Ninety Nine Wishes One Broken Marriage Novels & Stories

I gave a soft, bitter laugh and slowly slipped our documents back into my pocket. “This makes ninety-nine.” “What?” “This is the ninety-ninth time we’ve tried to get our marriage registered.” I turned toward the subway entrance. “And the ninety-ninth time you’ve left me hanging because of him.” I heard her heels stop on the pavement, then suddenly start running after me. “The first time, you bailed on our trip because he was on the night shift and scared of the dark. You took a red-eye flight just to be with him. “The second time, we were practically at the door of the courthouse. You heard he fainted from overwork and left me standing in the snow alone for an entire day.”

Then another text came through, carrying his usual unquestionable certainty. [Once I’m done handling this situation, we’ll have the wedding. I promise. Just wait for me a little longer, okay?] I stared at the message for half a minute before blocking his number and deleting every way he could contact me. As the plane took off, I watched the city slowly disappear beneath the clouds. I touched the scar on my face that hadn’t fully faded, then looked down at the bandages wrapped around my hands. There was no reluctance, only relief. Ninety-nine canceled weddings were enough.

“Mallory, do you really think everyone here is stupid? I’ve used that same excuse nine times. Do you expect me to say it a tenth time too?” Mallory’s expression darkened immediately. She said with displeasure, “As you said, nine times. So, what is one more? You won’t even say something to defend Ruth. Is your love for her even real?” She spoke as if the request were perfectly justified. Over the past two years, ever since Ruth’s adopted brother, Peter Conroy, returned home, we had gotten married and divorced nine times. Every single time, she gambled our marriage against Peter in some bet.

The baby had already grown tiny hands and feet. But it still couldn't stay. That time, I completely broke down. I grabbed the divorce agreement from Gary's hand, signed my name across it, and threw it back at him. "I've had enough. Let's just get divorced!" My throat tightened as I shouted like a madman, my voice shaky and desperate. Gary looked at me in surprise. Then, he laughed. He reached out and slowly pulled me into his arms, his voice gentle. "Don't be silly. Back then, I proposed to you 99 times before you agreed to marry me. If we're going to divorce, we'll wait until we reach the 99th agreement. Otherwise, I'd be taking too big a loss."

At the wedding venue the next day, I stood off in a quiet corner, waiting for Philip to come find me. Then Teresa showed up uninvited, her voice soft and syrupy. "Guess I'll never get to marry Derick in this life. Summer, can I at least experience a wedding night before that?" I didn't respond, but Derick cut in like he was being perfectly reasonable. "Stop being jealous. What's wrong with helping Teresa fulfill a wish? Do you have to be this petty?"

But now, he was going to marry someone else. I froze in my reverie. Those beautiful moments seemed to have only happened yesterday. Connor's fork stopped midair, and he frowned hard. "What? No!" Two voices rang out at the same time. "You can't leave. You still have one wish left." Nadine spoke first with a displeased scowl on her face. "You can't have it anymore," I stated blandly. What they didn't know was that the final wish had already been used up. Since all Connor wanted was wealth and glory, I would let him experience what it was like to have nothing.

"Rowena, I don't agree to sever the mate bond! If you don't like Lyralei, I'll send her away immediately! If you don't want those pups, I can place them with another pack! Rowena, come out! I'll do whatever you want!" He reached through the mind link again and again. There was still no response. It was as if she had vanished completely. Sudden realization struck him. Garrick grabbed his phone and removed her from the blacklist. The call still would not go through. Again and again, he heard nothing but dead silence.

I managed softly. She nodded. "Read them." I looked back down at the page. *"One final request."* *"Don't waste years waiting for the perfect moment to build a life together."* *"I made that mistake once, believing there would always be more time after the next challenge, the next responsibility, or the next victory."* *"Life has a way of reminding us that tomorrow is a privilege, not a promise."* *"When you know you have found home..."* *"Go home."*

The sadness in them is quiet and deep, as if he’s already grieving something he hasn’t named. “Make a wish,” he says when the singing ends. I lean forward and blow out the candle. I don’t wish for promotions or even for Elaris to return at full strength. I wish that our marriage will survive my stupidity and lies. Austin reaches across the table and takes my hand. His thumb brushes my knuckles once, but he doesn’t ask what I wished for. He holds on while the waiter cuts the cake and the ordinary sounds of the restaurant settle around us again. Outside, the city continues its usual movements. Inside, I sit across from the man who put my name on succession papers I was never meant to see. Who

The night I decided to end my marriage, I met God. He gave me a chance to change the past by letting me meet my wife at eighteen. So I made two wishes. First, I wished she would stay out of that alley. Otherwise, the boy she loved would get hurt trying to save her. Second, I wished she would never confess her feelings to Ethan Lawson and would disappear from his life forever. Because by the time Claire Lane turned thirty, she no longer loved him.