One month before my fiancé and I were set to get our marriage license, my three brothers gathered my adopted sister, Ivy, and me in our parents’ memorial room. They told us we were to draw lots to decide our husbands.
“Whoever draws the card with Hayden Grant’s name marries him,” Adrian said. “The other one signs a prenuptial agreement with Sebastian Quinn, the terminally ill heir to the Quinn family.”
Sebastian Quinn was dying. Marrying him meant becoming a young widow, bound to the Quinn family for life.
This time, I stepped back and let Ivy draw first.
The room filled with relieved sighs.
Adrian turned to comfort me. “You’re a true Sterling. Even if you’re widowed, you’ll still be able to make a suitable match.”
“But Ivy is different,” Julian added. “Her position in this family has always been delicate. We can’t rest easy unless we secure her future with someone we trust.”
Hayden chimed in. “If it comes to that, after Sebastian dies, I can maintain a marriage in name only with Ivy and keep you by my side. I’ll make sure you want for nothing.”
I didn’t argue. I didn’t make a scene. I just nodded.
None of them knew I had already discovered that both cards in the box had Hayden Grant’s name on them. Whoever drew first was guaranteed to get him.
They also didn’t know that after the wedding, the Quinns would move their entire business operation to Miami. Once Sebastian died, I would be silenced by their illicit family customs.
Later, on the day I was meant to return for a family dinner after the wedding, my three brothers waited outside for me.
But the car that was supposed to bring me home never arrived, not even after the New York snow piled past their knees.
The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 08 “This marriage was arranged by your family. She is a legal adult. Since she chose to marry Sebastian of her own free will, she has the right to decide whether to move with him.” Grinding out each word, Adrian said, “But my sister has
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 07 He had always disliked Lena the most, unable to resist a cutting remark whenever he saw her. But now, the thought that she might be in danger felt like a physical agony, twisting his insides. Without thinking, he asked, “Julian, do you think… do
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 06 “Adrian!” “Adrian!” Hands rushed to steady him, but a shrill ringing filled his ears. His face was ashen. Looking at his two panicked brothers, the first thing he managed to say was, “Did I make a mistake…?” Silence fell. Julian gripped his hand, forcing
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 05 Adrian’s pupils constricted. The words made his scalp crawl. The cake box he had been clutching all day slipped from his hands. It hit the ground with a dull thud, bursting open. The cake rolled into the dust. *No heir, and she’d be killed.*
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 04 “Security, take Lena to her room and stand guard. She is not to leave without my permission!” For a moment, my head swam. I instinctively stepped forward to argue, but Adrian shoved me hard. “Ah!” I crashed to the ground, scraping my hands raw
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 03 The entire Sterling household stood in a stiff, anxious line. No one had expected Sebastian’s mother, Eleanor Quinn, to come in person. She dismissed everyone else, saying she wanted to speak with me alone. Adrian didn’t like it, but he didn’t dare offend a
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 02 The memorial room went dead silent. The next second, Hayden, who had been standing to one side, crushed the card under his heel without a second thought. “The candle’s lit. Let’s go.” His voice was tight. Only then did I realize he’d been in
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The Widow’s Fate They Chose Was My Escape Plan Chapter 01 One month before my fiancé and I were set to get our marriage license, my three brothers gathered my adopted sister, Ivy, and me in our parents’ memorial room. They told us we were to draw lots to decide our husbands. “Whoever draws the
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