Bounded by Duty

Twins?

Could she be dreaming

After running away from meeting her soon-to-be husband, Amaya finds herself preparing for a wedding she knows nothing about.

Her days and nights of crying had exhausted her, and knowing full well that refusing to marry the man her family had chosen wouldn’t end well for her, she felt trapped.

The maids had been busy since daybreak. “Miss Amaya, you need to wake up and get dressed. The wedding starts in an hour!”

Her maid called out, and tears rolled down her cheeks. Everything seemed to happen in a flash as she made her way to the car that would drive her to the church where her forced white wedding was to take place. Holding back her tears, she struggled to smile for the camera.

Everything felt like a blur as she walked down the aisle. The song playing brought sadness to her eyes—this could have been her wedding with Edward, but now it was with a total stranger she knew nothing about.

She couldn’t bring herself to look up at whoever was waiting for her at the altar. Her father smiled beside her, and her sister must’ve been somewhere, feeling victorious in her heart, knowing this was a turning point for her.

Amaya was about to start a new life, a life of the unknown. Finally reaching the altar, the priest in charge began his sermon.

Amaya used the opportunity to look up at the man she was about to marry. Sadness was written all over her face. Her father nudged her slightly. “Smile, damn it!”

But she was more focused on the man she was marrying. He wasn’t standing like the others—he was in a wheelchair. That didn’t bother her, but he was the man she had a one-night stand with.

She remembered his face, the structure of it, and realized he was the young man she had slept with. Or was she mistaken? The man she slept with could walk—he had even walked her out of the bar. So why was this man in a wheelchair now?

Amaya concluded they were playing games with her, and this wasn’t what she had in mind at all.

The priest called her attention again. “Amaya, do you take Nathan to be your lawful husband, to love, respect, and live happily with?”

The whole congregation was silent, waiting for her to respond. Looking up at the man—no, looking down at him—she saw he was handsome and looked manly, even though he was seated in a wheelchair. There was nothing wrong with him.

“I do!”

Amaya responded, and her father sighed in relief. The vows were sealed, and they signed the marriage certificate. They were pronounced husband and wife and headed to the reception.

This was where the real event started. The security lifted Nathan into the car as Amaya joined him.

She couldn’t help but steal glances at him, wondering if he would recognize her or reveal that he could walk. Would he remember the night they had spent together? But nothing came of it.

Nathan was extremely shy, sensing that his new wife either liked him or recognized him, which made things less awkward. But he was angry that his brother didn’t make it to the church after promising to be by his side every step of the way.

They finally made it to the after-party. Ethan hadn’t arrived yet, but everyone was mingling and having fun.

It was almost time for the couple’s first dance, but Nathan couldn’t dance because he couldn’t walk. The only person he could call on was his brother, who walked in majestically towards them.

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t make it to the church,” Ethan apologized.

“You didn’t do right by me, Ethan!” Nathan responded. While they exchanged words, Amaya stared at the impossible before her.

Seeing her one-night stand in two men, one in a wheelchair, the other standing before her, she needed no one to tell her what was happening. Ethan was her one-night stand, but now she was married to his brother Nathan.

Her life had gone from bad to worse the moment her husband asked her to dance with his brother.

“Have my first dance with my wife. I’d be happy to see her enjoy the dance—come on!” Nathan urged.

Ethan, feeling hesitant, asked, “Do I have the honor of this first dance?”

Amaya was stunned as she looked at Ethan. She wasn’t sure if he recognized her, but she couldn’t stop staring at him, frozen in place.

“Is everything okay?” Nathan, her husband, asked.