Page 3 of Risking it All

“She doesn’t know anything.” I chimed in, causing my daddy’s head to snap in my direction.

Suddenly, his wrath was directed toward me. I knew better. Why did I always think I had to be the savior?

“You! Of course, you know where she is. You think I don’t see all of the whispering. You two are known for keeping secrets. Where the hell is Zara? There is no time for games, Zenia. This is serious. These people are dangerous. They will find her and they will kill her, baby. I love you and your sisters to death, but you know the rules. If you can’t produce Zara, then you have to stand in her place.”

I jumped to my feet. “Those are not the rules!” I challenged.

“Sit the fuck down! Who the hell do you think you’re raising your voice at?” he bellowed.

Shrinking under the power of his voice, I sank back down into the chair.

“Baby.” Suddenly, my mom was at my daddy’s side with her hand on his shoulder.

“Sarafina, you know the rules. It has to be her. It should have been her in the first place, but no one wanted her since she’s let herself go. After that Fuller boy tossed her aside like trash, the organization considers her trash. This whole family’s name is as good as mud. I am trying to bring some honor back to my family!”

Zara knew the rules of engagement. So did I, but after my wedding was called off, I never thought I would have to follow them. Prayerfully, Roderick wasn’t a complete asshole. I’d seen him in passing a few times. He was fine enough. As a matter of fact, all the St. Thomas men were handsome. That wasn’t an issue. I didn’t know him. I’d gotten to know Reed.

To keep down confusion, only the oldest heirs were paired up and weren’t allowed to mingle. I wasn’t in the marriage pool since I already had an assigned mate. My sisters got to engage with the other guys. I didn’t give a damn about that. I didn’t want to be in a fishbowl waiting to be shot by one of their poisonous arrows.

Even though I was shunned by most of the heirs, I enjoyed my freedom. Without my dad constantly breathing down my neck, I was able to actually date a little. I’d actually had two boyfriends who I couldn’t even tell my family about. Zara was the only one who had an inkling that I had met someone. Miles and I were semiserious for about a year before he transferred colleges for a basketball scholarship. I missed him, but it wasn’t a heart shattering absence. He was more of a guilty pleasure than anything else. It wasn’t like we were betrothed.

“What do you think?” Emerson asked, waiting for my response with hopeful eyes.

“It’s gorgeous,” I confirmed.

“Good. Girl, you scared me for a minute there.”

“I’m sorry.”

“If you love the dress, why are you looking like that, baby?”

“Just thinking. Can I ask you a question?” I asked, looking over at her as she helped me to remove the dress.

“Sure. What is it, baby?”

“How did you know you were ready to get married?”

“I was wondering when that question would come up. I’ve been hearing I’m fine for months, but I know you. I know you’re not fine.”

“It doesn’t matter if I’m fine. I’m just worried about how it would feel to be married.”

“Have you discussed this with your fiancé?”

I had barely discussed anything with him, actually, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to bring that up. My parents let me know long ago that most people didn’t understand the way our families operated. We had to marry internally to keep the wealth and power contained within the family. At least we didn’t marry within our own family. That was my dad’s logic when I told him that arranged marriages were primitive and barbaric.

“You don’t have to tell me your business. I’m just worried about you. I know your family is connected to some serious people.”

My eyes fell to the floor as I carefully stepped out of the dress. It didn’t matter that Emerson’s family had mafia ties; they weren’t a part of The Force. We didn’t discuss family business outside of the family.

“I was excited to marry Jessiah. I never told you, but I was engaged before I met him. My fiancé was murdered, and I was the number one suspect. Jessiah was my lawyer. He cleared me, and in the midst of it all, we fell in love.”

“And they both lived happily ever after.” I smiled.

“Something like that. So, tell me, are you as excited about the wedding as you are about this dress?”

I shrugged. “As excited as I can be.”

“What does that mean, baby? Are you getting cold feet?”