The Fourth Wife

ARIA'S POVThe words resounded in my ears again."You'd have to marry Dominic, there's no other way we can settle our debts.And I couldn't reply. I had no words to change my fate. I was silent. I thought when they would officially tell me, I would scream, argue, tell them No, tell them over my dead body, but here I was silent as a dead mouse.What can I do? My mum is begging me in tears to just endure. “Aria.” My mum called my name, her hands stretching to hold mine, I should move to get closer to her but I just remained still. “ I'm sorry. We're sorry. But there's nothing else we can do.” She squeezed my hand when she finally got hold of it, her other hand wiping the tears that were streaming down her cheeks.“Aria, his uncle said he'll protect you”. My dad standing in the corner finally spoke, “He said he's going to make sure nothing happens to you, he's like a brother to me, he won't let any harm come your way.” He said moving closer.“The debts…” he continued, now really close t

ARIA'S POVI thought maybe when I woke up, this would all turn out to be a dream. A nightmare. But no, here I was. Friday was gone before I even noticed. Like it didn't care. And before I could even blink, it was Saturday.My wedding day. Funny. It's my wedding day, and I haven't even seen the man I'm supposed to marry. What a perfect wedding. I didn't bother stopping the scoff that slipped out.The house was loud. Really, really loud. I didn't even know I had so many relatives, they all came crawling out of nowhere, filling the kitchen with whatever they thought was funny, laughing like this was Christmas. And none of them could help with the debt. I rolled my eyes. The door creaked open, and my mum walked in, smiling like this was the best day of her life. I haven't seen her smile like this in months. She was holding my gown. The gown I never tried on. They just asked me for my measurements, and it was delivered to me in a box, like some delivery. I stared at it, hoping it woul

ARIA'S POVIt was finally time to say goodbye. Goodbye to my parents. Goodbye to the people I once called home.I hugged my mum and held on longer than I should have, her familiar perfume hovering around me. I was going to miss that smell. When I finally let go, her smile was too bright, the most obvious fake smile I’d seen all day. The guests were better at hiding theirs. I could see she was breaking inside.My dad didn’t hug me. He held my hands instead and whispered, “Be strong.” I nodded and forced a smile of my own. Then he let go.The car was already waiting.“Goodbye,” I said to both of them before turning away. Why that word? It felt too heavy, like I was saying see you never. I wanted to run back and hug them again, but my feet kept moving forward, maybe so they wouldn’t see the tears building in my eyes.The valet shut the car door behind me with a heavy thud. The chauffeur glanced at me in the rearview mirror and gave a slight nod, saying nothing. I was glad. I didn’t think

ARIA'S POVSo this is my husband.Did he just fire that poor guy for dropping a glass? Well, he had just talked about my life and death while cutting into his steak as if it meant nothing.He set his napkin down and spoke again, not even glancing at me.“Be ready by noon. We’re going out, and wear black.”Why did he talk so much without even raising his head? And why is he talking while eating,wasn’t he taught table manners?Fine. If I had only a one-year life span, I might as well use it for something worth it. Shopping!So I replied, my voice loud enough for him and every servant to hear, “I don't have anything to wear.”That made him look at me at last. His eyes lingered on my face, as if he were processing what he had just heard. “Are you that poor?”“Yes.” My voice wasn’t loud this time. He had just shattered my confidence with four words.The silence that followed… I swear I could hear my heartbeat. If the servants had listened closely, they would have heard it too. His gaze rem

DOMINIC’S POVExactly five minutes later, Juan knocked. Twice. Then came in. This was why I kept him close, always on time. He closed the door behind him, he knew not to leave it open for eavesdroppers.He stood there, hands folded at his front.“You were late today,” I said.“Yes, sir.”It wasn’t his nature, he always kept to time, but the red mark on his cheek reminded me, someone had to take the fall. She probably felt the sting worse than he did. I hate delays, and I had to teach a lesson. So I made him the scapegoat. It needed to be someone’s fault.He lowered his head. “It won’t happen again. I’m sorry, sir.”“It better not.”I leaned back in my chair, watching him stand there with his head slightly bowed. For a moment, I almost dropped it. Then the thought slipped out:“So, what do you think of her?”His head snapped back up. Guess he was caught off guard.I rose from my seat and paced. Letting the words spill like I hadn’t meant them. “She’s… different. I forget her name. She