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Tonight, I finish what was started then.
One of the men opens the double doors and we proceed past the foyer and into the sanctuary. Father Ayala is standing at the platform under the large wooden cross from which Jesus Christ watches. I’m not sure if there’s judgment in His gaze. He knows the truth, and He may forgive me or curse me. Either way, I’m going to marry Louisa. I will bind her to me before Him, and then not even He can tear us apart.
“Father, thank you for being here,” I say to the priest.
He frowns as he adjusts his round spectacles, his hand trembling over the pages of the Bible as he searches for his text. “Let’s get on with it, shall we?”
Declan inclines his head and stands on the other side of Father Ayala. I stare at him, wondering exactly what tactic he used to convince the reverend.
“Is this all of us?” Gunn asks as he and Luca stand to my left. “You need more friends.”
“He has us,” Luca tells him. “That’s the important thing.”
“I told you it was meant to be a private event.”
Axle comes into the hall, gesturing that Lou and her mother are in the foyer and ready to enter.
Then she rounds the corner, one arm hooked on her mother’s and a bouquet of daisies from the garden in her free hand. Her dark eyes rove around the room before they lock onto mine, and the moment is frozen in time. There are no violinists, but I wouldn’t have heard them beyond the loud rushing of my blood in my ears. There are no photographers and yet the image of her in white, her dark hair curled wildly around her lovely face, will be etched into my memory forever.
I have a second of regret that I didn’t get to see her before, in the dress her mother lent her. She had long hair, slightly fuller cheeks, and she shone beautifully as she does now. Had I seen her then, I wouldn’t have been able to leave. And the consequences would have been horrific for the two of us.
They might still be.
But I’ve seen her dressed just for me, and I can no longer back out.
Slowly, they make their way up the aisle, my heart rate increasing with each step they take, until they stop right in front of me.
Diana disengages herself from Lou and, holding her by the arms, leans in to kiss each of her cheeks. After taking the bouquet, Diana whispers something to her, and Lou nods, her gaze remaining on mine the entire time.
When her mother goes to stand beside Declan, I move in front of Lou and take both her hands. She’s trembling almost uncontrollably, and I do my best to steady her.
Father Ayala clears his throat. “I’d like to begin this ceremony with a prayer. May it vanish some of the demons you brought in with you.”
I ignore the man’s comment. Everyone around us inclines their head as he begins to pray. Everyone but Lou and me. We remain like that, staring at each other.
Lou was always easy to read. She wore every emotion on her sleeve. Her love was evident in the way she smiled, the way her eyes shone when she looked at me. Need and passion and fire blazed in them.
That passion and fire are definitely still there. They burn brighter than before. Hotter. Even when all I see is a threat in her gaze. I’ll kill you the first chance I get, it says. Damn, it turns me on to imagine that fierce energy taken out on me. It makes me smile.
Her brows pinch tightly together as she narrows her eyes on my lips.
The priest finishes his prayer. “Under normal circumstances, I’d ask who here gives this woman away. But I’m actually afraid to.” He looks over his glasses at everyone.
Diana takes a small step forward. “I do. I give her.”
Father Ayala blinks at her, then glances back at his Bible and sighs. “I cannot stress enough that one should not enter into the bonds of holy matrimony lightly. What you vow before God, it cannot be taken back.”
“We are aware, Father,” I tell him. “Which is why we’re here in the first place.”
He looks at Lou, who refuses to lift her gaze to him. “Child, if you are doing this against your will, speak now.”
She does turn to him this time. Flicking her eyes upward toward the Christ, she says, “I leave this to him now. He can save me or condemn me for a promise I made to the devil.”
“Louisa—”
“Just, please… Get it over with.” Her voice cracks, and as she peers down, a tear falls onto my right hand.
It’s like a knife to the gut seeing her cry. But it will not change my mind.
