

Chapter 1 of BETHROTED TO MR CEO
Nicole's Pov
The awaited day had finally come, I had been looking towards this since forever, I was finally getting married to Kingsley . Both our families were present and the whole place buzzed with excitement, the day was finally here. But all the excitement was shattered because Kai cancelled it before we could say our vows and he cancelled it because someone faked an injury midway the wedding, and who else than his former crush Claudia.
Claudia had been invited to the wedding and while the priest was still reading the vows she suddenly screamed and my soon-to-be husband ran down to check on her and she claimed she had sprained her ankles due to the heels she was wearing. Kingsley picked Claudia up while everyone was watching and left the wedding hall leaving me standing alone on the podium. I squeezed the flowers in my hand, anger coursing through me. How could he leave our wedding midway?
Everyone in the room was silent and I felt extremely embarrassed. I raised my gown and angrily began to walk out of the building.
I could hear the priests and some family members calling me back to return but I wouldn't, not after their son had decided to make a fool of me. He might be the richest billionaire in the city but that did not give him the right to make a fool out of me.
I entered our wedding car that was parked outside and tried to stop myself from crying, how could he?.
My phone made a beeping sound and I pulled it out to see it was a message from Kingsley, his name was even saved as “Mine” on my phone. The message read
I gripped the phone in my hand hard,this was a joke right, my chest tightened in anger,he didn't even bother to call only a text as if it wasn't a big deal. How the hell could he reschedule a wedding. We had been together for five years, five years of loyalty to him.
My fingers trembled as I thought of what to reply back, the pain I felt in my heart at the moment. I wanted to scream at him for choosing her over me again but I just threw my phone on the seat beside me and stayed quiet until I got to the Gerald mansion. It was one of Kingsley's many mansions but this was the main one.
I entered the building and walked towards my room before tossing myself on the bed. As I was about to release all my frustration through tears a knock came on the door. I looked up and saw Layla. She was one of Kingsley's aunties that had come for the wedding.
“I'm sorry about what happened” she looked at me in sympathy and I even felt more embarrassed. “Darling you deserve better than this” she sighed entering into the room and I had to bite my lip to stop myself from crying.
“I thought, I thought today would be different. I thought he had finally chosen me over her, we were going to get married” I whispered the last part as tears filled my eyes.
“Men behave foolish all the time and Kingsley is a fool for not realising what he is losing” She patted my head “Besides I think Claudia is two faced, it seems like more than a coincidence” Kingsley's family adored Claudia, she was always in the mansion though she wasn't marrying their son. They had gotten used to her and she used to them and I noticed the way they treated her as compared to me.
“The injury was definitely fake, I didn't think she would stoop this low” Layla scoffed and I was glad I wasn't the only one who thought the same.
“You think she did this on purpose?” I asked
“Oh, child. Of course, she did. She’s been playing this game for years, pulling Kai closer every chance she gets. You think she’s helpless, but I see right through her.” I clenched my fists as I heard what Layla said.
“How come Kingsley hasn't realised” I whispered but Layla caught on.
“He still has a dumb crush on her, you have to be the one to pull him back” Layla explained. I nodded my head, I'll try to deal with it and not let my feelings get ahead of me.
“I'm sure you'll think of something,” Layla winked before she left the room.
My phone vibrated, startling me and I picked it up and answered the call.
“Hello,” The voice called calmly from the other end. It was my childhood friend Liam, he was also close to Kingsley as they did a lot of business together.
“I heard what happened Nicole, you have to understand why Kingsley did what he did. Claudia hasn't had anyone take care of her since her parents separation,it was his duty….”I hung up before he could complete his statement, of course he would defend Kingsley.
My phone buzzed once again and this time it was from an unknown number and the person had sent me some images. I opened it and saw images of Kingsley in Claudia's house, feeding her and staying close to her as if she were his wife.
I heard conversations coming from downstairs and opened my door to look down.
“Kingsley did the right thing, what if something had happened to Claudia" one of the voices spoke.
“They would have been a perfect match, it's a shame our Kingsley has to marry that girl” the voice continued speaking. They were all members of Kingsley's family. We were only getting married to merge our families businesses together and because Kingsley claimed to love me.
My family on the other hand wanted their daughter to marry the richest billionaire in town. They continued to speak and sing praises of Claudia.
Claudia, Claudia. It was always Claudia that everyone favored.
The tears finally fell from my eyes, I felt unwanted. I felt like I had waited five years to realize a mistake. It was time to correct it and choose myself.
"Call me." I sent a message to Kingsley after building up courage. I knew he wouldn't call if I wouldn't ask him. I sat and waited for a call or even just a response. Thirty minutes had passed, and still nothing. I was about to leave the room when my phone buzzed.
"Anything happen Nicole?" Kingsley asked seeming a little irritated.
"Is that all you have to say?" I retorted, hurt when I sensed his irritation.
“Sorry, I couldn't think clearly. Claudia got hurt. I needed to ensure she would be okay." He replied like he wasn't wrong.
"Of course, as expected from the ever caring Kingsley"
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked in an annoyed tone.
"It means we're over."
I ended the call, not giving him the chance to reply.

















