I Said Yes

He looked at me, his piercing eyes cold and sharp. “What do you want?” he asked, his tone irritated. “Cat got your tongue?” Fear gripped me, but I couldn’t back down. Not when proving my love was on the line. My hands trembled, but I managed to speak. “Hunter Steele...” I swallowed hard, my voice barely above a whisper. “Will you... will you marry me?” His brows furrowed, and he tilted his head slightly. “What?” ANYA BLAKE ____________________________________ I can’t remember the last time I willingly let a woman get so close. To me, they were a necessary evil....useful when needed, and avoided afterward. But when a young woman, trembling yet determined, stepped in front of me and asked the most ridiculous question I’d ever been asked, I felt something I hadn’t felt in years: a spark. And when I kissed her, it awakened something in me—a feeling I hadn’t known existed. Her innocence intrigued me and I wanted to be the one to claim her, to mold her......to make her mine. HUNTER STEELE

“I hate you!” I picked up the flower vase from the center table, and lifted my hand to throw it at him. But before I could do so, the man from behind gripped my hand, and collected it from me. “Are you going to sign the divorce papers?” he brought out a gun, and cocked it. “Or would you rather lose your life?” ****************** Sometimes, saying 'I do' could be the beginning of true marital bliss. And other times? It could be the beginning of endless suffering and torture. Abby had only ever wanted a man for herself, and when Claude showed up, he was everything she could ask for, and even more. But sometimes, even criminals wear innocent faces. What happens when Abby learns that the man whom she loved was responsible for the explosion that claimed the lives of her parents and best friend?

“Are you crying?" She shook her head and wiped at her face as more tears were falling. “I’m so stupid.” she groaned. "Now I am truly and utterly alone. If I had just said yes to marrying him, none of this would’ve happened. I wouldn’t have dragged you into this mess.” Without warning, I turned sharp to the side, putting the car to a sudden stop close to the curb. “Don’t ever say that again. You think marrying a man you don’t love, a man who doesn’t care if he hurts you, just to please your family is the right thing to do?” I turned to her slowly. “That would’ve ruined you.” “But I would’ve had a home to go to, I would’ve been taken care of. Now I have nothing,” she looked away. I reached over and gently took her bruised hand in mine. “You did the hardest thing anyone in your position could have done. You saved yourself. That takes more guts than standing there and pretending to be happy.” I tucked a hair behind her ear. “You think you are alone? You’re not… you have me.” ___ Alina Etienne has always lived a life dictated by her parents. She is groomed to be an obedient daughter, a perfect public image, and now, a bride to a man she doesn’t know or love. On her wedding day, crushed by the weight of expectations, Alina does the unthinkable... she says “I don’t” and flees the altar. On the run and scared with nowhere to go, she crosses paths with Mikhail Antonov. A cold, guarded man with a past he doesn’t talk about. What began as a reluctant act of kindness turned into something neither of them expected.

Seven days before our wedding, Danny Wagner—my childhood sweetheart—got down on one knee for Mia Kant, the broke girl he'd been sponsoring. Right in front of me and his buddies. I didn't cry. Didn't lose it. Just slapped a smile on my face and said, "Wishing you two a lifetime of happiness." His buddies? Oh, they had the nerve to tell me to be generous and let Danny help Mia finish her "wish list." Danny, unsatisfied and ticked off, said I was overreacting and demanded an apology. Dismissive, he sneered, "I said I'd marry you after Mia's wish list was done. Stop being so unreasonable." I knew this was the last item on her list. I opened my notes app, scrolled to my wish list, and deleted all thirty-three bullet points. Done. Then I made a call. "I'm willing to marry you."

Once my future father-in-law, Terrence, bounced back from a terrible car accident, my fiancée, Sarah, promised me a surprise for nursing him back to health. To my dread, Sarah said yes to her ex’s proposal right under Terrence’s nose during his hospital discharge the very next day. Faced with my grilling, Sarah simply explained, “Sure, you took great care of my dad, but without Aiden pulling strings to get him on the experimental treatment program, he wouldn’t have survived. “Besides, I only accepted his proposal to make my dad happy. It wasn’t real. Can’t you be a little understanding?” I was stunned. Still, I chose not to act out. After I dropped Terrence off at home, Sarah handed me a bouquet of red roses and a cake, saying they were my surprise. As I met her gaze with expectation, Sarah sent me away with an excuse. That was all the surprise she had prepared for me–just flowers and a cake. Disappointment and heartbreak washed over me. I took out the ring I was going to propose to her with and dropped it into the trash can. “Since you’ve said yes to Aiden, our engagement is over.”

“I Do” hearing those two words coming from him breaks my heart into million pieces again. I lost him forever. Everything is happening infront of me. I closed my eyes and started thinking about our memories and trying to forget them forever. Then we heard “No!” shocking each and one of us. But who cares, He said “I Do”…