The-Wrong-Bride-Ares--Raven’s-story-(Maura,-Catharina)_bibis

show.”
He steps out of the car without a second thought, and cameras start to flash, blinding me straight
through the car’s tinted windows. Ares walks around the car and opens my door for me, offering me
his hand with a wicked smile on his face.
I place my hand in his and smile up at him. “This,” he tells me as he helps me to my feet. “This is
what I’ve always wanted, Raven. It’s you. You’re the one that’s made all of my dreams come true.”
I smile and shake my head. “You’re trying extra hard to reassure me. Are my insecurities that
apparent?”
We walk down the red carpet as cameras flash, the crowd throwing questions at us that we ignore.
“No,” Ares tells me. “Not to anyone but me. You look confident and radiant, as always, but I can
see beyond it. I see the way you keep touching your wedding ring, the moments of absentmindedness
as doubts steal your attention away from me. I notice every little thing about you, Raven. I can assure
you, my darling wife, you don’t have a single thing to worry about.”
I nod, my nerves put to ease as we reach the end of the red carpet, where a select few reporters
and photographers await us. Ares and I approach the flower backdrop that’s been put in place for the
event, and his hand wraps around my waist, his touch possessive.
“Congratulations on your marriage,” one of the reporters says. “It came as a huge surprise to many
of us. How have you been able to hide your relationship so well?”
Ares smiles at me for a moment before turning toward her. “Did we hide it? Or did you just fail to
notice it? My wife and my sister have been best friends since they were kids, so she’s been at the
Windsor mansion at least once a week for years. She’s been at every single major Windsor event
throughout the years too, and she’s often been spotted with my grandmother, hasn’t she? You just
failed to connect the dots.”
The reporter looks flustered, and she clears her throat before moving on the next question.
“That diamond necklace you’re wearing, Raven. Isn’t that a Windsor heirloom? It’s said that it
was crafted by the Laurier family hundreds of years ago.”
I lift my hand to my necklace and smile. “That’s right. Ares’s grandmother gave it to me.”
The reporter chuckles. “It’s said that seeing a Windsor bride wearing an heirloom piece signifies
the matriarch’s approval. Would you say that’s true?”
I chuckle and narrow my eyes at her playfully. She knows as well as I do that the Windsors guard
their family secrets heavily. “All I have to say is that I’ve always loved Ares’s grandmother like she
is my own, and I’m beyond grateful to receive her love in return. We had a great relationship long
before I married Ares.”
She nods at my non-answer and turns to Ares. “Could you tell us, Mr. Windsor? What is it about
Raven that made you fall for her, other than her obvious good looks?”
He looks at me with the most besotted smile on his face, and my heart starts to race as he turns
back to her, his smile as wide as mine. “She’s the smartest, sweetest, most loyal and most
hardworking woman I know. She has never once let me down, and she’s always been there for me
throughout the years, no matter what I asked of her. Raven isn’t just my wife. She’s everything to me.
She might be my sister’s best friend, but she’s mine, too. I fell for her heart before I ever fell for any
other part of her.”
The reporter looks as smitten as I probably do, and she’s smiling gleefully as she turns to me.
“What about you, Raven? What is it that you love about Ares Windsor?”
I grin at her and shrug. “Me? Oh, I totally just married him for his good looks.”
Ares and she both burst out laughing, and he shakes his head at me. “Talking about good looks,”