The wrong bride
The white wedding gown was never meant for Joy Peters.
It was meant for her step-sister, Sophia. Beautiful, fair, elegant Sophia - the daughter of Madam Victoria, the woman who had made Joy's life hell for five years.
Joy stood in the small back room of The Wedding Place in Lekki, holding the heavy gown with her rough hands. Her own hands were cracked from washing clothes and cleaning floors. Her uniform was faded.
Outside, the hall was filled with Lagos' richest families. Thomas Ade's family. The billionaire family.
"Wear it! Wear it now!" Madam Victoria stormed in, her face red with anger. "Sophia has run away! She ran away with that useless boy from London! Do you know what Thomas Ade will do to us if there is no bride?"
Joy's heart was beating fast. "Mama, no... I cannot..."
"You will!" Victoria grabbed her arm. "You think anyone will notice? Cover your face with the veil! Thomas Ade has never even met Sophia properly. It was an arranged marriage! Just say 'I do' and we will explain later!"
It was madness. Complete madness.
But Joy had no choice. She had been living under Victoria's roof since her father died. She owed her. And if she refused, Victoria would throw her out onto the streets of Lagos with nothing.
Ten minutes later, Joy Peters, 22 years old, cleaner, orphan, was walking down the aisle in a N2 million wedding gown that was not hers, to marry a man she had never met.
Her face was covered with a thick white veil. She couldn't breathe.
At the end of the aisle stood a man.
He was tall. Very tall. Broad shoulders. He wore a black suit that probably cost more than her entire life. But his hands... his hands were rough. Strong. Like a worker's hands.
Thomas Ade.
The youngest billionaire in Lagos. CEO of Thomas Steel Group. And according to gossip, a man who loved to weld iron with his own hands in his private workshop.
The pastor said, "Do you, Thomas Ade, take this woman..."
"I do," his voice was deep. Cold. Final.
"Do you, Sophia Peters, take this man..."
Joy's voice shook. "I... I do."
It was done.
Thomas Ade lifted the veil.
And the entire hall went silent.
It was not Sophia under the veil. It was Joy. Dark, scared, eyes full of tears, lips trembling.
Madam Victoria fainted.
Thomas Ade stared at her for a long second. His eyes were dark, unreadable. Then, something strange happened.
He smiled. A slow, possessive smile.
"So," he whispered, only for her to hear, "you are the girl from the roadside. The one crying with the broken slippers. I've been looking for you for 3 months."
Joy's eyes widened. "What?"
"Welcome home, my wife," he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, and pulled her into his arms. "My beautiful wife."
Joy didn't know if she had been saved or sold to a more dangerous devil.
But one thing was sure - her life would never be the same again.
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