CHAPTER ONE : Shattered Dream

Today has been really stressful, as I got insulted by my boss again. Aleric has been acting crazy for quite a while now and even threatened to have me demoted. Just because of what? Just because that bastard is trying so hard to put his slut in my position, but that's definitely not going to happen as I've worked my ass up here, and I won't let anyone take it away from me.

I let out a small sigh as exhaustion weighs me down, and a good massage is just what I need right now. As my mind wanders, I think of my man. Yeah, I've got an amazing guy I'm marrying tomorrow. He might not be the most handsome, but his smile is adorable, and his hot, sexy body is what every woman craves. Aiden and I have been together for six years, and he's the only guy I've ever been with as he gave me no reason to look elsewhere.

I reach for my phone and dial his number, but he's not answering. After the third attempt, I decide to go over to his place, and if he's not at home, I'll just wait for him. Heading straight to my car, I drove to his house.

He might not be the rich guy every lady dreams of, but I'm still proud of him. He's got a good and stable job at one of the biggest investment companies with good pay, his own apartment, and a car. He's just so perfect.

Upon arriving at Aiden's house, I enter my birthday date as the password, and the door easily swings open.

"Aiden," I call out as I kick off my heels and make my way towards the cozy living room.

"Baby..." I call in a more flirtatious tone, but I get no response, and the house feels very empty, which means he's not at home.

Heading into the bedroom to get a little nap, I see my bag on the couch, which brings nothing but confusion as I definitely know that I didn't bring it here. I pick it up and look at it closely, then notice a small scratch on it from a previous accident when I almost got hit by a bike.

“This is definitely mine, so how did it end up here?” I ask no one in particular, and just then, I hear a faint giggle that definitely belongs to a girl, and it's coming from the bedroom.

Different and weird thoughts race through my mind as I drop the bag and head towards the bedroom. As I approach the room, I begin to hear moaning sounds.

“Oh no, this definitely can't be happening to me," I keep saying to myself as I slowly make my way to the bedroom with trembling legs.

I gently push the door open, trying not to attract their attention, and peek inside. But what I witness is something I could never have imagined or dreamed of; my fiancé with my elder sister, Celine.

Why me? Why her? Out of all the women whom misfortune could have fallen upon, why me? Out of every woman Aiden could have chosen, why her? I don't really think I deserve this because I have done nothing to deserve this betrayal.

I use my palm to cover my mouth, trying hard not to make any sound. I want to barge in and drag that bitch by her hair, but I remember my family as everyone is excited about this wedding, and I don't want to do anything that would make them sad.

I retreat backward and quickly rush out of his house before they discover my presence. Rushing towards my car, I set off for home with tears streaking my face as the memories of the horrifying scene I saw kept flashing back. My vision blurs with tears, and I quickly pull over to compose myself before continuing. Trying hard to calm myself down, I keep telling myself that I saw nothing. Suddenly, I’m startled by a jarring crash. Looking back, another car has collided with mine.

What the heck…

I pick up the tissue and wipe my tears away and then take a deep breath and mask it with a fake smile. As I'm about to open the car door to apologize to the victim as I'm the one at fault for suddenly stopping the car without any warning, I hear a knock at my window. Rolling down the glass, I lay my eyes on a Greek god.

Wow…….

He's wearing a black leather jacket with his long hair cascading over his shoulder, high cheekbones, a straight nose, and full lips. And what pulls me into the dream world is the deep-set dark brown eyes.

"Are you done checking me out?” His mocking tone snaps me back from my reverie. I find it hard to believe that I'm admiring another guy when I've just caught my fiancé cheating on me.

"Ariel, come back to your senses right now,” I chide myself inwardly.

"I’m really sorry I didn't mean to suddenly stop the car. It's just that I’m going through…” I tries to explain, but he cuts me off without even hearing me out.

"If you're going through shit, does that have to affect other people? What if this wasn't a minor accident? Would you have given me those stupid excuses?" he retorts angrily. 

He’s got a good face but a very bad attitude. Since I'm at fault, I decide to continue apologizing and keep saying sorry to him because I really don't want any trouble right now. He continues ranting while I just keep saying ‘sorry,’ which seems to irritate him more.

Today is turning out to be such a bad day. Why did I even come across this crazy guy? After a while, he finally tells me that his car was fine, but mine has slight damage. He gives me his card and asks me to call him to state the amount that could cover the repair costs along with my account details. 

Wait a minute, if his car’s perfectly fine, then why all the ranting earlier?

“And please don't even think of sending me a weird message because you’re definitely not my type,” he adds, giving me that arrogant stare and then leaves.

“What the heck, who does he think he is? I can't believe I'm getting ridiculed by a stranger right now,” I yell in anger as I unbuckle my seat belt and alight from my car to call him back to apologize for saying that, but before I reach his side, he drives off.

“That jerk just made my day worse, and I promise I will find you.”

He’s driving an expensive car, which means he must have a lot of money, but he definitely looks very familiar, like I have seen him somewhere before. 

“Is he perhaps a celebrity?” I ponder aloud as I roll my eyes and mentally add him to my list of people to avoid. I go back into my car and then head straight home, back to Agua Fria; a town in New Mexico.

I live with all of my family including aunts, uncles, and cousins. I've got two elder sisters; Fiona and Celine and a cute younger sister, Laura. We’re quite a lot in my family, and farming is our only mode of survival. We’re neither rich nor poor, but at least we've got something that brings us a huge source of income: our big farm land with a lot of cattle, cows, and so many birds.

On getting home, I take a deep breath, put on a bright smile, trying to act as if everything is fine and then head inside.