Page 16 of The Bratva's Forced Bride

Many others did less and faced more severe consequences just because Dimitri had a bad day.

He pulled another exaggerated smile and pulled away. Heading down the hallway, his voice traveled back to me.

“See you at the ceremony.”

Chapter 6 - Grace

My heart pounded against my ribcage the moment I saw it.

I barely opened my eyes all the way when I found a white dress hanging from a wardrobe in the bedroom. I could see the white silk through the garment bag, along with a veil and matching heels.

My stomach churned at the thought.

It could only mean one thing.

Standing from the bed as if a fire had been lit beneath me, I panicked all the while I approached it. Someone had snuck it in at some point while I was asleep. Most likely Yaro himself.

I had no idea.

While he had made it very clear he intended to marry me despite not knowing each other, I had silently hoped he would let it slide and change his mind. At the very least, I thought we’d have more time before the ceremony could take place.

I was foolishly mistaken.

Staring at the dress made it feel immensely more real than it initially had. Before, it just felt like something he had made up, and something he didn’t mean to pursue.

And yet, there it was. There I was, trapped in a nightmare situation I couldn’t fully wrap my head around.

Unable to tear my eyes away from it, I put my fingers against my temples and tried to understand how I got there and the fact that I would be married by the end of the day to the man who lifted me from my dorm room without a choice.

How could my dad ever decide to let that happen to me? How he used me as a means of fixing his mistakes.

My head ached at the heavy emotions coursing through me.

A knock at the door pulled me out of it, nearly jumping out of my skin.

With a sigh, I went over and hesitated before the door. If it was Yaro, I wondered if I could just keep him out. If I moved a chair or something tall enough to block the doorknob, then maybe I could barricade myself in. There was no way I could jump through the window, not from how tall the condo building was. But I could protest.

If I wore him down long enough, then maybe I could score my freedom back.

But when I realized the knock sounded way too soft for him, my curiosity got the best of me.

Opening the door, I found a woman with strawberry-blonde hair pulled neatly in a slicked-back pony. When she saw me, she did a full sweep from head to toe, and her eyes brightened.

“Hi, Grace. I’m Raya, Isidor Levov’s wife.”

My brows furrowed. “Who?”

She gave me a funny look. “A cousin of Yaro’s. Did he not tell you anything?”

I shook my head.

Raya sighed and seemed somewhat disappointed by the news. “Of course not. But it’s fine, I can catch you up.”

“Sorry, but what are you here for?”

She held up a big cosmetic bag with contents that moved noisily as she lifted it. “I’m here to help with your hair and makeup before the ceremony. I’m sure if Yaro had told you, it would be less jarring. But we’re going to have fun, I promise.”

While her heart seemed in the right place, and she sounded nice enough, I couldn’t help how my heart raced. How dread trickled into my system.

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