The Billionaire’s Dying Bride

THE WEDDING Everyone in the room said I looked beautiful…. my makeup artist dabbed a tissue beneath my eyes and smiled at me through the mirror. You are the most beautiful bride I have ever worked on ….trying to make me smile. The other women in the room agreed immediately. They laughed, complimented my dress Talked about how lucky I was. I tried to force a smile Because none of them knew None of them knew, that two days ago I had walked into a hospital believing it was just a chest pain. And i walked out with a death sentence The memory returned this time with so much pain. The doctor’s office had a smell of coffee and antiseptic. The medical report told me everything before she even spoke. “Miss Bella” Her voice was very careful. Your condition has gotten worse than expected I remembered laughing nervously Asking her if she was joking. She didn’t laugh. Instead she took out another report and handed to me. My hands trembled as I read My vision becoming blurry. Heart failure. Progressive deterioration. Limited treatment options. Estimated survival period. Seven months. Maybe a year if I was lucky The room suddenly becoming small I remembered grabbing the edge of the chair so hard, that my fingers were hurting. “There had to be a mistake doctor”, I whispered. “I’m sorry” Sorry?? You say ? Such a small word. Yet carried so much weight to destroy my entire future. I walked out of the hospital feeling like a ghost Yet the world continued normal around me People laughed. Cars moved. Children played. Meanwhile I just discovered my life was ending. No warnings No miracles Just a report informing me how many months I had left before my body gave up. The medical report was still hidden inside my wedding dress Folded carefully. My own death certificate A count down of my life only I could hear ticking. Bella. I blinked The memory vanished. Zara was standing beside me Concern filled her eyes What’s wrong she said softly you have been awfully quiet lately having second thoughts about this ? No I said….but even if I did, I dare not go against my adopted parents I said to myself. A knock sounded at the door Miss Bella, the groom has arrived. My fingers tightened around the report, the tightness in my chest that made every breath I took feel borrowed. The groom ? I said to myself, the billionaire I have never met. The man who wasn’t supposed to be marrying me? But there were stories about him everywhere. How he built part of valmont empire before turning thirty. How he was feared among his competitors. His employees respected him. How he had never lost a business The media called him brilliant His enemies called him ruthless And every woman in the city seems hopelessly in love with him. Yet standing here now he looked nothing like the man from the magazines. He looked tired His expression remained unreadable His posture was rigid He didn’t smile when his eyes and mine met…I couldn’t tell if it was disgust or he was just as helpless as I was. For a short moment, they moved past me. Straight to the church entrance As though he was still waiting Waiting for her For my sister A sharp ache pierced my chest. Not because I loved him I didn’t even know him But because I suddenly understood what I was A replacement bride A stand in bride Temporary solution His gaze remained fixed at the entrance door like he was still waiting for her. My heart felt as though it was breaking silently He leaned closer to me and spoke his very first words ‘Don’t get too excited’ the moment she walks through that door i’m done with this whole show. My throat tightened. Tears burned behind my eyes But I refuse to let them fall Not here Not today. Not in front of hundreds of strangers So I swallowed the pain Swallowed the humiliation Swallowed the truth that neither of us wanted this marriage. Then I lifted my head. Forced a smile unto my face And prepared to marry a man who was waiting for another woman.