3: My Disfigured Bride**

**Chapter 3: My Disfigured Bride**

Morgan stepped out of his room to find the entire family gathered, anxiously awaiting news. As soon as he mentioned the agreement with Hanna, that he would be the temporary groom until his son returned, a deathly silence fell over the room. His ex-mother-in-law, her face twisted in disapproval, was the first to speak out.

"You made me a promise, Morgan! You can't just break it now. Don't you dare get involved in a new relationship, especially of this magnitude, after everything you've done in the past!" she grumbled, vehemently reprimanding him. "William Morgan!" she suddenly asserted, gripping his suit collar. "Don't you dare renounce your promise! You deserve nothing but the life you have!" she growled, releasing him forcefully.

Morgan stepped back, rubbing his throat.

"I'm not doing this willingly. Ever since my grandmother made this damned marriage agreement, we've all been trapped in this hell, eagerly waiting for this day. Do you think I'm happy about it? That I feel good about marrying an unknown, disfigured woman? Do you really think I'm living out the dream you're so keen on thwarting? No! This marriage is not about love or even the hope of any happiness. It would be impossible!" he retorted, irritated.

"Liara!" intervened another woman, appearing to be the eldest among them. As soon as Liara saw her, she immediately fell silent. "You don't need to hound my son like this. Besides, everyone knows the girl's mother and how difficult it was to live with her. Nevertheless, my mother appreciated that woman, regardless of her situation. And surely her daughter suffers from the same problem. If that's the case, my son will never be happy with her."

"I hope so. Otherwise, the entire Farrugia family will pay dearly for him breaking his promise."

"I'm not breaking any promise!" Morgan asserted, retreating to his office.

His mother followed him.

"Stay calm," she pleaded, entering the office and finding him standing by the window, gazing outside with apprehension.

"How? I'm about to marry a woman..." he smiled bitterly. "And you have no idea... If she were just disfigured and had at least a good character, maybe we could try to get along with her. But she's an opportunist. It seems like she might be worse than breaking this contract."

"It can't be worse."

"But I feel like it is. This Hanna... She seems to embody villainy, but... I've found her weakness," he smirked with a mocking air.

"What do you mean?"

"She's ambitious, a woman who can easily be bought. Apparently, she needs money and will do anything to get it, no matter the cost."

"Well... I wouldn't expect any less nowadays. It's rare to find decent girls these days. But honestly, I thought being the daughter of that charitable woman, she might be a good person," his mother mused thoughtfully.

"Far from it! Hanna Ortiz is nothing but a fraudster. So, prepare everyone who will be at this sham wedding. I don't want anyone from our family getting close to her. And I've also insisted she doesn't even think about lifting that veil. This isn't a real marriage; we don't need to fulfill everything."

"You seem to hate her," his mother commented, thoughtfully.

"Mother... You have no idea what she's done, especially to make me fulfill this agreement. After all, you know that if this marriage doesn't happen, it would be very beneficial for her. I doubt she even realizes that," Morgan said thoughtfully.

"She must not know, so as not to influence your decision and harm our family. Hanna would have to reject this marriage on her own, without knowing the benefits or penalties."

"Yes... but that's not even the most ridiculous part. A woman like her, even after suggesting she marry me, demanded that I pay her to marry her," he remarked with disdain. His mother then smiled. "Are you finding this amusing? What do you think? She called me an old grouch," his hollow and humorless laugh echoed through the room.

"Relax, she doesn't even know you, let alone what lies behind your darkest story, besides... She's only nineteen, obviously you're not an ideal man for her," she chuckled.

Morgan glanced at his wristwatch with concern and then turned to his mother.

"She's about to arrive, I have to go down to receive her at the altar. It's hell having to go through all this because of Davis!"

"Have some compassion, unfortunately Davis is young and full of expectations about his future. I knew it would be tough for your son to accept that he would have to marry to save the family from the gallows, and I know he only ran away because he knew you were the same age as him for marriage. Besides, it's easier for you to endure three years in this marriage than for a man who lives life overnight," she tried to console him, but only made it worse.

Finally, Hanna had arrived. Everyone was waiting in the hall, at least fifteen guests, all named in the will. They were there just to see that what had been pre-required was being fulfilled.

Morgan was so grumpy that he didn't even look at Hanna when she appeared at the entrance. No one went to fetch her to take her to the altar. She just took a deep breath and decided to proceed on her own. Underneath the veil, her face suffocated and hidden, she observed disapproving glances staring at her. But she only flashed a malicious smile and headed towards Morgan, who was waiting with his back turned. The estate lawyer stood next to the justice of the peace, watching everything disapprovingly, but said nothing about it in the will.