Chapter 1 First Chapter

"Till death do us part." I echo the words and a rush of euphoria overtakes me and then I know, if this doesn't work out the way it's meant to work out, I'll be in a huge mess.

I stare at the face of one of the richest men in America and I can't help but think, is this all worth it?

Selling myself off to a man I barely know, even though he's a ruthless, handsome devil. As I

continue to look into his brown eyes, I see a dry smile play on his lips. Reminding me this is

nothing but a contract thing.

A contract wedding.

A deal with the devil.

Nothing more than this is going to happen between us. It's just business and at the end of the day,

He gets to live the solitary life he wants with no other love or thought but for his company.

Satisfying his mom and himself while also getting rid of the minor disturbances in his life.

Talk about killing three birds with one stone.

For me, I get to see my mother happy again. I get to witness my sister get healed. They're my

family and they mean they mean the world to me. They do.

I look at the faces of the crowd and my eyes immediately lock in with my mom's. I see the tear

A drop falls from her eyes as she gives me a knowing smile.

Of course, she knows. There's hardly anything Mom doesn't know about.

She knows there's more to being the sudden bride in a wedding than my being in love.

I smile back at her and I can't help but remember our last conversation.

******

The slow dripping sound of the IV drip continued, each drop reminding me of the slowly passing

The girl on the bed, her body now pale white, and her eyes closed.

In the corner of the room, I can hear my mum whimpering, closing her mouth with her hands as

She tries to ignore the slow death that her child is undergoing.

"Mum? Please stop crying. I will get the money soon." I say, my voice breaking towards the end

of the statement, my mental health now sabotaged. "I will work more jobs and I will take

out a loan or something. Please. Don't do this to yourself."

But she pays me no mind as she continues to stare at the little girl on the bed. Not moving, not eating, I'm not even sure she's breathing.

It saddens me more seeing her this way because someone so full of life shouldn't be confined to such sadness.

Ever since Dad's passing, Mom has tried to make sure everything remained the same. While we cried our eyes out, Mom stood strong and gave us that smile of hers that made it known that all was

good. Talk about being an anchor and a backbone. Even after we passed the grieving stage, she

kept on acting like nothing had happened just for our sake.

Watching that same woman now sitting, helpless and without life grieves me. I turn my back

about to leave and go in search of money just as I've always done since my sister's sickness

started. My mother's voice stops me.

"They don't think she's going to last the month without proper treatment." Her hollow voice says.

"I tried to talk to the doctor to give us some more time but the more we delay it, the more she..."

She tries saying but bursts into a bout of tears.

Gastric cancer. That is what my sister is suffering from. And every single second that we waste,

leads her closer to the grave.

I turn back to face my mom as I walk up to her and fall to my feet I lose control of myself, the

tears falling uncontrollably.

"I know, Mom. And I'll work so hard and make sure that doesn't happen. You have to trust me,

Mom. I promise you she'll be fine. Judith survived." I know what I'm saying feels impossible and

sounds like a lie but I'm past caring. I just want my mom and sister back and I'm willing to do

anything and everything about it.

I lost my Dad, I'll be damned if I lost my sister the same way.

Mom finally takes her eyes off Judith and looks at me, her glassy eyes heavy with sadness.

"You've done more than your best, darling. And I don't want you feeling like you owe me." Her

warm palm touches my cheek. "I'm so proud of the woman you've become. Maybe...there might

be no more hope for your sister but there's still hope for you. Go live your life, my darling."

"Don't say that, Mom. This isn't because of any debt or anything. You are my family and I'll do

anything to make sure you're happy. Aren't I your daughter?"

Fresh tears fall from her eyes as she nods. "Yes, you are, darling. And I love you so much."

I stand to my feet and hold out my hand to her. "Let's go home, Mom. You need to eat." I say.

She takes a look at Judith and shakes her head. "But your sister, I can't lea-"

I interrupt her. "Yes, you will, Mom. Because she wouldn't want to wake up and see you this way.

No one's saying you can't come back. But right now, you need to eat something. It's been days. I can't lose you both." That seems to do it as she looks back at me and holds my hand, standing to her feet.

"Let's go home." She smiles at me.

I smile back as my mind begins to wander how many more jobs I need to take to make all this

Seems right.

No one's going to give me a loan anymore so I've got to do this myself.

Mom must have been speaking to me because she squeezed my hand gently and smiled when I looked at her.

"Don't work yourself too hard, my love. We'll do this together. We won't lose your sister. We

won't lose Judith."