Chapter 3 The wedding

Celia

My hands trembled by my sides as I walked down the aisle towards the altar.

Today was the day of my wedding. The day I finally married Shane Reynolds, the billionaire psycho and I couldn't help but wish that the ground would open up and swallow me instead.

Anything else would be better than marrying that man.

My heels clicked against the ground as dad walked me down the aisle. His presence next to me was supposed to be comforting, but instead, it felt more of a burden.

I felt so suffocated in my dress and the urge to throw up was strong, but I managed to collect myself.

"Just get through this wedding. For dad. For the company." I whispered under my breath.

When we finally reached the altar, I finally saw Shane's face for the first time and I was so stunned that I nearly tripped on my heels.

As popular as Shane Reynolds was in New York, his identity was sort of a mystery. His reputation was horrific, but his face was the complete opposite.

The man was so devastatingly handsome that I was momentarily blown away. His dark hair hung in loose curls over his forehead, but what made my heart nearly stop was his dazzling eyes.

I had never seen eyes so green in my entire life.

Unfortunately, as dazzling as those eyes were, when they landed on me, they turned so cold as ice to the point where I was taken aback.

Even though it was a well-known knowledge that Shane was probably psychotic, I didn't expect him to look at me with such coldness, hate and anger.

I didn't know if I was being paranoid, but it felt like he had a personal vendetta against me.

I gulped uncomfortably before turning to look at the priest who continued with the wedding ceremony.

When it was time for Shane and I to kiss, my body trembled as I once again stared into those green, soulless eyes, getting momentarily lost in them.

The moment Shane's fingers touched my waist, pulling me close to him, my entire body came alive, sizzling with red hot electricity.

Our lips touched and it felt like my whole world had been turned upside down. Despite Shane's hard exterior, his lips felt as soft as a pillow and I wanted to continue kissing him for eternity.

Nothing ever felt like this. It never felt like this with Ian.

I couldn't help the disappointment which settled in the pit of my stomach when Shane pulled away and he once again stared at me with an expression void of emotion like he didn't just kiss me senseless seconds ago.

When the ceremony was over, before I could catch my breath, I suddenly got pulled to the side roughly and I was standing face to face with Nora, the scowl she specially reserved for me resting on her face.

"You know what? I changed my mind," She said haughtily, glancing at Shane who was currently discussing with dad.

"I want him back. I want to marry him."

I raised an annoyed brow, instantly comprehending the whole situation. She rejected the marriage offer, but now that she saw how handsome he was, she wanted him.

For some reason, that didn't sit right with me. I didn't know Shane.

We had not even said anything to each other despite getting married, but the idea of Nora or any other woman getting married to him left a sour taste in my mouth.

"We already got married, Nora. It doesn't work like that." I replied, trying to hide the distaste in my voice, but my words still came out flat and slightly bitter.

"Shut the fuck up. He was mine first, or did you forget that? Dad asked me first!"

"And you said no!"

"How dare you raise your voice at me?!"

"Look, Nora. I'm not trying to start anything here, but I'm already married to him and there's nothing you can do about that." I said, trying to keep the peace despite the annoyance which had begun to build in my insides.

This was just classic Nora. She was always unreasonable and would do anything to make my life a living hell.

Nora's eyes screamed murder as her hands clenched into fists by her sides. I mindfully took a step back, aware of the fact that nothing good happened when she looked like that.

Suddenly she picked up a glass of wine and poured it all over herself.

A gasp escaped my lips and I watched with wide horror-struck eyes as the red liquid seeped straight into her beautiful light blue dress.

I opened my mouth to speak, but before any words could leave my lips, Nora let out a loud yell, attracting as much attention as she could.

"Why in the world would you do this, Celia?! Come on!" She yelled at the top of her lungs and I couldn't help but look on, utterly flabbergasted as people began gathering around us.

I raised my hands nervously as beads of sweat trickled down my brows. "Me? I–I didn't do anything. She did this-"

I began trying to defend myself, but Victoria cut in, rushing toward Nora with a horrified look in her eyes.

"Nora! What in the world happened?!"

She turned to me, her eyes darkening with anger and malice. "Celia?! How could you do this to your own sister?! I know you have always been jealous of her, but did you have to do this at your wedding too? Come on! You had the attention already. The spotlight was already on you, but you had to make it more about you, didn't you? You just couldn't help yourself."

A disbelieved gasp escaped my lips as my eyes brimmed with tears. The people around us began to murmur and I could hear a few unkind words thrown my way.

"I–I didn't do this! I swear. She poured the wine on herself!"

A loud, distasteful scoff escaped Victoria's lips as she glared daggers at me. "Can you even hear yourself? In what world does that make any sense? Why would she choose to pour wine on herself?"

"Nora! Tell them! Tell them the truth!"

Nora let out a sigh, her expression softening. "Fine. I'll tell them," She said and I couldn't help the relieved sigh which escaped my lips.

"Celia and I were arguing and I thought we would settle our differences amicably as adults, but she got so angry that she decided to pour the wine over my dress."

I let out a gasp and so did the rest of the crowd for different reasons. My heart sank as I looked on in disbelief.

My eyes automatically darted towards Shane and when our eyes met, his lips formed a thin line as he shook his head, uttering the first words I had ever heard him say since I met him.

"Despicable." He hissed before walking away.