Chapter 1 Prologue

Fiona p.o.v

Life sucks!

A big time.

Yes, sure! I might not have a typical sad story of a broken home or domestic abuse, but I still cannot help but wonder what wrong I ever did in my life or to others to end up here.

All alone.

And not to mention miserable!

One might think that I am exaggerating. But no, I am not. Well, maybe a little bit. But that is because what I was thrown into is not an easy thing to live with.

And I have only one person to blame: the one and only, my Grams.

Listening to my grandmother was one of the biggest mistakes that I have ever committed.

I don't know why and how I always let my Grams manipulate me to do something which I clearly don't want to do. It is only because of her cleverness and my sensitive heart that I am stuck in this life-changing situation.

Instead of having the time of my life with either my family, friends, or my so-called dearest husband, I am trapped here in Hummington Town alone on what should have possibly been my honeymoon.

Some honeymoon it is!

Rather than exploring different places together, eating a variety of foods, and clicking tonnes of pictures, here I am, standing in the café zall by myself.

I am to have my coffee all alone with a small backpack large enough to hold all my crap, a red cap on my head covering my chocolate brown hair, which is not confined with any kind of clip or band, earplugs in my ears, and a phone placed in the back pocket of my shorts.

Now the question is, where my dearest husband is? The one who should have been accompanying me, sitting with me, and enjoying this delicious beverage on our lovely honeymoon. The one who should have held my hand, stolen kisses, and whispered loving words into my ears.

Oh, right! He is attending a meeting. A god damn meeting. The nerve of this guy!

Well, scratch everything.

This is not a honeymoon of fifteen days but a business trip of three days, where Justin Carter, my so-called husband and CEO of Carter's Enterprise, is busy with his work. And me being me, stupid Fiona McGuire, now changed into stupid Fiona Carter, exploring this new, foolish place all alone.

And if you ask why?

It is because I am stuck in a goddamn forced marriage where my not-so-sweet grandmother emotionally blackmailed me into marrying this idiotic workaholic jerk who, I doubt, even gave me a second glance after signing our marriage certificate.

Yes! We signed our marriage certificate.

Some wedding, it was!

Except for our parents and grandmothers, the two of us were ready to get out of the registrar's office. But the universe, however, was not on our side. It had an idea of its own. Everyone was happy except us. Worst of all, our parents were okay with us not having a grand wedding.

Apart from that, as soon as we were married in the eyes of the law, Justin vanished into thin air, only to re-appear the next day. It was simply to let me know about our so-called honeymoon, aka a business trip to Hummington Town. Frankly, it sounded more like an order than a humble request. I had the impression that I was in a territory where dictatorship was the only possible foundation.

He had been working on his laptop all through the plane journey of two hours. As far as I was concerned, I had to indulge in my typical pastime: reading a book and filling the silence with music. Mind you, the book was very interesting, which is more than I could have said about my husband, who only had his eyes for the laptop screen.

To take his not-so-appealing actions further, as soon as we arrived at our destination, he wore his invisible cloak and disappeared into thin air once again.

I am not going to lie and pretend it didn't hurt.

It did. I cried. Not a lot, but enough for my eyes to swell and my nose and cheeks to red. But that's about it. I allowed my tears to flow for a few minutes, stayed depressed for another few, walked around like a zombie for another few, and finally, after a shout from my best friend, I was able to pull myself back to my regular self.

After all, along with him, even I was a victim of our grandmother's conspiracy, so why the hell should I be the only one drowning myself in this misery?

It is not fair.

So, with some encouragement from my best friend, I did the unimaginable.

I decided to go exploring on my own. All alone with no company. Only me, moi, and myself.

You must know one thing. I hate to travel alone, let alone explore. So, yes! This is a massive step for me.

A big pat on my back. Maybe a standing ovation, too.

But what the hell!

For everything, there is a first time. Moreover, I couldn't spend all day in the suite alone for another day. I would have died of boredom, and it's not like Justin would even notice me gone. That is, if he remembers that I even exist at all.

Yes! I, Fiona McGuire... Oops!! Now Fiona Carter does not exist for her husband.

Some marriage, it is!!