The Billionaire’s Reluctant Bride

Episode 002

Chapter 002

Ava was staring across at the hotel. Her wedding, one she had worked so hard for, had become nothing more than an unpleasant memory. Mitchell and Sienna exchanged intimate glances while Ava could only watch with regretful eyes as she watched Mitchell give Sienna intimate glances while remaining an unwanted bystander. Ava decided it was best for her to escape this scene quickly, so with one hand raised, she stopped an approaching taxi cab with ease.

A taxi pulled up directly in front of Ava. She slowly entered, her movements stiffening as her thoughts wandered far from the wedding she'd just fled from.

"Where to, Miss?" the driver inquired in a hushed tone while looking over her shoulder in the rearview mirror.

"Take me to Coral Bay Hotel," Ava asked quietly, feeling awkward and humiliated from attending her wedding and pretending everything was fine when it wasn't.

Coral Bay Hotel had long been on Ava's radar; she'd seen it advertised and heard of its existence from friends. Not just any hotel, it offered a refuge from daily life for anyone seeking relief. Ava didn't know much about the place; she decided it would provide the ideal distraction from life's messiness for at least some hours.

As soon as Ava's driver pulled into the parking lot, she quickly paid him before stepping out. Ava was barely aware of all of the security guards who stood guard around the hotel; their presence was meant to safeguard its reputation rather than to block her entry; she simply continued walking without giving them much thought or regard. She ignored them all as she continued towards her destination without looking backward.

As Ava walked into the hotel, she wasn't shocked to find it filled with people laughing, chatting, and dancing—Ava was unfazed; she wasn't here looking for friends; rather, she wanted something to ease the ache inside of her heart.

She approached the bar, finding an empty seat at its counter. The bartender immediately noticed her presence, asking in his most polite voice, "What can I get you, Miss?"

Ava hesitated for a moment before offering up her request: the strongest drink possible would do fine. "Just give me whatever drink is the strongest available," she suggested quietly.

Ava was staring ahead, lost in thought. Meanwhile, Ava nodded in agreement as the bartender mixed a drink for another customer while Ava continued her stare-off.

"Here you go," the bartender announced as he passed her a glass of mixed drink.

Without hesitation, Ava grabbed her glass and downed it in one gulp. Though the alcohol burned as it passed down her throat, that didn't matter: all she wanted was some relief from pain, to forget. In that moment she wasn't focused on anything except having one more drink in hand.

"Damn it!" she exclaimed, tightening her grip around the glass in which the drink had been placed.

She thought back to Mitchell and Sienna's wedding and realized no one even noticed she wasn't there; Mitchell and Sienna had been too wrapped up in their happiness to notice she had left and humiliated herself while they continued living their perfect lives together. She hated that she'd allowed herself to get caught up in something so trivial; this should've come as no surprise at all.

As she filled her glass, memories came flooding back.

Mitchell had always shown a preference for Sienna over Ava. With Sienna, he was protective and caring, but Ava never really cared what Mitchell thought or how he treated her, Ava had long dismissed this behavior as his way of treating everyone kindly; now, however, she knew the truth: He had always preferred Sienna over Ava.

Ava grimaced as she took another sip from the strong drink. "Why did I let myself think that things would change?" she thought to herself, "And why did I stay when he couldn't even tolerate me?"

She should have seen it coming; she should have intervened earlier; yet her pride had held her back; she didn't want to admit defeat or give in, fearing she might become one of those "weaklings.".

And so she found herself sitting alone in a bar, trying to drink away her feelings of betrayal.

"Why didn't he just tell me the truth?" She wondered aloud as she poured another drink for herself. "Why didn't we end this before it got this far?"

She filled her glass again as the weight of her thoughts began to weigh on her chest. Music played softly in the background; energy from a crowd surrounded her, but none of it reached her directly.

Ava was feeling confident as she waved off any attempts from the bartender to stop playing and just waved them off, signaling for more. She wasn't ready to stop just yet.

As the night progressed, Ava's thoughts became foggy, her vision blurring. Although she knew she was drunk, Ava didn't care; in fact, she couldn't even recall exactly how much whiskey had been consumed at this point, but the bottle had almost run dry.

Yet another glass to wash away the pain.

She thought back to Mitchell's actions at her wedding and how he'd humiliated her in front of everyone; his dismissive glances were enough for her. Seeing the disgust in his eyes—it had all been too much; surely he knew how she felt but decided otherwise?

"Should've known," she mumbled softly as she poured herself another glass. I should've known it was too good to be true.

As Ava sat absorbed in her thoughts, the lights of the club seemed to dim intermittently. People had started leaving; some headed towards dance floors or just left altogether; Ava had chosen not to care, too lost in her misery to notice anyone leaving or entering anywhere else.

"God, I'm such a loser," she thought to herself while staring down at an empty bottle in front of her.

She had never felt so alone. With every drink that went down her gullet, the further away everything that once mattered seemed. Now nothing mattered: the wedding, Mitchell, or Sienna; alcohol alone was all that mattered as relief from her feelings of loneliness and hopelessness.

Once Ava had finished her bottle, she felt an odd sense of loss and uncertainty whether or not the alcohol had helped at all. Perhaps it had even made matters worse, but she did not care; her life continued regardless.

She staggered out of the bar, her legs unsteady under her. Although the sounds from within still resonated within her ears, they seemed distant and muffled; it was time for her to leave this place behind, away from everything that had brought her there.

She gasped as the cool night air hit her like a shock; its cool, refreshing breeze was such a welcome change from the humid atmosphere inside the club that she barely noticed the people around her, too focused on keeping one foot in front of another.

"Why had I even come here?" she wondered aloud as her mind raced forward, looking back over their journey so far.

What were her expectations?

But there was no answer, only her footsteps walking away as she made up her mind to go somewhere unknown but sure of one thing: she couldn't go back.

She continued her walk, lost in her thoughts of regret and confusion, hoping the night would provide some sort of clarity. Yet deep within herself was an awareness that there was only one person she could count on: herself--something which struck as harshly.