THE TWIN BILLIONAIRE'S BRIDE

~RUBY

I was singing along to Doja's Agora Hills when my phone rang for the millionth time. I sighed, immediately knowing who the caller was before even checking the contact name.

When has Ella never stressed the hell out of my life?

I clicked the red icon, cutting the call and turning up the volume on the car speaker as the song started all over again.

"Kissing and hope they caught us..."

"Whether they like it or not...I wanna show you off... I wanna show you off..." I continued to sing, nodding my head to the beat when my phone rang again.

I sighed as I reduced the volume and clicked the green icon.

"Dude, what the hell? Where are you?" she practically yelled immediately the call went through. My shoulders shook with laughter at her outrage and I let her steam without interruption.

"Are you even listening to me?" she asked and I rolled my eyes.

"I am. I was waiting for you to stop shouting," I replied and she gasped. God, this girl has to be the most dramatic human ever.

"What do you mean, shouting? I've been waiting for you for the past 30 minutes and now you're claiming that I'm shouting? Seriously?"

"Ella. Calm down. Don't blow my head off. I'm almost at the mall okay? I'm like...two streets away. Chill. Nobody's in a hurry," I replied, still nodding to the beat of Agora Hills playing in the background.

"Whatever. Just be snappy about it and get here in the next five minutes or I'm going to kill you for real this time."

"Aye, aye captain. Now get the hell away from my phone. You're distracting me from listening to my sweetheart," I snapped lightly and ended the call.

I turned up the volume of my speaker again as the traffic light turned red and continued to sing. I've been obsessed with this song since it got released and I absolutely cannot get enough of it.

"Somethin' different about you... Love it when he hits and smacks too... Baby, let me lick on your tattoos... That's true that I like PDA, take it to a seedy place..."

I kept getting bemused glances from cars on the other side of the lane but I didn't care. They could stare all they liked. I was getting really engrossed in the song, raising my voice and bobbing my head frantically when my phone rang again.

"I'm stuck at a red light you dolt. Stop calling me and disturbing my song," I screamed at her without bothering to reduce the volume, glaring at my phone screen as though she could see me.

"Oh my freaking goodness. Are you listening to what I think you're listening to?" She screamed- literally screamed. I bet she would be kicked out of the mall if she kept up with the crazy attitude.

The light turned green and I sped off, singing at the top of my voice and I could hear Ella singing along with me.

"Oh. Now that I'm playing our favourite, you're no longer screaming at me?" I chuckled. She ignored me and when the last chorus faded, I turned off the speaker.

"I'm here, dolt. You don't need to-" I started to say when my car jolted forward, the momentum threw me off instantly.

"Hmm? What were you saying?" she asked but I was too stunned to speak. If I was right, and I hoped as hell that I was wrong, then someone had just hit my car.

"You know what, El? I'll be with you very soon. Gimme a few seconds," I said and hung up without waiting for her reply. I stepped out of my car and was shocked to see my bumper ripped off.

What the hell?

I swivelled to the car that committed the heinous act and saw that the owner was sitting comfortably, nodding along to whatever he was listening to through the headset.

I stormed towards the car, stewing with righteous rage.

He was so far gone into what he was listening to with his dark shades on, so I proceeded to bang my hands on the hood of his car to get his attention.

"Uhm...ma'am? I think you've got the wrong car," he called out, rolling down his window. I glared at him and continued to bang my hands on the hood, sending a silent message for him to step out of that car and face me.

"If you want to vandalise other people's properties, I can direct you to a safe place where you can do it without getting arrested," he sounded amused, which only fueled my anger.

I marched towards him, my expression murderous.

"Step out!" I ordered, placing my hands on my hips. He only continued to stare at me with that annoying amused expression and I banged my hands on his hood one more time.

"Step the fuck out of that car, you asshole!" I screamed, breathing heavily. I was beginning to draw a crowd but I didn't care.

He sighed, rubbed his temples and stepped out of the car.

Holy shit.

My anger sputtered for a second, taking in this man in all his glory. He was ripped and those muscles looked so heavenly that I could get lost exploring forever. His eyes were green, which immediately became my favourite color and his hair- oh my freaking goodness!his hair. They looked so soft and I suddenly wanted to run my hands through them.

This man was hot as hell, damn. There was also something familiar about him but I just couldn't place where I had seen him.

He stepped towards me and one look at my face, froze him in place.

Oh my goodness. Is he checking me out too?

I could feel my cheeks turning red and I turned away, trying to hide my blush when my eyes landed on my broken jumper.

That jolted me out of my mindless fantasy and my anger came rushing back.

I turned back to glare at him.

"Aren't you going to apologise?" I snapped, crossing my arms across my chest.

"Apologise? Sorry but you were the one who was banging on my car."

"Because you ran into me and ripped my bumper off," I screamed, my hands forming into fists. The audacity of this man!

He took a step towards me.

"Look. I don't know what your deal is. But you're causing a scene and well, I've got better things to do than to argue with someone like you."

"What do you mean, someone like me? You're so rude and arrogant. I will teach you a lesson," I spun around and saw a policeman eyeing our exchange.

I walked towards him and explained what happened. The guy was leaning on his car, his arms crossed as we walked towards him.

"Arrest him," I ordered and flicked out my tongue at the offender, expecting him to react.

The policeman took one look at him and stepped back, looking between us anxiously.

"Erm...ma'am. I'm afraid I can't...uh...make an arrest. This young man is Ash Riverstone. He-" he started to say but the guy cut him off, stepping up to me.

"Little Miss Fireball. Are you sure you want to keep this man uncomfortable? He obviously can't do anything to me. Why not just let us forget about this little...squabble and go our separate ways?" he said softly, his eyes boring into mine.

That was when it all began to make sense. Of course, the Riverstone brothers. They were the most powerful family in our city and they were above the law.

They were twins, one twin was calm and cold and the ideal businessman while the other twin was this annoying man.

My phone rang before I could reply and the guy turned away from me, dismissed the officer and drove off without another word.

"What? I'm on my way in," I snapped at Ella and hung up as I stormed into the mall.

Ella must have sensed my foul mood and said nothing as we proceeded without shopping. I was still so mad over what happened that I could not stop thinking about it.

The audacity! And to think I thought that blubbering police man was actually efficient. Bunch of fools, both of them. I just repaired the bumper last week. And now I had to repair it again!

Ella tapped my shoulder, shaking me out of the pit of anger I was in and gestured towards my bag.

"Your phone's ringing, girl. What are you so engrossed in?" She said lightly as I checked who was calling.

My hiss could be heard in all of the city. I dropped the phone back into my bag and went on with what I was doing. The phone continued to ring and after the fifth ring, Ella sighed.

"Just pick it up, babe. I don't know what crawled up your ass but that call seems important. No one would be persistent if it was not about something urgent," she urged and I gave in.

"What?" I snapped at the caller. His reply took the air out of me, and the shopping basket dropped from my hands to the floor.

"Ruby? Ruby. Who was that?" Ella asked, panic evident in her voice.

"Patrick. He said my father collapsed at the office today. He had a heart attack," I whispered to my best friend, as the first set of tears rolled down my eyes.

~RUBY

I sped towards the hospital, overtaking cars and running past red lights. My heart was pounding heavily against my chest, threatening to burst out of my body.

My father. The light of my life. My world. The man I loved most in the whole wide world.

He was hospitalized. Had an heart attack.

Immediately the hospital appeared in my line of sight, I slammed down the brakes and flung myself out of the car without bothering to park carefully.

I ran into the hospital and immediately saw Patrick. I grabbed his arm, shaking him violently.

"What the hell happened to my father?" I asked, my voice raw with fear and panic. He eased himself out of my grip and continued pacing, running his hands through his hair.

"Just calm down, okay? Calm down. He's stable now," he said in an attempt to dilute my raw panic. But his words were not working on me. He was as panicked as I was too.

"Who the fuck are you to tell me to calm down? My father is lying in an hospital bed helplessly and you have the guts, the audacity, to look me in the eye and say that to me? Seriously?" I was screaming now and the nurses had to hold me down.

My screams turned to sobs. Loud, heart wrenching sobs. My chest felt as though it was caving in and my legs turned jelly, unable to hold me up as I slid to the ground.

After what felt like hours, I calmed down and was directed to the rest room to freshen up.

"Are you ready to listen to me now?" Patrick asked, when I was back from the restroom. He looked and sounded weary and I kind of felt bad for snapping at him and causing a scene earlier.

I nodded, still too numb and exhausted to talk as I took the seat beside him.

"He received a message from his anonymous partner to invest his shares and bonds in some small company. I tried to dissuade your father from investing but..." he ran his hands through his hair again. "Your father didn't listen to me. For some weird reason, he trusted that anonymous source and this afternoon, we were in the office when news came up that the company has gone bankrupt and the shares crashed.

Immediately we heard the news, your father just...collapsed," he finished and my heart broke all over again.

My dad's business was not doing too well, and he, all the time, was always trying new ways to get leverages and improve the company's image.

"Wh-" I choked. "What is the solution now? Are we...going bankrupt?"

"Fortunately, no. We are not. There is a solution. While your dad was rushed to the hospital, I was with his phone. He received a text message."

His words carried some heavy weight, as though he was reluctant to say them out.

"What is it, Patrick? Talk to me. What is the solution?" My heart was beating wildly now. I would do anything, anything to make my dad's business a success again.

"You have to marry one of the Riverstone sons. They are the largest and most influential company in the country. A marriage will bring about new opportunities for your dad and the company."

First, I was taken aback by the mention of the Riverstone family. I remembered my annoying encounter with Ash, disgusting. But for my father's sake, my mind raced with possibilities. Marriage.

"All I have to do is to marry one of them?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry...you don't...we have no other choice," his voice was apologetic.

I blinked multiple times. Marriage had not been on my list until now. I never planned on doing it but this moment was forcing me to. Who better to do it for than for my dad?

"It's fine. I choose to do this on my own accord. I have to help Dad."

A doctor walked out of a ward and came to us. He nodded to Patrick and turned to me.

"I take it you're Mr Lakewood's daughter?"

"Yes, I am. How's my father? Is he alright? Is he awake?" All I wanted was to know if my father was safe.

The doctor smiled, his eyes crinkling at the edges.

"Yes, he is fine, Miss. He's awake and ready to see you both now," the doctor said and the relief that swept through me threatened to knock my feet out.

A nurse was summoned to take us to his ward and immediately I saw my father, a smile seized my lips as I rushed to him. He smiled, howbeit faintly and took my hands in his.

"My gem," he smiled and tears of joy slipped down my face.

"Daddy," I whispered, placing my head on his forehead.

"I'm sorry for scaring you. It's just- what happened was..." he tried to explain.

"Don't worry, Dad. Patrick told me already. And I've decided to marry one of the Riverstone sons. To provide a fighting chance for you."

"No, no. You don't need it. I'll figure out a way myself. You should not..."

"Hush, don't worry, Dad. You've been taking care of me all these while. Let me do this for you," I whispered, smiling with all the warmth I felt in my chest.

A phone pinged and Patrick cleared his throat.

"I, uh, contacted the Riverstone Lawyer and told him about the plan, assuming Ruby accepted, of course. He just texted me now to let me know that he spoke with the twins, and Ethan was willing to meet her. Preferably this evening."

My father frowned.

"Don't you think that's too fast? I mean...we could always do the meeting later. Take our time."

A smile of contempt formed on my lips. Ethan could be cold and scary as the world claimed but it was better to be with him than the jerk I met today. Everyone knew Ash Riverstone was a playboy while Ethan was just too busy with his work to get into girls.

"No. I think it's better this way. Let's get this done and be over with it," I said to my father and turned to Patrick.

"Tell them I'll meet with him. With my own terms and conditions, of course," I may have agreed to the marriage but I wasn't going to go into it blindly.

Patrick and my father were satisfied and minutes later, I was on my way to meet my soon to be "husband."

***

He was late. I detested people who thought themselves too big to show up early at fixed appointments. To be honest, I was kind of nervous. I was about to meet one of the richest, hottest men in the whole of the country.

Well, at least according to the news.

Thirty minutes more and my nervousness had dissolved and turned into rage.

How dare he keep me waiting for more than an hour? I was about whipping my phone out and dialing Patrick when the restaurant door opened, and everywhere fell silent.

Because I was sitting close to the door, I saw him immediately. He was tall, damn. He had long, dark hair which was tied back into a ponytail. His eyes were hidden with shades and as he looked around, searching for me, obviously, I ogled at his bulging biceps.

Hot.

He walked up to a waiter and asked about me, I presumed. As he turned to stare at the direction the waiter was pointing, he froze. Which for some weird reason reminded me of the way the asshole who hit me today reacted when he saw me too.

I stood up and waved.

He shook his head and walked over to me slowly.

"Hey," he began and took of his shades.

And I was shocked by how much they looked the same person. To the point that they sounded alike. How was I supposed to tell them apart? If one told me this was still Ash playing dress up, then I was going to agree.

That was when I noticed his icy blue eyes, Ash's were green.

"Hey," I smiled back.

I leaned back in my seat, watching him intently. He seemed uncomfortable and avoided making eye contact with me.

"So you're the famous Ethan Riverstone," I smirked. Where was all the coldness and scariness?

"Yeah. Yes I am. And you're Ruby...Lakewood?"

"Is that a question or an affirmation?" I raised my eyebrows at him and he laughed, taken back by my outspokenness.

"You're fiesty. I like you," he smiled and that broke the ice.

"You know, I was originally mad at you for keeping me waiting," I teased and he smiled sheepishly.

"My apologies. I got caught up with some office stuff. It wasn't my intention, I promise."

"Okay well, let's get to business. I assume you have your terms and conditions for this marriage, yeah?"

He confirmed in the affirmative and I slid my documents to him, as he passed his to me too.

There was a charm a possessed that I had instantly fallen for.

We were silent for a while as we went through what we both wanted and it seemed he was satisfied. I was perfectly okay with his conditions and I believed everything would be just fine.

"I take it we are good to go," he said and I nodded. Everything seemed perfect. There was no issue and after five years, if the marriage isn't working out, we call it quits.

That's enough for my dad to get back on his feet.

"So, if there's nothing else to discuss, I think we sho-" I started to say but was cut off by a cell phone beeping incessantly.

It was Ethan's.

"Sorry. I need to go. Something came up at the office," he said hurriedly as he stood up and scanned the message.

"Order anything you like and ask them to place it on my tab. I'm so sorry for leaving you here. We'll talk later, probably on phone to finalize everything," he rushed out and left.

I sighed.

Well, that was one epic meeting. At least we seemed to get along well. I beckoned for the waiter and prepared to order. After all, my rich "husband" was paying.

It was when I was about to leave that I noticed Ethan had forgotten his documents. I was torn between taking it with me home or going over to his house to give it back.

The second idea appealed to me, honestly. I mean, who would not be curious to see the infamous Riverstone mansion?

So I grabbed my bag, his documents and stepped out of the restaurant, my heart beating with anticipation.

The house was surprisingly close to the restaurant and the security let me in after I told him my name.

I got out of car and started walking towards the main house, gawking at the expensive mansion.

"These people are loaded, way loaded than my father could ever be. It could take Dad years to get to this stage," my jaw dropped as I took in the magnificent house.

I was distracted by a sound coming from the side of the house and my curiosity dragged my feet towards the sound.

I had no idea what to expect. I just wanted to see the cause of the noise. What I saw however, was totally unexpected. My jaw dropped open.

It was Ethan. Naked...on his knees, playing with sand and muttering, his eyebrows furrowed with concentration.

He glanced up at the sound of my footsteps and stopped muttering. He stood up, reaching for me. I took a step back, fear coating my entire body.

"Xena?" He called, his voice was hoarse. His eyes sparkled and lit up with recognition as though he was seeing someone else.

"Xena," he called again and took a step towards me.

I stood my grounds, following my instincts not to run. He took another step towards me, and it took all my willpower to not run away.

He glanced down and seemed to come to his senses. "Xena. I- shit!"

That was when the servants came running out and covered him up with a large robe.

"I- I just wanted to return your documents," I stammered and extended the documents to him.

He collected them with a frown and as he turned it over, recognition flashed in his eyes. His eyes widened with an emotion I could not fathom. Fear, maybe.

He recognized me.

"Ru-"

I turned away without hearing him speak, my heart was in my throat. My brain was scrambling to understand what just happened. Ethan playing with sand. Calling me someone else's name. The recognition. The look in his eyes.

"Ruby, wait!" He called. "Ruby, please!"

Ethan- my husband to be- was a mad person.

~RUBY

My head was pounding as I raced home, trying to decipher what just happened.

His name kept ringing in my head, no matter how much I tried to shut it out.

Ethan.

Ethan.

Ethan.

I was so out of sorts that I debated driving over to my dad's when it occurred to me that he was still in the hospital, recovering. I decided to head home instead.

I walked absentmindedly to my door, fumbling with the lock. When the door opened from the inside, my insides lurched.

"Ruby," Ella screamed, drawing my name out and I flinched. She dragged me inside, oblivious to the turmoil going on inside me.

"I saw your text. So I decided to come over to wait for you. I need the full gist. Which son did you meet? Was it the badass, sexy Ash or the broody, hawt and definitely delicious Ethan?" She squealed and the tension dissolved from my body as a smile tugged at my lips.

I loved this girl. Not that I was going to tell her.

I rolled my eyes, concealing my smile as I eased myself out of her grip and headed to the kitchen.

"Hmm. Smells nice here. Did an angel fly over to prepare dinner for me?" I gasped, my eyebrows disappearing into my hairline.

She filled a cup with water and slid it over to me before ushering me to sit on a stool at the counter.

"Shut it and tell me. I will not let you weave your way out of this discussion."

"I can smell pasta. And oh my goodness, is that cheese?" I tried manoeuvring myself away from her grip but she held on tight.

"Spit it out, you little devil."

Ugh. Fine.

"Apparently, I'm to marry Ethan," I said and immediately regretted it because Ella screamed and started banging her hands on the counter.

"Jeez. What the fuck is wrong with you? Are you trying to get me kicked out of my apartment?" I rolled my eyes.

She stood up and grabbed my cup of water, draining it.

"Sorry. You just mentioned a hot piece of cake. Forgive me for trying to douse myself with lots of water," she muttered as she filled the cup to the brim and drained it again.

I sighed, rubbing my temples.

Did I just say I loved this girl? I take back my words. I absolutely detest her!

"Okay. I'm okay. Go on now," she urged and I told her the rest of the story, starting with the date and how our conversation went well.

"But. I think something is wrong," I voiced out, my initial fear crawling back. Ella must have noticed the change in my countenance because her expression became serious, and she stared at me with unnerving focus.

"Breathe, babe. You look a little pale," she said softly.

"I- I don't know. This may sound weird. No, it will sound weird because I know what I saw. I just don't know how to deal with it," my voice came out shaky which was pretty pathetic to me.

Ella held my hands and said nothing, waiting for me to find the courage to say whatever it is.

I took a deep breath. And another.

And another.

I told her what I saw when I wanted to return his documents. For the first time since I had met Ella, she was speechless.

Stunned. Dumbfounded.

The house was silent for what felt like a lifetime.

"You think Ethan is mad?" She whispered. I shook my head.

"I don't think so. I know."

"Oh. My. God. This is very very bad."

"I know, right," I grimaced.

"Okay. Has he tried to contact you since you left?"

"I have no idea. It was so weird and, I don't know, out of sorts. I could not concentrate. So I didn't check my phone."

Ella stood up wordlessly, and started to rummage my bag for my cell phone. Her jaw dropped when she found it.

"Babe. This gist gets so freaking interesting," she whispered as the screen of my phone lit up. I grabbed it from her and my jaw dropped too.

Holy shit.

I had a hundred plus unread text messages. And all from Ethan.

"Ruby please. We need to talk...There's something I didn't tell you... Just pick my calls please... I didn't mean to mess things up..."

The rest of the messages were similar so I didn't bother opening them. As if on cue, my phone started ringing.

Guess who?

Yeah, Ethan, of course.

I groaned and walked to my bedroom, flopping on my bed. The bed dipped as Ella sat beside me.

"Why aren't you picking his calls?"

"I can't deal with it right now..."

"Okay. But you can't avoid him forever. I mean, if things work out you guys will be married before the end of the year."

I sat up.

"Exactly. This is the man I'm about to marry, El. He has a fucking mental Illness."

The screen of my phone lit up with new messages and Ella switched my phone off, placing it on my bed stand.

She scooted over to me and hugged me, tears finally pricking my eyes.

"Let's go to sleep, my darling. We'll figure it out tomorrow," she crooned.

It was way past midnight before I slept. My sleep was plagued with my day's events and I would have remained stuck in them had a noise not pulled me out.

It was the sound of my doorbell ringing relentlessly. I turned around and buried my head in the crook of Ella's shoulder, willing the person to go away.

The ringing stopped.

And continued right back. I rubbed my eyes as I stood up, anger slowly simmering as I walked towards the door.

"What the-" my voice trailed off as I saw the numerous packages on my doorstep.

Cake. Flowers. What seemed to be expensive clothes. Jewelries. More cake. Perfume. A Teddy bear.

All courtesy of Ethan.

My scream woke Ella. And probably all of New York.

Ten minutes later, I was pacing around my whole apartment not knowing how to feel.

"You've probably worn holes in the floorboard by now," Ella teased.

"What does he want from me, Ella? Why is he sending gifts to me?" My question was rhetorical, but it felt good to say it out.

If I was alone in this house, I'd have probably gone mad too.

Surprisingly though, Ethan had stopped calling. And texting. Which made me strongly believe that he was up to no good.

My doorbell rang.

"I'm betting that's another delivery. Maybe you're getting shoes this time," Ella teased as I walked towards the door.

Her bet was wrong. Entirely off the chart.

I closed the door in Ethan's face and turned to scream at Ella.

"Code red," alarm bells started ringing in my head.

"Code red? He's fucking here? In person? Not a robot?"

"Of course he's not a robot! Ethan is at the door!" I practically yelled, my heart rate skyrocketing.

"And you closed the door on him and here we are, screaming our brains out."

"Just shut up and go out through the kitchen door. Don't go too far. I'll call you when we're done..." I winced, "discussing."

Ella left, her glance bothering between worry and amusement. I took a deep breath and opened the door again.

"Hi," I said brightly. Too bright. He held a bag towards me.

I took it, ushered him inside and glanced at it.

Shoes. Damnit. Ella was right.

He was fidgeting nervously as he sat down, unable to meet my eyes.

"I, uh, I am so sorry about what happened yesterday," his voice was quiet.

I corked my head to the side.

"What exactly happened yesterday, Ethan?"

"My, uhm, episode."

"Your what?" I was confused. What the hell was an episode?

He said nothing, his eyes darted nervously.

"If you aren't going to tell me the truth, Ethan, then I'm backing off from the wedding," his head jerked up and fear shone in his eyes.

"Please. Please don't do that. You see, something happened and I had an accident. The accident shattered me, leaving a part of my brain in shambles," his voice caught on the last word as he swallowed back a sob.

"I began to have mental episodes where I would lose total control. The episodes can be for hours or even days and yesterday, yesterday was particularly worse," he explained.

I was still staring at him when he locked his gaze with mine and his eyes softened.

"But something was different yesterday... And it happened when I saw you," he whispered.

I blinked multiple times at him. "Wh- what are you talking about?" I stuttered.

"You made the voices go away..." he revealed.

"What?" I asked breathlessly.

Ethan exhaled sharply and took tentative steps toward me. He came so close that I thought he was going to kiss me and all I could do was stare like an idiot.

"The world went silent when I saw you... It's as if my brain acknowledged you as the only medicine to stop my episode instantly," he went on.

I looked up into his eyes and for the first time, a strange heat came alive in my stomach and an involuntary shiver seized me, causing me to release it in the form of a shudder.

"Ethan..." I managed to say.

"I know this is crazy and I just met you but... I need you...I want to try this marriage thing with you..."

It was too much to take in, too much to handle. His eyes were red with raw anguish and a tiny place in my heart shattered.

I stepped away from him instantly, breaking away the magic that had taken over the air.

"Leave. Please, Ethan. Go. I need space to digest what you just told me," I whispered shakily and as he walked out of the door, sadness weighing down his steps, I dialled Ella's contact.

I needed an anchor.

"Babe. Ruby. Listen to me. You are doing this for your dad. Do you want to watch him go down the drain? All his sacrifices wasted?" She asked.

"I know what Ethan said is a big pill to swallow but please, please Ruby, don't dash your father's hope. You can't break because of this. You can't afford to," I could hear Ella's words, but I could not process them.

What the hell am I supposed to do?

"I...Ella. This is bullshit."

"Yes it is. But for the people we love, we don't stop at the bare minimum," she whispered.

My thoughts went to dad, broken and battered in a hospital. I picked up my cell phone and texted Ethan. Just a sentence.

"When do we start planning the wedding? "

Ella was right. We don't stop at bare minimum for the people we love. And for my dad, I'd do anything. Even if it meant getting married to a mad man.