BILLIONAIRE'S LIES CHAPTER 2

The next day came, though her feelings had been utterly smashed the night before, the wedding preparations continued on. Sabrina hardly recognised who peered back at her as she sat in the bride's suite: white, pale, tear-rimmed eyes, but still, a beautiful silken cloth hugged her body, soft curls framed her face.Her mother, Leila, entered and sat beside her. Her face etched with despair.

"Sabrina dear," she whispered softly, "do you really want to do this? You don't have to do this."

Sabrina shook her head. New tears formed in her eyes. "Mom, what am I suppose to do?" she whispered in a barely audible voice, her voice barely above a whisper, quivering with uncertainty. "I love him, but he…. He hates me."

The burden of her heart pressure weighed upon her chest so heavily that it became unbearable to breathe. She felt lost and scared, like standing at a crossroads with no signs guiding her.

Then her eyes questioned her mother to seek solace as well as find answers that seemed really too far and unattainable. She stood helpless in the midst of such a moment like this daughter, with a plea for some form of support against confusion and the pain that will sink within themselves.

"I just feel so broken," she added, barely above whisper in her voice.She took his hands in hers and began to massage them with her fingertips. "You want a better life than this, my love. You want someone to love you back."

Sabrina continued, speaking with her heavy voice, "I thought maybe. If I marry him, he will change. But he is angry and I do not know if I can fix it.".But Leila could see the agony in Sabrina's eyes.

The pain in her heart for her daughter was overwhelming; she had to tell what she knew to her. "You cannot make someone love you," she whispered her. "No matter how much you want for someone."

She nodded; the words made her feel like carrying the weight of them on her shoulders. The fact is that, no matter what will happen, Benedict will never love her; this is something much harder to remember than the rest.Leila gently kissed her forehead. "Whatever you decide, I'll be here," she said softly. "You don't have to face this alone."

Sabrina smiled weakly, but it barely creased the centers of her face. "Thanks, Mom for being here with me all the time," she cried saying these words. "I don't know what to do without you."The final hour was coming to an end.

The door opened and Teresa Thompson stood in it, looking elegant in her gown, stern but compassionate as she came to Sabrina."I know my son can be tough," Teresa said, her voice softer than usual. "But he will do what's right."Sabrina met her gaze, her voice barely above a whisper. "What if I don't want him to marry me out of obligation?And then it's that Teresa lightly puts her hand on Sabrina's shoulder as she says, "Then you have to find the strength of will for the right decision, Sabrina, because a marriage in vain will bring nothing but more pain."

Sabrina nodded; her heart felt the burden of the coming days. She could not, no matter how much she was in love with Benedict, make him love her back. And she was scared of her inability to spend the entirety of her life with him as he was.As the last minutes of her life bled away, she decided. Her dark gown cascaded to the floor like a curtain. She walked towards the door. This wasn't exactly how she had always imagined the end of a fairytale in her head. Nonetheless, it was time to face facts: what her love cost her.

The Wedding day..

A sunbeam danced through the tall windows of the Thompson mansion, casting a warm, golden glow over the expanse of the elegantly decorated ballroom. The soft laughter, conversation, and sweet fragrance of roses and lilies combined in the gaiety of people mingling there. She stood before the mirror, and staring back at her was a figure that was beyond recognition to herself. The delicate lace of the wedding gown fitted her frame with perfection, and her hair cascaded down in soft curls, so elegantly touched with tiny pearls.  Hidden under the layers of silk and lace, she could feel her heart heaved up with pain.

"Are you ready, Sabrina," declared her mother Leila, standing in the doorway, bright smile on her face, assuring a sense of warmth to her voice that snapped Sabrina back to reality forcing her to put up similarly bright smile.

"Of course, Mom," Sabrina said, her voice trembling a little. "I just—"

"You just need to remember that this is a beautiful day," Leila interjected, smoothing her hand across the nape of Sabrina's neck. "You're marrying Benedict. He's a wonderful man."

Sabrina looked down at her hands, twisting them nervously. "I know, but.it's just so sudden. We've been friends for so long,and now he hated me, mom but this."

"Sweetheart, I understand you but he needs to take responsibility what he did to you," Leila said softly. "You two will learn to love one another. It takes time."

Despite nodding, doubts plagued her mind. Sabrina had always fantasized about a love that would drive her heartbeat and paint the world in bright colors. Her childhood sweetheart and first boyfriend, Benedict Thompson, had lost touch lately-a shadow of the boy she used to share intimate secrets with. He is this ideally, stunning handsome yet arrogant billionaire, newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of BMX Estates, one of the largest architectural firms in California.

As the music began, Sabrina took her breath and started to walk down the aisle, her heart pounding out beats of anticipation. She saw him, Benedict, in a tailored black suit, standing at the altar, every inch dashing yet intimidatingly aloof. An unreadable mask, a face that hid what he might have felt inside.

She held his eyes for a fleeting instant when it flared again, warmer and softer, but it had vanished when he lowered his gaze to brood over the crowd. Her belly began to knot.

The ceremony had flowed by like a watercolour left to sit in the rain. Words were spoken, vows exchanged, but Sabrina felt as though she were in a dream—one where the man she loved didn't really want her. She struggled, pretending to feel something in his praise as they were pronounced husband and wife, but all he did was nod curtly.Later, at the reception, she caught glimpses of him at a socializing circle of friends: his hand extended with a champagne glass in it; the glint of his teeth when he laughed.

He looked alive, interested, but far from her.

"Is everything alright, dear?"

Leila asked, cluing into Sabrina's dazed look."It's just… I thought we'd be happier," Sabrina whispered almost inaudibly.

"Arranged marriages aren't easy to begin with," Leila replied, attempting to sound reassuring. "But trust me, with time, you will do better. You have a good foundation. Focus on that."But as the night progressed, all hope was drained out of her. Now, the very place where she once danced blissfully had turned to be a playground for Benedict to exhibit his apathy. He danced with gusto, laughing and flirting with other girls. Every chime and twirl came to take a knife from the heart."Benedict, will you dance with me?" she finally gathered the courage to ask him when approaching him who was guffawing with some of his friends.He looked at her, and for a moment, his eyes opened wide in surprise, but then his impassivity came back over them. "No, I have no time for this," he said coldly, and turned back to the group.

Dumbstruck, Sabrina stood there for a moment before turning away to the side. She was crying. It wasn't supposed to be and what she hoped for.

Sabrina's chest tightened. No, I have no time for this. The words echoed in her mind, cruel and dismissing. A lump rose in her throat as she fought to keep the tears from spilling out. She had hoped tonight would be different-that maybe, just maybe, he'd remember the boy he once was, the one who'd held her hand, making her feel the most important person in the world.But that was a boy, long gone, replaced by the man standing before her now — a man who looked right through her.She took one step back, falling once again into the shadows where no one could see the cracks beginning to form in her heart. Not like this. That was not supposed to be.But her mind was screaming at her to flee, run away from the ballroom, from the life she was harnessed to with Benedict. Her heart still clung to the hope that somewhere beneath his icy exterior lay the man she had loved long ago as a child.