After running away from home seven years ago to escape a loveless arranged marriage, Kyra Wilder has finally mastered up the courage to be back in her small town of Ruthwell in Washington DC. She’s ready for a second chance with her parents and the people who used to be her friends back in high school and most of all, she’s ready to tell her parents that she’s about to become a bride.
But the small town she lived in hasn’t changed all that much in the past seven years and no one seems to have forgotten her betrayal, or seems anywhere near ready to forgive her for her past mistakes. Everywhere she goes, she’s met with hostility and anger and it’s thinning out her chances of redemption ever second. Now, how does she tell her parents and her friends that not only has she moved on in her life, further than anyone had ever anticipated, but she’s happy and successful in what she does? And amid all the truths and revelations, how does she tell everyone that she isn’t marrying a man, but the woman of her dreams?

The Bride GL

I take a deep breath, attempting to steady my nerves. The uncertainty gnaws at me as I consider the possibility of losing her. 


The bond we shared, once pure and uncomplicated, now hangs in the balance. I brace myself for the inevitable confrontation, the moment when I must emerge from this refuge of self-imposed isolation and confront the consequences of my emotions laid bare. 


My mind replays the scenes of our intertwined lives, and as I sit in the bathroom stall, I reflect on the subtle clues that hint at a truth I was too blind to acknowledge. 


The flickering fluorescent lights above me cast an eerie glow, underlining the tangled mess of emotions inside me. 


How did we end up here? I rewinded to the beginning, tracing the fragile thread that led to this tangled web of confusion in my heart. 


Chapter 16: Secrets in the Closet