#Chapter 6: The Wedding Night

I sat patiently on a bed of roses as I waited for Ethan. A deep blush brightened my cheeks and I nervously chewed on my bottom lip. Ethan never mentioned anything in the contract, but it was our wedding night. What if he had presumptions about the two of us? So, I sat and waited, unsure of what to do. Ethan and I were married at the altar after he confessed that he wanted me, not Dora. I wasn’t wearing white, and I didn’t have any vows planned, but we were officially pronounced man and wife that evening. After the wedding, Ethan took me back to his villa where I would be living for the next year. Until our divorce, of course. The door opened. The sudden movement blew a few of the rose petals around and they skittered across the floor. Ethan entered and paused. He looked around the room and gave me a funny look. “Well, this is just lovely. Is this all for me?” Ethan teased as he looked around the romantically decorated room. “I didn’t know you felt this way.” I stood up, not wanting to give him the wrong idea. It was embarrassing to be so nervous around him, especially when he always seemed so aware of everything I was feeling. “Why did you lie about being a bodyguard?” I asked to tear his attention away from the decorations. The question had been eating away at me since I saw him at the gala. “I didn’t.” He shrugged and gestured at himself. “You assumed I was one, I just never confirmed it.” “You could’ve told me,” I looked down, suddenly feeling quite shy. “I wouldn’t have thought any different.” “Well,” Ethan tilted my head so that I was looking at him again. “You never told me you were a substitute for my original fiance. I think we’re even.” “I’m sorry,” I mumbled, a blush growing on my face. “Dora, my half-sister, she wanted free from the engagement because she found someone who was incredibly rich and you-” I stopped myself. How could I tell Ethan that everyone in the wolfworld thought he was a poor nobody before he revealed himself to be the Blue Moon Group CEO and Alpha? “She didn’t want to marry you.” I cleared my throat. “It’s alright. I knew from the start.” Ethan shrugged. “How?” “Your clothes when we first met.” He said, taking off his suit jacket. “You didn’t look like the daughter of a rich alpha. Dora did, though.” “Well, your clothes didn’t make you look like a rich alpha CEO when we first met either,” I defended. Ethan just smirked and walked past me. He threw his suit jacket on a chair nearby and took his tie off. He sat himself down gently on the bed, stretching over the rose petals. He grabbed a couple of the petals and rolled them between his fingers, looking at the ceiling as he rested on his back. He closed his eyes briefly. I made my way to the edge of the bed and gazed down at him. “If you’re sleeping here, where am I going to sleep?” I asked. Ethan grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the bed with him. My body sunk deeply into the soft mattress and I was pressed snuggly against his side. “You know, husbands and wives are supposed to sleep together,” He propped himself up so that he was now draped over me. Our faces were incredibly close, and his gaze flicked from my eyes to my lips. He leaned further into me. He was going to kiss me! I closed my eyes, anticipating the contact, but I was only met with a breathy chuckle brushing against the skin of my cheek. “I’m only teasing,” He whispered into my ear and pulled away, leaving my side feeling cold. Embarrassed, I reached for the pillow at the head of the bed and thrust it in his face. Ethan’s chuckle grew to a full hearty laugh as he got up. He ran his hand through his hair, dispelling some stray rose petals from it, and grinned. “You smell really good, by the way,” He winked and picked up his jacket to leave. I was relieved that he wasn’t expecting me to do anything that night. Another small part of me, though I didn’t want to admit it, was also a little disappointed that he was leaving me alone. “Wait!” I called out and sat up on the bed as he reached for the door. Ethan turned and looked at me expectantly. “Why me?” I asked. “Why not Dora? She’s the one with the higher status, she’s the one that would make a better Luna.” Ethan’s smile fell slightly, he took a step towards me, and leaned closer. He placed his hand on the top of my head and ruffled my hair. I scrunch my face at him, making him smile fondly. “You’re better than Dora,” He stated simply. “Enjoy your life at the villa while you’re here, don’t worry about being a Luna, ok?” I nodded in understanding as he left. My eyes welled up with tears the moment the door shut behind him. Quiet sobs erupted from my lips as I lay in my new home. No one besides my mom had ever cared about my comfort or told me I was worth choosing. Living with Ethan was the best thing to happen to me so far. The next day, I awoke much earlier than Ethan. I wanted to wait for him so we could get to know each other more and spend the day together, but I needed to check on my mom. I was hopeful, now that I agreed to his terms and I was actually married to Ethan, that my father would uphold his end of the agreement and have a doctor come to tend to my mother. I wanted to check on her. I left the house shortly after getting ready, leaving a small note on the kitchen counter for Ethan to find. When I got to the house, I went straight to my mother’s room excited to see her after the doctor’s visit. However, she looked just as she did before we left for the wedding. Her blanket was never changed, the damp cloth on her forehead had dried, and snot crusted around her nose and mouth. No one had tended to her at all. “What is this?” I demanded as I stormed into my father’s office. “Why hasn’t my mother been cared for since I left?” “Hello Ava,” He rolled his eyes. Dora and Hellen were also in his office, apparently I had interrupted a family meeting. “Maybe if my boyfriend didn’t dump me after you caused such a fiasco with your husband at that stupid gala, we would have the money for treatment.” Dora sneered at me. “You’ve ruined your sister’s prospects,” My father said angrily. “How do you expect us to pay for your mother’s treatment now?” “It was your idea for me to do this, for me to switch places!” I defended, throwing my arms wide. “It’s not my fault!” Hellen frowned at me, her face pinched together and cruel-looking, “She can’t even get a new boyfriend after you caused such a scene at the wedding.” “Well, Ethan wants her saved, so if you want to continue doing any business with the Blue Moon Group then you should heal her.” I bluffed, hoping that would scare them into getting a doctor for my mom. My father only stared back at me, unyielding. “How is your relationship with Ethan?” He asked, suspiciously. “It doesn’t seem like he wants you, your relationship is a secret afterall. No one but us know you’re married.” “He loves me very much,” I lied. I wasn’t actually sure what Ethan’s feelings for me were. “He loves my mom too. So, please, save her for his sake.” Dora scoffed at that. She rounded on me, pointing an accusatory finger in my direction, “If he cared so much, why didn’t he come with you? Why isn’t he here now demanding a doctor?” I opened my mouth to respond, but someone else could be heard outside the study. “Hello?” Ethan’s voice rang out from the hallway. “Ava?” ---