AllFreeNovel
Share Us
We positioned ourselves in front of the preacher and faced each other. Our eyes locked in a stare off once more.
I held onto her hands tightly as the priest continued to read off whatever gibberish his notes said. He could have been reciting incantations and I still would have been oblivious to it. My entire focus was on the woman I was holding hands with.
Everyone in this room knew what this was. It was not a love match by any means, this was all simply strategic.
Alone, our families were already formidable, but together? We were a force to be reckoned with. We were sending a message to the rest of the underworld that we were here and we meant business.
But this could only work if we didn’t end up killing each other in the process. There was something about this woman that drove me up the wall. Just her sheer presence was enough to rock my otherwise stable equilibrium. It had taken me years to master myself, to control my emotions. It was a needed skill that if not mastered could get you killed. And yet, that impenetrable armor I had built around myself had been pierced by her in a matter of weeks.
I didn’t know at what point we were in the ceremony, but when the voices broke through my internal dialogue, I heard the last part of Savina’s vows.
“… and now for the groom. Andres, please repeat after me,” the preacher said.
The vows were simple enough, but each one was nothing but a lie.
“I, Andres Nicholas Valdez, take you, Savina Maria Baratelli, to be my lawfully wedded wife. I promise to honor and cherish you—” my only wish for this woman was to have her six feet underground, and me pissing on her grave, “—I promise to fight for our marriage and keep you safe through our walk in this life—” I wanted to lay traps for her to stumble into and watch her whole damned Empire burn to the bloody ground. “—I promise to take care of you in both sickness and in health.” If only the black plague would return and riddle her body with it. “I promise to protect and love you from this day forth.” The war between us had only just begun, and I planned to get her back three times over what she had given me.
“This is my solemn vow.”
This was not a fight I was willing to lose, and if it meant that blood needed to be drawn, then so be it.
The exchanging of the rings happened after our vows, and it felt more like a shackle was being clipped on rather than a ring.
The preacher smiled and looked at the crowd. “I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride.”
This had been the part she had been very explicit about. She didn’t want any kind of fan fair, just a simple peck on the lips would have sufficed.
But seeing as my wife had declared war, to hell with her demands.
I grabbed her face in both my hands and smashed my lips against hers. She gasped from my unexpected show of affection, and I took the chance to plunge my tongue into her mouth.
It was not what I had been expecting at all. I thought kissing her would be like kissing a scaly reptile, but her lips were far softer than I thought they would be. I could taste the champagne she had been sipping on only a few minutes ago with my tongue, and it was intoxicating.
She didn’t try to push me off or make a scene of stopping me. She simply did her best to look like she was reciprocating my affection.
We were putting on the biggest show of our lives.
When I pulled away, the first thing I saw was the heat in her eyes, but I had no idea if that was anger, lust, or possibly both.
“Ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to introduce to you to Mr. and Mrs. Valdez.”
I leaned towards her, my lips coming right by her ear, away from the sight of the large congregation of friends and foes.
“You’re mine now, mi amor."
The lines had been drawn, now. The battle was in full swing.
Chapter Nine
Savina’s POV
“Maybe take it a little easy on the liquor, cara.” Dimitri took my empty flute from my hand. “This is your wedding, after all. You still need to perform the bedding ceremony, and I would rather you be sober for that.”
We stood at the edge of the dance floor, watching the guests move about and talk amongst each other. We were in the presence of some of the most dangerous people in society, and yet in their expensive suits and gowns, you would never know. Some had far more blood on their hands than Andres and I combined. They were ruthless, cruel and murderous. And they were all here to celebrate my happy union.
Wrong.
They were actually here to gather as much intel as possible and take it back to their bases to hopefully use it against me.
