The Billionaire's Stand-in Bride.

I let out an amused smile, "What do you mean?"

He doesn't smile back.

That sobers me immediately.

Katherine laughs loudly, but the sound is empty. "It's my wedding, Dad, why should I hand my wedding dress to her?" Katherine demands, her mirth morphing into a blank stare.

The room falls silent. Too quiet a knife can cut the tension in the air.

My thoughts are travelling to different places at the same time? What business do I have with taking Kate's dress? Why would he come at this hour of the day and demand this?

"Daisy will be walking down that aisle. Not you."

That was all it took.

"This is a joke, right?" Katherine moves closer to our father. This time, she is fuming. Her breath rises and falls carefully, like she is trying to conceal it, but her fitted wedding dress isn't doing much to help. It gives her away.

She laughs again. Empty again. Then she looks at me. "Okay...okay." Then back to our father. "You want Daisy to marry Roman now? Is that what this is about?" She looks at him.

He looks at her back. He doesn't look at her sadly or with pity. He looks just like whatever this is, is final.

"What has this got to do with me?" I summon the courage to speak. My voice comes out shaky but I don't mind. I can agree to a lot of things but never this. "I will not be doing anything that involves marrying Mr Kade." I affirm, trying to sound stern.

Our father must be insane. No other word for it.

Our father has this thing where whatever he says comes out controlled, no matter the mood he is in. He delivers his words calmly and cruelly. No better way to explain it.

Not ready to continue with whatever this conversation is, I walk towards the door to take my leave.

No one stops me, but as my hands touch the knob, I hear my father's voice.

"Step out of this room and you will never earn my forgiveness."

I halt.

Then I turn back. He hasn't moved from where he is.

"Father, I can't marry Roman. He belongs to Kate." I plead to his back.

"Not anymore."

"You have to be joking, Dad, I'd rather die than watch her marry him instead of me." Katherine adds.

"This was your plan, right?" She faces me this time.

"What plan?" I ask, confused.

"To steal him away from me."

A laugh escapes me, despite the situation, but it is empty.

"I don't want the old man, Kate. He is yours. You can have him."

"Yet you kept finding ways to convince me not to go on with the wedding earlier? You wanted to try your luck, and when you didn't succeed, father comes in to say this?"

"It had nothing to do with this, Katherine," I scream at her. The tears begin to form in my eyes.

"Enough!" He finally speaks again, and both of us look at him.

"Dad, please... I don't want to do this." I drop to my knees and grab his leg, pleading through my sobs.

I look at Katherine, and I see a tear fall from her face.

He jerks my hands free from his legs. "This is the only way you will earn my forgiveness."

"I'll do anything else... not this. I don't love him, I don't want him. Katherine does. Please let her go ahead with the wedding."

The tears fall uncontrollably from my face. I know it is already decided. He doesn't leave room for negotiation.

"You don't have a choice. You will walk down that aisle whether you are pleased with it or not."

"Dad," Katherine whispers. "Are you really going to do this to me?" Her eyes search his. "Are you really going to allow her to ruin my wedding?"

He doesn't answer, instead he says. "You have 20 minutes," and with that, he turns to the door, walking past me.

"Dad?" Katherine calls again, and he stops. He clenches his fist.

He doesn't turn to look at her, like he is avoiding seeing the pain in her eyes.

He loves Katherine like his life depends on it, and so why he is going this extreme to hurt her is what sends shock through my whole body.

I hate my whole existence. It just feels like since I came to this life, I came bearing pain for my family.

He doesn't answer her; instead, he reaches for the doorknob and goes out.

I stand there, not knowing what to say to fix it.

Time passes, and I watch her drown and ruin her makeup in tears. It sends a deep wave of hurt through my heart, and somehow I know I have to make it up to her.

"Katherine-"

"Save it." She shuns me before I can continue. "You want father's forgiveness, don't you?"

She asks like she wants me to say no-no that I wouldn't step into that dress to earn forgiveness from him.

I hate that I can't answer it. "He didn't leave me with any choice, Kate." My chest tightens as the words fall.

"I don't want to do this, Kate."

"Then run," she says. "Run away from all of this if you truly don't want to."

"I have nowhere to go," I mumble.

I wish I could run. I want to run, but I have nowhere-no one to run to.

"Go to Fred. Run to him," she suggests.

Fred.

I can't. He does so much for me already, and running to him feels like I'm carrying all my burdens to him again.

I don't answer her.

"It's fine." She says. "I know the answer already. Come help me with my dress."

I look at her, unsure of what has just happened. She sounds calm now, controlled in fact.

"Are you really doing this?" I ask.

"Don't you want your father's forgiveness?" she retorts. "I said it's fine. We can settle it after the wedding."

I search her eyes looking for answers, but I get nothing.

"I'm sorry Kate," I tell her as I step forward to unzip her dress. The guilt of what I am about to do is gnawing on my conscience.

I pause halfway.

She turns to look at me. "I want you to do it. I want you to earn his forgiveness. C'mon."

"Why? Why now?" I ask, my heart racing.

"I know you need his forgiveness. I can get Roman back."

She is right. He belongs to her. All I have to do is walk down that aisle, and then after the wedding, she will get him back. I will find a way. I will make it possible.

I pull her into a hug, and she smiles at me. She hugs me a little too tightly, and I force myself to breathe through the hug.

"Kate." I try to say through the suffocating hug.

She releases me, turns, and I pull the zipper down finally. She slips out of it aggressively, like she is trying to tear it out of her body.

I enter the dress, and she moves close to me. She uses her palm to wipe the remains of the tears from my eyes. I can't stop the tears from falling, but I smile at her through it, and she smiles back.

"Go without me." She says.

I turn to walk out the door, and as I open the door, Kate's voice stops me. The thoughts of what I am about to do are heavy on my chest.

"Wait."

I turn back to look at her, my hand still on the knob, shaking slightly.

"Don't forget why you are doing this."