CHAPTER 1

"Pain isn't dark. Hopelessness is."

•••

Kaylee's POV:

I was in a bridal room. It was my wedding day, and I was quite nervous. It wasn't a love marriage. It was an arranged marriage to some billionaire named Erthan Salvatore.

He was a young billionaire. I had seen him just once in my life.

There was an age gap between us. I was 21 and was studying business. I would've been applying for a job if my brother wasn't forcing me to marry someone I didn't know.

But that's life. That is how it always goes. It never goes the way you think it will. Never.

I was 21, and Erthan was 30, so there was a nine-year gap between us—but I didn't mind that. As I said, life never goes the way you think it will.

He was handsome, and I didn't think he was happy with this whole arranged marriage thing either. I could feel it: he hated me. Actually, he never smiled at all—at anybody.

Speaking of this whole marriage thing, I didn't know why my mum and brother had decided to marry me off to someone I had never met, let alone liked, in my entire life.

I had never had a boyfriend. I was never allowed to have one, nor had I ever felt a pull towards someone.

This husband-to-be of mine looked very dangerous, but I hoped he wasn't. I hoped everything would go smoothly—this marriage and everything else. I hoped we would fall in love after being married for a short time, and everything would go smoothly. But I had a bad feeling about it.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by a knock on the door.

"Honey, are you ready?" My mom came in and stood before me. She pulled her hands up to cover her open mouth. "Oh my God, look at you… You look so pretty/ The prettiest bride I have ever seen," she said with adoration in her eyes.

I smiled. "Thank you, Mom… I'm just nervous," I said, and truly, I was hella nervous. God help me. I didn't want to think about what would happen if things did not go as I thought they would.

"My precious child, that's normal. After all, you are going to start a new chapter of your life." She smiled and kissed my forehead. "And don't think too negatively. You know your brother never makes bad decisions."

I forced a smile at that. Hell, everybody knew he was always getting in trouble. My mother loved him so much. Too much. Blindly, actually. She never saw flaws in him.

"Yeah, sure," I said, mentally rolled my eyes, and put a fake smile on my face.

"Okay, let's go," she said as we made our way to the ceremony. My mum gave my hands to my brother so he could walk me down the aisle. My dad wasn't here to walk me. I was eight years old when he died from a heart attack. To me, he had been the most handsome man in the world. He always used to read me bedtime stories. He loved me the most in the world. He would always stand up for me whenever I made a mistake, but he also used to teach me things and manners.

Honestly, my mum was always too busy with my brother. She never bothered to read me bedtime stories, even after my dad died. He always used to say to me, "Stay strong. You're the strongest and most beautiful baby girl I have ever seen." A tear slipped down my face as I remembered his words and his praise.

"Kaylee, look what good fortune you have here. A billionaire as a husband. You will have everything at the snap of your fingers. Just don't make him angry. He can be dangerous. Don't let your brother down, okay?" my brother whispered into my ear as we walked down the aisle.

He had always been a gold digger. He always thought of money and nothing else. He never treated me well and always used to yell at me for little things. And my mum would always take his side, always saying I was the wrong one in every little conflict. But I didn't hate him. After all, he was my brother.

I didn't even try to look at my husband-to-be's face. I kept my head down.

When we reached the altar, he didn't even offer me his hand…