Chapter one

Chapter one

Prologue

The church was sparse of guests, barely any family members. She gulped hard as she walked down the aisle with nothing but a simple silk dress from her mother’s wardrobe- she loathed how slightly discomforting it was, being as she was a tall woman and her mother being on the more petite side which left the seams hanging on for their dear lives. There was no one at the altar except a bedraggled looking priest who clearly wanted to be anywhere but here, she gulped hard and turned to her father by her side- nervous but still managing to keep a plastered smile on his face.

“Where is he?”.

“Smile Eva. You don’t want do look sad on this auspicious day do you?”.

Her lips pursed slightly at his response, here she was almost reaching the altar and still no groom to be wedded to. It was tradition for her to be late, especially to a wedding she certainly didn’t agree to. So much for an auspicious day. Where was he?

He wasn’t coming, she thought. He wasn’t coming and there was no way she could detest him for doing so, this marriage was a sham and they knew it.

She reached the altar and nodded acknowledging the priest who clearly had a grievance with her dress, she hated it too and to add salt to her already scalding wounds, Damien was going to see her in this monstrosity. Her father pressed a kiss to her forehead as he made his way to the second pew next to his wife who was pale as a peach, she watched them whisper to each other and the tension green by the minute.

“Are you sure he’s coming….or they in fact??”. Brooke Lyon asked her husband in sparse faith.

A hard lump formed in his throat as he looked down at his leather padded watch, “They should be here any minute now. Maurice promised the boy to be on his best behaviour today, he wouldn’t abandon his duty”.

“Well Maurice had better-

She was cut short as the church doors opened with an awkward singing of the hinges as the Castillo walked in with prestige, exuding nothing short of pride as they took their seats on the opposite side. A look of reassurance is passed as the doors open again, the groom had finally arrived.

“Let’s get this charade over and done with”. Damien Castillo’s voice rang through the walls of the church loud enough for the statues to hear and his bride gulped hard, praying for a disaster…anything of the sort to stop this man from marrying her.

As Eva stood at the altar, her heart drummed a frantic beat, each passing second feeling like an eternity. The hushed whispers among the guests only added to the heavy atmosphere, with every pair of eyes fixed on the empty space meant for the groom.

Her father's attempts to mask his concern with a smile couldn't hide the worry etched in his eyes. The moment hung in the air, pregnant with anticipation and uncertainty. Eva's mind raced with a mix of fear and defiance, her gaze flickering between the priest's disapproving look and the distant hope that Damien would comply and not embarrass her even more.

The tension in the church seemed to thicken as time ticked by, amplifying the sense of foreboding. They exchange vows as cold as it may seem and he put a ring in her finger as she did his, regal and composed, only heightened the contrast between the two families. Marked by his brash words, sent a shiver down Eva's spine, a silent plea. This man hated her.

FOUR YEARS Later…..

Evangeline Castillo, dreary eyed and in a massive slump from spending the night before watching all full seasons of ‘sex and the city’, let out a short rasp as she looked down at her coffee- it tasted like tar, not like she knew what tar tasted like..it just wasn’t good coffee.

“Eva…”

She finally mustered up the courage to look up at her cousin who just asked about her personal life and smiled, “it’s the truth. I haven’t seen my dear husband in six months”.

Six months was a bit of an understatement. Four years she’s been married to the number one business mogul in the world, four years and she could count the number of times spent with her dear husband Damien Castillo.

Seeing the twinge of pity at the corner of her cousin’s eye she sighed deeply, “Come on Jeff. You know my matrimony isn’t the regular-

“I don’t care Eva. You should leave him.”

“I can’t”

“Why??’. Raising his voice in disbelief.

Evangeline remained silent as she looked down at her tar-ish coffee and at this moment she wished she stayed home instead of accepting his invitation to lunch. Jeffery was serving in the military overseas, he missed the wedding and a lot of other things over the years, this meant he wasn’t aware of the importance of her marriage.

The Lyons and the Castillos, two rival conglomerate groups battling to hold major power in the nation’s economy. Several years oof unashamed rivalry and strategic battles due to the thirst of wanting to knock out the competition, they finally come to a truce- establishing a marriage between the heir of the Castillo empire and one of the daughters of the Lyons, this took years before a final agreement was signed by both CEOs. Both companies were able to dominate the market both in the country and overseas, knocking out any other upscale competitors and leaving only room for two spots.

This all came at a price, a price Evangeline has been paying for the four years of being married- an unhappy household and a dreadful life.

“I can’t Jeff”, she finally answered, “I just can’t”.

An awkward silence ensued between both cousins until he finally cleared his throat and formed a crooked smile which tugged at the corner of his lips, “You know….you can always come with me to Thailand.”

She rolled her eyes surreptitiously at his request, “I will unfortunately pass on that. Sorry Jeff. i’m the current chair person of the Castillo charity foundation until my mother-in-law gets back from Peru that is, I might take you up on that offer later though”.

Disappointed but not surprised, jeffery rose from the chair and she followed suit as they both pecked each others cheeks as a bid to say goodbye. He waved one last time as he got into his car which was parked only a few feet away from their table, she smiled he disappeared into the car and waved one last time as it zoomed off.

She was alone again, outside the cafe with no one but herself and the homeless man down the street with a stereo playing one of Celine dion’s oldest hits. He was happy, she thought…homeless but still happy and she had to return to the mansion which echoed nothing emptiness and woe.

Slowly she got up, dusted off the powder off her cashmere blouse from the beignets she had minutes before and opted to take a walk down the street, she was immediately blocked by Mario- her personal bodyguard assigned to her for some unbeknownst reason, it wasn’t like she was known by the public as the Castillo family managed to keep her marriage to Damien a secret from the press so as to not bring the other competitors up to date on their hidden agendas.

Rolling her eyes again she patted the six foot and seven inch broad man on the shoulder, “I am just gong for a walk Mario. I’m not running away”.

“Mr Castillo instructed I have you home before-

“Mr Castillo isn’t here now is he?’. Her brows arched in question

He nodded and moved out of the way, she flashed him a smile and strode down the street whilst being aware of his lingering presence behind her. A few heads turned as she made her way into a corner and rightfully so. At almost six feet, Evangeline Castillo was a striking woman, jet-black hair with the most mesmerising hazel green eyes and long legs perfect for modelling. She almost ventured into the fashion world once, but her father deemed it too promiscuous for the family’s image. She was beautiful and the Castillo family picked her firsthand the moment they set eyes on her- she was to carry the family name, bear the next generation of heirs and keep both bloodlines going.

“Mrs Castillo??”. Mario’s stern voice rang from behind as it pierced through her thoughts.

She turned around to see him reach his phone back into his pocket, something was afoot and she frowned for a moment, “Yes Mario??”

“Your husband requests to bring you back home. Mr Castillo is back”.

************

Damien Castillo looked down at his watch for the umpteenth time, she wasn’t here yet. He was a man of principle and so he detested tardiness, Evangeline his beloved wife however was no respecter of his precious time.

The past six months he’d been in Croatia on a national business summit, he was a representative of both companies trying to expand the venture into the southeast region of Europe. it was a beautiful country and the girl he once loved would’ve would’ve adored it too, he thought as he poured himself a glass of wine.

A sigh escaped him as he dreaded just the thought of having to share a table with Evangeline, he wondered what she looked like now. Over the course of their marriage he hadn’t looked at her al that much- she was a trophy wife, it was all she would ever be….a trophy wife he didn’t like or harbour any feeling of empathy for. He hated her.

“Mr castillo?”

He turned to see one of his bodyguards and raised his brow in question.

“The madam has arrived sir”.