WHEN HIS HEART GOES WRONG epub vk download

POV: ERICA

Hundreds of guests waited to see me walk down the aisle in lace and lies. The limousine waited outside, ready to ride me into a future I never wanted.

Instead, I gripped my dress and bolted through the back door of the bridal suite.

I was sprinting through the crowded streets of Sierra, heels in my hand, heart dragging behind me like a bruised, broken thing.

It hurts. But I didn't shed a tear.

I didn't cry when my stepmother zipped up my wedding dress this morning with a victorious grin.

She had wanted nothing but to marry me off. My marriage would remove the only threat to her son inheriting my father's wealth.

I didn't cry when my father looked me in the eye and said, "I know you don't love him. But you must marry him."

Having Hays as a son-in-law will elevate his status, increase his influence, promote him, and boost his market value. My father would rather sacrifice my happiness than see that not happen.

I didn't even cry when my supposed husband-to-be, rich, arrogant, Leonard Hays, texted me minutes ago saying: "I won't be available today. Let's go through with the wedding next week."

As if I were property. As if I had no say.

But I cried when Nathan said: "He'll find us, Erica. And he'll have just killed. I can't risk it."

He refused to run with me when I told him Leonard had made a mockery of me; he has postponed our so-called wedding like it was a mere date. Nathan refused to cease that heaven-sent opportunity to finally have me to himself.

I've always known he feared Leonard; most people do, but did he really believe Leonard could kill us?

Nathan's words gutted me. He didn't sound like the man I fell in love with. I tried to understand, tried to accept that he was no match for Leonard. But his complete surrender made me question whether he ever truly loved me.

Nathan, the only man I ever loved. My best friend. My Almost. Gone. Just like that.

And now, so was I.

I didn't know where I was going; I just knew I had to get out. Out of the town. Out of the prison of expectations.

Now here I was, hours later, in a strange city, standing outside a noisy park, barefoot and dazed, wondering what the hell came next.

That's when I saw her.

Perhaps I was hallucinating. The heartbreak, the exhaustion - they had to be playing tricks on me.

Because the woman across the street, laughing with her friend, looked exactly like me.

Same face. Same height. Same everything.

I blinked. Looked again. And she was gone.

Maybe I was losing my mind after all.

*********

Later that night, I sat at the bar counter of a dimly lit nightclub, pretending I belonged in a world that didn't ask questions. My makeup had faded. My curls had collapsed.

"Give me something strong," I told the bartender. "Something that'll move me like them." I gestured at the crowd, dancing like nothing could touch them.

With a curious glance at my outfit, he slid a short glass toward me. I downed it in one gulp.

I exhaled hard, sliding the glass back with a scrunched face. That made him smile.

"More, please," I added.

The second drink was stronger. I coughed slightly.

"You'll be dancing soon," he said and moved on.

A few minutes passed. No dancing feet yet. Maybe the alcohol was bluffing.

Just then, a man nudged me.

"No, no... not this again," he said, annoyingly but friendly. "What the hell are you doing in a wedding dress?"

I blinked at him. I didn't recognise his face. Had he seen me before? Hell, that wouldn't be good for my escape.