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

I’m not sure I could answer… because the truth is that I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love
you. All I can tell you is that with each passing day, I love you more. You are the best thing that has
ever happened to me, the light of my life, my favorite part of every day. You are the woman of my
dreams, the one I thought got away. I wish I could go back in time and right the wrongs we’ve
endured, but I can’t, baby. All I can do is promise you that I will make up for the time we lost, each
and every single day we spend together. If you let me, I will do everything in my power to protect
your smile, to bring you happiness. There is nothing I won’t do for you, Raven.”
I inhale shakily, my hands trembling slightly.
“When you and I got married, there’s a lot we missed out on. There’s a lot you didn’t get to
experience, so let’s start over, my love. I want you to have everything you deserve, everything we
would’ve had. So here, in the place where we shared our first kiss, I’d like to ask you again… Raven,
will you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?”
I look up at her, a strange sense of fear holding me captive.
Raven smiles, her eyes filled with tears, and then she nods. “Yes, Ares. I’ll marry you. If I could
do it all over again, I’d still choose you. I will always choose you.”
I grin as relief rushes through me and push the engagement ring I bought her onto her finger, right
against her wedding ring. It’s a perfect fit.
I rise to my feet and wrap my arms around my wife. “I love you, Raven. Let’s do it all over again.
Let’s start at the beginning. I want you in a wedding dress of your own choosing, in a venue we both
love, surrounded by people we actually care about. I want a wedding that’s all about us, and not about
our obligations or our families. I want you.”
She looks at me with tears in her eyes and nods. “You really are my every dream come true, you
know that?”
She glances down at her ring in wonder before looking back up at me. “How did you know?” she
asks. “This is exactly what I wanted.”
I hesitate and brush her hair out of her face. “Do you remember that day I asked you to come
shopping with me, and I took you to a jewelry store? You were glancing at rings for a moment or two,
your eyes lingering on a ring similar to this one.” She nods, no doubt recalling that it’s Hannah we
were buying a present for that day. “I called Laurier a day later and requested that he make this ring. I
wanted something reminiscent of the ring you loved in that store, but I wanted something no one else
in this world would have. It was stupid, because back then there was no way I could give it to you,
but I had to have it. I don’t know… maybe a small part of me knew that someday, we’d be together.”
“That day,” she whispers. “When I saw that ring, I remember thinking to myself that I couldn’t
imagine marrying anyone but you.”
I drop my forehead to hers, my heart aching. “We lost so much time,” I murmur. I’d do anything to
go back in time and have a second chance. If I could do it all over, I’d never let anyone or anything
get between us.
“Maybe we did,” she says, “but maybe this is for the best. We both had time to grow, to become
better versions of ourselves than we would have been when we were young. Our lives shaped us,
Ares, and while I’d do anything to have had those moments with you, to erase some of the memories I
have of you… part of me is also grateful that we’re standing here together as the people we are today.
I’m grateful for every lesson, every twist and turn our lives took, because in the end, it all led me
back to you.”
I cup her cheek gently and nod. “It did,” I whisper, leaning in, my lips brushing over hers. “And I
will never let you go again.”