was watching, I escaped from the hall, looking for a room to relax and gather my thoughts. Mother had chosen the most exclusive venue for the reception, that much she could do for me.
• Curiosity got the best of me when I heard a familiar voice from one of the rooms. Only, this voice was calmer, a stark contrast to how he spoke to me at the altar. Deciding to while away the misery that is my wedding, I slowly turned the doorknob and peaked inside.
• I shouldn’t have. In the room was Sorren with another woman, lips joined and hair dishevelled. Their breathless moans filled the room and it caused a sharp pain in the pit of my stomach.
• I choked on the sob that threatened to burst out of me. My hand flew to my mouth as I gently covered the door. Overcomed by a tsunami of emotions, I began to shake on the spot with tears doting my vision. I walked away from the door while taking deep breaths.
• How could he? How... How could he meet up with his mistress during our reception? That was just... The tears finally broke free and I burst into tears, still standing outside the room where my husband currently had his lips on another woman.