Chapter 2 2

•Celine's POV•

The next day, I woke up in my room, feeling dread wash down my spine.

It was the wedding day, and the maids arrived and dressed me in my twin sister's room so that the guests would believe that I was Clara.

I had not thought that this day would arrive: me, helping my famous twin sister cover up for her wedding.

I donned a long white wedding dress that swept the ground as I walked. The makeup artist styled my face with heavy makeup, and I hated to say this, but I do not like makeup.

I sat there and allowed them to transform me into my sister's preferred choice of wedding dress, which had my bare back exposed and my bréasts on full display.

This was not the wedding day that I had dreamed of: me, taking my twin sister's place as the bride when she was actually alive and modeling in another state.

"Mmm," I sighed once the makeup artist was done. I looked at my reflection in the mirror, and I could not believe the beautiful woman who was staring back at me.

Soon, my father arrived, dressed in a tailored black suit, and polished black shoes.

"Are you ready, Clara? You look so beautiful," my father complimented me.

I saw the proud smile on my father's face. He was seeing me as Clara, his most treasured daughter, and not Celine, the one who wanted to marry a pauper.

I shut my blue eyes and mimicked my twin sister's composure, the way she smiled with a wide grin on her face.

"Yes, Dad," I said, stretching the smile further, and I wondered how long I could put up with this act.

"Let's go," my father said as he escorted me downstairs, and I saw the luxury black Bentley that was waiting to take me to the wedding.

I had not sat in a Bentley before, so I was nervous, as I was not my sister, who traveled from one location to another, going on vacations with her rich boyfriend sponsoring all her trips.

We sat in an eerie silence as the driver started the car and drove us to the wedding venue.

I was nervous as the car ride continued until we got to the big church where the wedding was held.

I sucked in a deep breath as I got out of the car. The lined-up maids welcomed me by spreading red flowers as I stepped down.

This was an elite wedding, and my father held my left hand tenderly and escorted me into the church that was packed with top-notch guests.

My heartbeat grew louder in my chest with each step that I took into the church and nearer to the altar where Clara's fiancé, Jace Augustus, stood.

Jace was a tall, handsome, black man. Clara was so lucky to have him.

Jace was still a single, hot bachelor, but thirty-five years old. He was not a man to mess with.

I saw him standing close to me as my father and I finally arrived at the altar and Dad handed me over to Jace for the priest to join us in holy matrimony.

I was nervous; I felt like I was going to faint at any moment now. As Jace smiled and took off my veil to reveal my face to him.

I gulped hard and recalled that I was not Clara and that I must act like her.

How would Clara have reacted on her own wedding day? Excited? Emotional or casual? I did not know, but I smiled widely so that Jace would not think otherwise as his black eyes looked into my blue eyes for a brief moment.

I grinned wider so that Jace would not think that I was not his woman. I had heard from Clara that Jace had never cheated on her, despite his influence and how many women wanted him.

Jace was a politician and looked like a Greek god as he stood there, towering above me.

Clara and I were of average height, and thanks to the heels that she had chosen for me to wear-as this was her own preferred wedding dress and shoes.

"Can we start the union?" The priest's voice brought us back to reality, and Jace stepped aside while the priest recited the prayers and joined us as one.

"Do you, Clara Mason, take Jace Augustus to be your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until death do you part?"

I looked at my twin sister's fiancé's face, that was about to become my husband. If only he knew that I was not Clara, his woman.

Jace smiled, wanting me to say "I do," as he saw that I looked so hesitant to say the words to him.

The priest continued, "Do you promise to love and obey him, and to be faithful to him, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do," I replied, shutting my blue eyes as I was unable to meet Jace's gaze. As the priest asked Jace the same question, "Do you, Jace Augustus, take Clara Mason to be your wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until death do you part?"

"I do," Jace replied as the priest asked him once more, "Do you promise to love and cherish her, and to be faithful to her, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do," Jace said, smiling and looking at me like I was his real bride, as he looked genuinely happy to be wedded to me, thinking I was my twin sister.

"I now pronounce you both man and wife. You may kiss your bride," the priest concluded just as Jace and I recited our vows and wore the wedding rings.

I was hesitant to wear his ring, which symbolized love, trust, and commitment. I could not believe I was doing this, as if I were acting in a movie as my twin sister's replacement.

Jace placed the diamond ring on my left finger, and I shut my eyes as he pulled me closer and sealed his lips on mine, not wanting to know if I desired to kiss him or not.

His lips claimed mine, kissing me tenderly at first, as the hall erupted in a round of applause for us. And well-wishers screamed "happy married life" to us.

Jace pulled away from the kiss after a while of kissing me passionately, and he gazed into my eyes like he already suspected that I was not his real bride.

We took wedding pictures with his parents, as they were very happy about the wedding, and also with my parents. I stood there anxiously, taking several photos with the priest, my parents, Jace's parents, with the bridesmaid and best man.

Lily, my twin sister's best friend, was the bridesmaid, and I wondered if she knew that I was taking Clara's place. But I was sure that Clara had never told anyone of her plans. As Lily hugged me excitedly and squealed, "Congratulations, Clara! I am so happy for you!"

"Thank you," I said. We took more wedding pictures in the church until Jace held my hand closely and kissed my lips once more.

"Come on, my wife. You do not have to act shy like this is the first time we are kissing. Let us go to our wedding reception," Jace said as he lifted me off the ground, and I was stunned as he carried me away in that firm arms.

I wanted to tell him that I was not Clara. This had to stop. Should I tell him the truth or continue to act as my sister's replacement?

I shut my eyes, inhaling Jace's cologne, as he had a relaxing aroma.