I pull up in front of Hannah’s apartment and walk straight inside.

Whenever something major happens, Hannah always retreats into herself instead of facing the consequences head-on.

She looks up from the sofa, her eyes red and swollen.

I sigh quietly as I take in the panda onesie she’s wearing and the bowl of popcorn sitting on the coffee table.

Of course she’s watching

The Notebook

.

Part of me genuinely sympathizes with her.

The choice she made couldn’t have been easy, and the fact that she called off the wedding only a week before it was supposed to happen means she’s serious this time.

It must have shattered her, realizing she couldn’t have both her career and Ares.

“Raven.”

She lifts her arms toward me silently.

I bite back a smile and sit beside her before wrapping my arms around her.

She buries her face against my shoulder while I rub soothing circles against her back.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers. “I know how much work you put into this wedding, but I can’t do it. I can’t sacrifice my career, and even though I love Ares, I’m not willing to live under his family’s suffocating rules forever. I can’t live like that, Rave.”

I gently pull back and study her expression.

Dad hasn’t told her yet, has he?

“Hannah,” I murmur carefully, “you need to rethink this. It’s too late to walk away now. If you leave now, that’s it. There’s no going back anymore.”

I search her face desperately.

“Do you really want to lose him? I know you love Ares, Han. And he absolutely worships you. I know he makes you happy.”

She shakes her head immediately.

“I can’t do it, Rave. I really can’t. If I marry him now, I’ll end up resenting him for everything I’ll lose.”

“Hannah.”

My voice softens, though there’s still frustration beneath it.

“This isn’t only a love marriage. It’s an arranged marriage too. Have you even thought about what this means for Mom and Dad? For the company? Without the Windsors’ support, we won’t survive.”

She hugs herself tighter.

“They won’t hurt us,” she says quietly. “You know they won’t.”

I cross my arms and stare at her.

“Grandma Anne came to the house today.”

Hannah immediately looks up.

“She insists the wedding will happen next week… with or without you.”

Her expression changes instantly.

“If you refuse to marry Ares,” I whisper shakily, “they want me to marry him instead.”

Hannah’s eyes widen.

“What?”

She stares at me like I’ve gone insane.

“You can’t be serious.”

I nod slowly.

“I am. Dad told me that if I refuse, I’ll lose my company and the investment money he promised me. Grandma Anne warned him that the Windsors will pull all support if the marriage falls through.”

Hannah runs a hand through her hair.

“They’re bluffing,” she says immediately. “They’re just trying to pressure me into changing my mind. They’d never actually force you into that situation.”

Then she grimaces.

“And besides, Ares would never agree to it. That’s sick.”

My heart twists painfully at her words, even though I nod in agreement.

Sick.

Twisted.

That’s probably exactly how Ares sees this entire situation too.

“I don’t know, Han,” I whisper. “Dad looked genuinely terrified, and I’ve never seen Grandma Anne look that serious before.”

Hannah shakes her head stubbornly.

“Don’t worry, Rave. Nobody is going to force you into anything.”

She reaches for my hand.

“They’re just using you to manipulate me, but I’m not changing my mind.”

“Hannah,” I plead desperately, “can you honestly handle watching Ares marry someone else? Watching him marry me?”

My voice cracks slightly.

“If they aren’t bluffing, then what? Are you really prepared to become his sister-in-law instead?”

I tighten my grip on her hand.

“Dad made it very clear that if you don’t show up for your wedding, I’ll be forced to walk down that aisle in your place or lose everything I’ve built.”

I know Grandma Anne said she no longer accepts Hannah as Ares’s bride, but deep down, I’m convinced she’d forgive her if Hannah changed her mind now.

Grandma Anne only wants Ares to be happy.

And his happiness has always been Hannah.

Hannah looks away.

“I’m sure, Rave,” she says quietly. “I can’t do this. I won’t sign away my freedom for anyone. Not even Ares.”

I stare at her in disbelief.

“Even if it means he marries someone else?”

She nods slowly.

“If that’s our fate, then so be it.”

Something inside me snaps.

I grab her shoulders and shake her lightly.

“Hannah!”

My voice rises despite myself.

“Please be reasonable for once. Can’t you see what you’re doing to me?”

Tears burn behind my eyes.

“You’ll recover from this eventually, but what about me? I’ll be trapped in a marriage with a man who has only ever loved you, and if I refuse, I lose everything I worked for.”

My voice breaks completely.

“Don’t do this to me, Han. And don’t do this to Ares.”

She looks at me with a mixture of disbelief and stubborn defiance.

“It won’t come to that, Raven.”

Her voice softens.

“You’re not going to lose your company. Dad and Grandma Anne would never let that happen.”

Then she smiles faintly.

“She loves you more than she’s ever loved me anyway, you know that.”

I flinch at her words.

“Even if I refuse to marry Ares, she won’t punish you for it.”

She squeezes my hands reassuringly.

“So stop panicking, okay? You aren’t going to end up trapped in some loveless marriage. Dad just scared you.”

I slowly shake my head.

“No,” I whisper hollowly. “Everything is not going to be okay.”

And deep down, I already know it.

If Hannah doesn’t change her mind…

Then all three of our lives are about to be destroyed.