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He sits me down in front of the preacher who is also standing in front of us just as shocked as my family. He rakes his gaze up and down my body and the dress I cut to mid-thigh. With the white petticoat under it - that I also cut even shorter than my dress - it poofs out and just begs to be twirled in. I realize I’m holding my breath and slowly let the caged air out.
“I like your dress.”
I can tell by his eyes he’s telling the truth. “I like your vest.”
His mouth ticks up into a half smile as he pulls me closer to him. “I still have the handcuffs, princess. I have no problem handcuffing your little ass to me.”
That fucking, son-of-a-bitching, damned rebellious streak rises up inside of me. I can tell he’s aware of it too. That half smile never leaves his face. I narrow my eyes at him and make a go for it one last time. I turn to take off running and before I can even start, he’s slapping cuffs on my wrist and cuffing the other side to his.
I look around at the people sitting in the seats with a spectrum of looks on their faces. Some are absolutely shocked and appalled; others are smiling like this is the best entertainment they’ve ever seen and still others look like they are here for nothing but a good time. No one can deny what's going on…I'm getting married handcuffed to the man who is going to be my husband for the rest of my life. Why do the cuffs feel like such a stronger bond than the piece of paper we’re going to have when this is over.
I wonder if there is a traditional myth about getting married in cuffs. What exactly does it say about the union? Probably a hell of a lot more than just a white dress and something fucking blue.
Chapter Eight
____________
Lori
If I thought the ceremony was strained for my parents and all of their acquaintances, the reception is…well, let’s just say there is a lot of pearl clutching. It started at the end of the ceremony really. When Odin grabbed me for a kiss that made me temporarily forget why I was standing here with him and only got more salacious from there.
He shrugged out of his tux jacket and showed everyone the vest he wore underneath it. One of the other club members in a matching vest brought him another vest. He pulls me even closer, unlocks his side of the handcuffs, and puts the vest on me so fast I don’t see what is written on the back.
“This is the woman I’ve chosen as my old lady. She’s under my protection and I expect as your leader and president that all the members of the Sons of Chaos will lay down their lives for her - to keep her comfortable, to keep her by my side, and to keep her safe. Welcome your newest member brothers and sisters.”
And then I’m bum-rushed. So many people come up to hug me or shake my hand or hug me. Lots of hugs. One of them is someone I know. I latch onto Odin’s mom with all the growing panic inside of me. She squeezes me tight and whispers as she comes in for a cheek kiss. “There’s no safer person in the world than you are right now. My son would die for you.”
Her words shake me. Thinking about Odin killing for me is one thing, thinking of him dying for me is another. It makes me want to…I don’t know, take up archery or learn how to shoot a gun. I don’t want him to die for me. I’ve had enough people die for the things I’ve led them to in my life and don’t want that to ever be Odin.
He pulls me out of the mill of well-wishers and studies my face. “What’s going on?”
“What?”
“Mom said something that changed your mood. What was it?” How can he just tell? I can’t lie to him.
“I think…I’ve made a mistake.”
“Marrying me?” His eyes turn stormy, and I swear ice starts forming in the center of the blue.
“Not running away faster. I… I won’t have someone else’s death on my conscious Odin. Especially not you of all people.” The ice melts and his brow goes up in a silent question. “You should have told them no. You should have told them to take care of me themselves. What have you done? You’re going to get yourself killed…because of me.”
The sound of the cuffs clicking into place is the only answer he gives me. His hand comes up and he lightly grazes his knuckles on my cheek. “You’ve been mine long before now. Never forget…I’ve already killed for you once. I’d set the whole goddamn world on fire if I knew it would keep you safe.”
I can’t even gasp at his words, and he uses my speechlessness to pull me back into the crowd as we make our way to the tables set up with so much food it doesn’t seem real but instead looks like something out of a medieval banquet hall. He pulls me around to the middle of the table and instead of taking my chair out from under the table and waiting as I sit down; he sits in the chair and pulls me down into his lap.
Well, that answers the question of how we are going to eat when he is handcuffed to me. Someone sits down beside us and scoots her chair closer. She’s young, maybe even younger than I am. She’s smiling so big and practically vibrating with energy that I can’t help but smile back at her. I’ll pick up the argument over Odin’s safety later and don’t think I am going to let that whole ‘I’ve already killed for you once’ thing go either.
“I’m Jinx. I’m Pyro’s sister. He just got married too. I was a bride’s maid. She’s pretty awesome and I love her. Odin tells us you go to college and want to be a journalist. That’s sooo cool.”
She pulls another woman - I think her name was Doll or Dolly - over to speak with us and then people start grabbing food to eat. And Odin takes the whole lap thing even further by hand-feeding me from one big plate. At first, I’m about to tell him to please just grab me a plate and then I look over and see the disapproving look on my mother’s face. I might settle in and allow myself to be fed after all.
Afterward, Doll and Jinx come back and talk Odin into letting me go long enough for them to pull me to a group of women standing together talking. Jinx introduces me to every one of them and I try to keep them all straight but after a while the faces and names begin to blur.
“Don’t worry about keeping up with everyone right now. Eventually, everyone will become familiar.” I turn around to find a tiny little woman at my side. “I’m Nori. Pyro’s mine. You’ll be able to remember him because he has a small tendency to blow things up.”
I try to keep my eyes from showing my surprise.
“It’s kind of how we fell in love.” She stops and just as I’m about to ask her more she goes on, “He blew my house up.”
