The Wrong Bride: Ares and Raven’s Story (The Windsors)

I park my car and stare at the front door, trying to gather the courage to walk in. All day, all I’ve thought about is Hannah’s pregnancy, and what it means for all of us. Now, more so than ever, I’m racked with guilt. It consumes me, spreading its poison until I’m left second-guessing every decision I’ve made. I’ve never felt so selfish, so horrible.

When I married Ares, I wondered if there would come a day that I’d regret it. At the time, I convinced myself that what I’d regret most would be the things I didn’t do. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Ares and Hannah are going to be a family, whether I like it or not. They’ll share an unbreakable bond, and I’ll always be a third party. Because of the decision I made, I’m taking away an innocent child’s chance to grow up with both of their parents as one united front. If I hadn’t married Ares, the two of them would’ve found out about the pregnancy together, while they were rescheduling their wedding. It would’ve brought them together, bridging the distance Hannah’s career had created over the years. Maybe it still will.

I inhale shakily and open my car door. I’ve never dreaded coming home as much as I do tonight. No matter what was going on, I’d always been eager to see Ares. Yet tonight I can’t face him.

How do I face the man I love, knowing what I did? I chose to marry him knowing that if I hadn’t, Grandma would have forgiven Hannah and accepted her into the family, eventually. I came between them because I was selfish, and now I’m paying the price.

I walk into the house I’ve come to love so much, the home Ares and I built, and it all feels so impermanent. Just as I convinced myself to choose happiness, to put myself first… life showed me that I don’t deserve it.

I tense when I hear Grandma’s voice, my heart racing. I should’ve known that it wouldn’t take her long to find out about this. No doubt, she’ll be excited to welcome her first great-grandchild, and it’s going to kill me to watch her fuss over Hannah. It’s like every single thing I want out of life can’t be mine if it isn’t Hannah’s first.

I follow Grandma’s voice to the guest room and pause in the doorway. Hannah is lying in bed and Ares is seated on the edge of it, one arm around her for support while he holds a glass to her lips. The way he watches her, with such concern… it guts me. The patience he has with her, the care he shows her. It’s like I took a trip to the past, back when I was always looking in from the outside.

Grandma stands next to Hannah’s bed, arms crossed. “You’re carrying my first great-grandchild,” she says, her tone soft and sweet. “You need to take good care of yourself, Hannah.” She turns to Ares then. “The same goes for you. She’s carrying your child, Ares. I know the situation isn’t ideal, but we’ll make the best of it — as a family.”

Hannah looks up at her with tears in her eyes. “I came here because I agree, Grandma. I thought my sister and Ares would be the two people that’d be most supportive. I thought I’d be safe from the press here while we try to figure out how our lives are going to change now, but they don’t want me here. Ares asked me to leave, and I… I think I should. I never should’ve come here in the first place.”

Grandma pauses for a moment. “The doctor put you on bed rest, Hannah. I’d like you to stay here until you feel better. It’ll be good for Ares, Raven, and you to be together. After all, this pregnancy entwines all three of your fates. The more you avoid each other, the bigger the blow-outs when you’re eventually forced to face each other. For the sake of my great-grandchild, you need to learn to put aside your differences.”

“No,” Ares says, his arm slipping away. He puts down the glass he was holding and rises to his feet. “She can’t stay here. I understand your intentions, Grandma, and I agree that we need to learn to co-exist, but now is not the time.”

Grandma holds her hand up. “There’s no better time than the present, Ares. In a mere four months, you’ll be a father. This isn’t something you can run away from. This kind of thing is better faced head-on. The three of you need to learn how to co-parent, because your child is going to need you, and you cannot allow him or her to be raised in a hostile environment.” She turns to me, and I tense. I didn’t even realize she’d noticed me standing here. “Don’t you agree, Raven?”

I nod at her and suppress the unwarranted betrayal I feel. She’s right, of course, yet somehow I can’t accept that she is. I don’t want Hannah in my home. I won’t survive seeing more moments such as the one I walked in on. I don’t want to bear witness to the inevitable rekindling of their relationship.

Ares turns around, his eyes wide. “Baby,” he says, walking up to me.

I take a step back and force a smile. “You can have this room,” I tell Hannah. She stares at me for a moment before nodding, the edges of her lips turned up into a small smile. Something about the way she looks at me doesn’t sit well with me. I suppose it’s her mocking gaze, as though she knows she didn’t need my acknowledgement or permission when she’s got Grandma by her side.

I step away and make my way to my bedroom, my heart in disarray. This is all of my worst nightmares come true. Seeing them together back when Ares and I were nothing but friends was bearable, because I could hide behind our friendship. Now? Now I’ll have to watch my husband fall for the woman I tore him away from, all over again.

“Raven!”

I freeze at the sound of Grandma’s voice and turn around with a polite smile on my lips. Her gaze roams over my face, her expression worried. “Are you okay, my darling?”

I nod. “Of course.”

Grandma looks away. “This is all my fault. I can see you’re hurting, Raven. You wouldn’t be in this situation if not for me. I’m the one who demanded that you marry Ares, but I should have known that it was too late for the two of you. Throughout the years, fate has brought Hannah and Ares together over and over again. I was foolish to think I could untangle their destinies. My attempts to do so have harmed you, and for that, I am forever sorry.”

I shake my head. “No, Grandma. It’s okay, I promise. Ares and I will be okay. You were right about us, and I’ve never once blamed you for the situation we were put in. If anything, I owe you a great debt for it. The last couple of months have been the happiest I’ve ever been.”

She looks into my eyes, her gaze searching. “But that happiness can’t last, Raven. It won’t. My sweet girl, do you think I didn’t notice the pain in your beautiful eyes each time you were around Hannah and Ares?”

I look away and wrap my arms around myself protectively. Was I so transparent? My mind involuntarily drifts back to Hannah telling me that she and Ares used to joke about my crush on him. Did everyone know?

“I don’t want to watch you lose your spirit over the next couple of months or years, Raven. He might be angry and shocked right now, but we both know that his protective instincts will kick in soon enough. It won’t take long for him to realize that she truly is carrying his baby. He’d do anything for his child, don’t you think? Can you bear watching him worry about her? Will your heart stay intact when he places his hand on her belly to feel the baby kick? All of those moments they’ll share that you can’t be part of are bound to hurt you.”

I draw a shaky breath and lift my face. “Then what would you have me do, Grandma?”

“My sweet girl, I don’t know what the right thing to do is, but I want you to think about your own happiness. This isn’t what I wanted for you. For years, I watched you wither away because of your love for Ares. I don’t want you to go through that again. You should have a love so grand that everything else pales in comparison. You should never come second to anyone else, and you shouldn’t have to fight over a man’s attention. But that’s the fate that awaits you with Ares. Hannah won’t let him leave her clutches, and the new bonds between them can’t be broken.”

She looks away for a moment, her gaze filled with sorrow. “I love you just as much as I love Sierra. I have always seen you as one of my own, Raven. Long before you married Ares, I considered you a Windsor.”

Grandma reaches for me and cups my cheek, her thumb swiping away a tear I didn’t realize had fallen. “My sweet girl, if you want to be set free, I’ll let you go. I’ll give you half of Windsor Media and all my support. I never should have asked you to marry Ares in the first place. Let me right my wrongs, Raven.”

I pull away from her, shocked. “Are you asking me to divorce Ares?”

Grandma shakes her head. “No, Raven. I would never ask that of you. I would want nothing more than to keep you in our lives. What I’m asking you to do is to choose yourself. Choose happiness. Prioritize yourself. No one else is going to do it for you, child. It is my hope that you’ll think things through and choose Ares regardless, but I want you to know that you have my support if you decide otherwise.”

She smiles at me and rises to her tiptoes to kiss my forehead before walking away, leaving me standing here with a thousand doubts whirling through my thoughts.