Substitute Bride; My Husband's Mistakes

Celine's POV:

As the clock struck midnight, I heard the thunderous footsteps of my parents approaching my bedroom. I knew something was amiss, for they rarely disturbed my solitude at this hour.

"Celine, you have to take up your sister's place tomorrow," my father, Mr. Morris Mason, said sternly as he stormed into my room, my mother trailing close behind.

I sat up, puzzled. "Dad, I don't understand. Why will I have to take up Clara's place tomorrow? Where is she?" I asked, aware that my twin sister had gone for her bridal shower. How could she just flee on the eve of her wedding?

"Something came up, according to Clara, and she had to take care of it," my father said, and I sighed heavily. Standing in the middle of my bedroom, I realized I had not even attended the extravagant bridal shower of my twin, Clara Mason.

Clara and I were identical twins, both 25 years old. I knew that many of Clara's friends had been whispering that I was jealous of her, for she was getting married before me. But that was not the truth.

I was in a relationship with Martin Enzo, a construction worker. But Martin wasn't the type of groom my father had envisioned for me. So, he had rejected him.

Everyone had always doted on my twin sister. She was the apple of everyone's eye, even our older brother, Luca. But I, on the other hand, was the forgotten one.

I owned a small bakery in this part of the city, and I had pleaded with my parents last month to allow me to marry Martin. But my father had plainly refused, saying that only a rich man was worthy of my hand. Despite my pleas, my parents had refused to let me marry Martin, chasing him and his uncles away after they had come to seek my hand.

Due to this incident, I had refused to attend my sister's engagement party or her bridal shower. And now, she had disappeared and wanted me to take her place on her wedding day.

"How can Clara just disappear without explaining her reason to her manager? That she's getting married to the groom you all wanted?" I queried my father, who stood in my doorway with my mother.

My father had a dark complexion, while my mother was fair, just like me and my twin sister. We were her exact replicas.

"Celine, I know this is hard to believe, but Clara said she had worked so hard to be among those selected for the Stars Award, and she cannot miss the modeling shoot. Please, you are her twin sister, and Jace Augustus will never find out," my mother pleaded with me, and I looked at her face in horror.

"Mom, I cannot do it. You and Father need to order Clara to come back right now. Where's my phone?" I moved back and went to pick up my phone, determined to call my sister and demand an explanation for this sudden disappearance. How could she expect me to stand in for her on her wedding day? Was she out of her mind? I had already stood in for Clara numerous times, and many wouldn't know that I was not Clara. The worst part was that her fans visited my shop, taking photos of me and tagging me as Clara. But I was not my sister. Damn it.

"Clara!" My angry voice boomed over the phone as soon as she answered my call.

"Hey, Celine. I'm sorry I took so long to call you. Please, can you stand in for me tomorrow? Please, please, sister," Clara begged me, her sweet, seductive voice rendering me speechless. I was ready to do anything for this crazy sister of mine, just to make her happy and to achieve her dream as a top model.

"Clara, I don't think I can do this. How do you expect me to stand in for you? Wait, during the wedding, the priests will ask us to exchange vows and kiss. How can you trade your wedding day for business?" I couldn't understand my sister, so I needed an explanation.

"Celine, I wish I could explain this to you, but my phone battery will soon run out. Please, after this, I won't ask you to stand in for me again. Please, please," Clara begged me once more, rendering me speechless.

"Are you saying that I should kiss your groom? What if he finds out that I'm not you? You know I'm not as talkative as you, and I'm not that close to him. Did you already tell him that I'm not you?" I asked, wanting a better clarification. As I knew Jace and I weren't close.

I knew that Jace was my sister's fiancé. He showed her off to his friends and other politicians, as my sister was a very popular person with more than 10 million followers online.

"No, Celine. Please, don't tell Jace that I'm not you. You have to act as me and pretend that you are me. You know how I behave, so mimic me very closely," Clara said, and I sighed heavily.

"This is too risky. What if Jace finds out and locks me up? What do I tell him? You have to explain to him so that we don't kiss. Or even think of me as you. I don't like your fiancé, and I cannot stand in for you. I'm sorry," I wanted to end the call on my sister, but she begged me, "Please, Celine. I'm begging you. If you don't help me out, then we're no longer sisters."

"Clara!" I was tongue-tied. This was her usual threat.

"I don't think I can do this," I said, and she threatened, already sobbing over the phone call. "Then do not call me again."

The phone call ended, and I looked at my parents' worried faces, especially my father's, which was filled with dread.

"Celine, you have to stand in for Clara. If the Augustus family find out that your sister is missing, then we are doomed," my father begged, even going so far as to kneel down.

I guessed this was the price I had to pay for being born a twin. My twin sister used me for most of her silly business, sending me to cover up for her with the threat of disowning me. Now it was her wedding day.

"Fine. I will try and do this. But I hope Jace Augustus doesn't find out. If he does, I won't go down alone," I warned my parents, and they shivered.

"No one will know. You will learn to smile and act like Clara until she's back. Besides, this isn't your first time taking her place," my mother said, making me sigh heavily.

"Fine. I'll give it a try. You guys should excuse me. Let me have some sleep. It's past midnight," I told my parents, and they smiled and wished me goodnight before leaving my room.

I shut the door and muttered, "I hope I can do this." I later went to my bed to sleep, but dread filled my heart.