The Wrong Bride (The Windsors, #1)(80)

I stare at him speechlessly, and he smirks. “Yeah,” he whispers. “I didn’t see it coming either, but here we are, baby. You and me. It’s just you and me in this marriage, Raven. There’s no space for anyone else, so stop letting her in. I know it hurts, and I know you love her. It isn’t easy to figure out how to keep her in our lives when each time we see her, we’re confronted with a past we both wish didn’t exist. I feel the same guilt you’re feeling, but it isn’t ours to carry. You and I have done nothing wrong, you hear me?”

I nod and wrap my arms around his neck, my words caught in my throat. He has no idea how long I’ve been wanting to hear these words, or how much they mean to me.

Another tear runs down my cheek, and Ares catches it with his thumb. He cups my face and leans in, his lips brushing over mine gently, softly, his kiss conveying every single word he just spoke.





Chapter Fifty





Ares





I smile to myself as I stare at The Herald’s headline. Normally, the mere name of this damn gossip paper pisses me off. Their titles are always overly sensational and irritating, but today they’ve done a great job.





Raven and Ares Windsor’s wedding rings reportedly cost MILLIONS





Looks like nothing is impossible for the top 1%. Ares and Raven’s rings were reportedly handcrafted by elusive master goldsmith Richard Laurier. Our sources tell us that the couple’s rings were designed by the famous model and designer herself. Laurier’s designs are highly coveted and rare, reserved mostly for royalty. We have it on good authority that many celebrities have been shunned by the goldsmith, but it appears an exception was made for the Windsors.

Recent photos of Raven’s ring reveal that it’s at least fifteen carats. Based on our estimates, her ring is worth a cool 25 million. Meanwhile, her media mogul husband appears to be wearing a ring with a feather pattern on it — no doubt a tribute to his wife’s name. A bold move for a couple that is so secretive about their relationship, yet it’s perfectly in line with what we’d expect of the Windsors.

In the coming days, we hope to give you more news about the couple that continues to evade our cameras with surprising ease. Stay tuned, and remember, you read it here first!





I smirk at the cute photo of Raven and me, my arm around her shoulder as we walk out of her office building. Hannah is crazy if she thinks she can get away with hurting Raven the way she did. I’ve been patient and quiet, in part out of respect for our past and her relationship to Raven, and in part because of the guilt I feel every time Raven makes my heart race. But it ends here. There’s a lot I’m willing to overlook, but tears in my wife’s eyes aren’t one of those things.

Hannah always desperately wanted her rings to be designed by Laurier, but I’ve always steadfastly refused. I’m not even sure why. Perhaps it’s because my grandmother always insisted that he was only to be contacted for intricate heirloom pieces. I have no idea, yet I didn’t even think twice when Raven so much as insinuated that she didn’t like her ring. I know this’ll hurt Hannah, but I’m done catering to her. I’m done keeping the peace.

Raven doesn’t know it, but I’ve tightly controlled the press surrounding us. Every hint of a rumor about Hannah and me has been suppressed before it ever saw the light, but I’ll need to be more careful. It’s harder to control information on the internet. I can do it just fine in newspapers and magazines, but the internet moves too fast to completely bury stories.

Hannah isn’t used to not getting her way, and I think she’s finally starting to realize that she and I are truly over. She won’t take well to Raven and I being happy together. That wasn’t part of her plans, after all. It’d be so easy to destroy her career and remove her from our lives, but I know Raven would never let that happen. She’s always loved Hannah in a way Hannah never deserved. I can’t risk fueling Raven’s guilt.

Thankfully, my words gave Raven the reassurance she needed in our relationship, but I suspect her sadness stems from the knowledge that things will never be the same again between Hannah and her. For as long as I’ve known her, Raven has made excuses for her sister. I think she’s finally starting to see that this time, the only way to make her sister happy is by sacrificing her own happiness.

I paste on my best innocent smile as I walk into the house, welcomed by the sound of Raven’s sweet voice singing a rendition of some pop song I don’t know. She hasn’t been herself since her argument with Hannah, but she seems better today. I have no doubt she’s seen The Herald’s article, since I made sure that it’s trending everywhere.

I pause in the doorway to the kitchen and take her in. She’s wearing a long cream-colored nightgown today, and fuck, she looks far too enticing in it.

It’s odd, because I’ve seen her walk down the catwalk in nothing but underwear, yet this is so much sexier. Outside of work, she’s always been dressed so professionally that it feels strangely enticing to see this side of her… this part that only belongs to me. No one but me gets to see my wife like this, her hair in a bun, no makeup on her beautiful face, and her body on display for me.

“Hey baby,” I murmur as I walk up to her. She smiles at me and lifts her face for a quick kiss. “What are you making?” I ask, looking over her shoulder.