I Married the Better Brother

The 99th time Owen Anderson slides a ring onto my finger, his adopted sister, Monica Morgan, calls again.

And just like that, for the 99th time, he ditches me at the altar to be with her, who's having another depressive episode.

I'm fed up. I yell after him as he walks away, "Go ahead! Walk out on me, and I swear I'll marry someone else!"

He doesn't even flinch. Instead, he snaps, "Can you stop being so unreasonable? We can get married anytime, but Monica's the only sister I've got."

Then, he turns and walks away, leaving me standing there like a complete fool.

What he doesn't realize is that this time, I mean it.

Later, when he gets down on one knee for the 100th time, his older brother, Chris, slips an arm around my waist and says, "Sorry, Owen. She's your sister-in-law now."

The hotel doors slammed shut with a bang.

Owen, the guy I'd been with for ten years, had ditched me at the altar for the 99th time. He had taken off to comfort Monica, who was threatening to jump because of her depression.

The guests below the altar began fidgeting and whispering to one another.

I shoved down the flood of shame and despair welling up in my chest, grabbed the mic from the officiant, and raised my voice. "Settle down, everyone. The wedding's still happening. The groom bailed, so I'm putting out a call for a new husband. So, who wants to marry me?"

All hell broke loose in the crowd.

"This is unbelievable. Has she lost her mind?"

"Anderson Group is one of the top business empires in the world. Who'd be crazy enough to steal Mr. Owen's fiancee?"

"Let's be real. Owen's been sleeping with her for ten years. Who's still going to want her?"

Every word stabbed straight through my chest.

After a long silence, I took a deep breath, trying to find a way out of this mess with a shred of dignity. That was when someone stepped out of the crowd.

"I'll marry you."

My eyes shot wide open in disbelief.

It was Chris, Owen's older brother and the eldest son of the Anderson family.

Flashes of him ran through my mind all at once. I'd only ever seen him a handful of times.

One of them was during a heavy storm. Owen had sent me out to get cold medicine for Monica. I ran all over Amethyst City and got myself completely drenched before I finally found a pharmacy that was still open.

Later, I happened to run into Chris, and he offered to drive me home.

I came down with a fever that lasted an entire week, but Owen never showed up. He was too busy looking after Monica. But Chris had quietly left a glass of water and some fever medicine by my bed.

There was another time. Owen had made a bet with his buddies and left me stranded in the middle of nowhere, just