Page 23 of Vengeful Vows

She shrugs. “I don’t know. It’s not so bad, is it? You have built-in sisters, and Gray is kind of a drag, but he’s a good big brother.”

I remember Gray’s slate blue eyes, glaring into me when he told me in no uncertain terms that I had no choice in any of this.

“I’m sure,” I drawl, but she seems to take it in stride.

“Finding love is hard.” She sighs. “Maybe it’s better if it’s been chosen for us.”

“Maybe, but wouldn’t you at least want to make that choice for yourself? To choose to try and find it or ask to have it chosen for you?” I sigh. “You know what. Never mind. It’s done, so let’s just move on from this.”

It’s not that I disagree with Paige. I’ve had my bad experiences with men, and I know how hard it is to want love and a family and have that constantly out of your reach.

I’ve always wanted someone to come home to, someone to confide in, someone to just hold me when the world is falling apart.

Now, I’ll never know that. I’ll never have the chance to find my person. I’ll never be truly free to choose love. Because along with my freedom, I’ve been deprived of a happy, loving future when my husband was chosen for me. A husband I only know from his less than stellar reputation. A husband I know nothing about. A husband who is my family’s sworn enemy.

But Paige doesn’t seem to get that.

“I should go. Think I’m going to take a nap.”

She touches my hand. “It’s been an ordeal, but it will be okay, you’ll see.”

I nod because I’m tired and I don’t want to talk anymore. Making my way back to my new home, the suite, I crawl under the covers.

I try my best but sleep eludes me.

All I can think about is last night, how urgent and rough the sex was.. I groan, flipping over on the bed, my skin feeling hot.

Maybe I need another shower. A cold one. Otherwise, it might sound like a good idea to do it again even if just to pass the time more quickly until someone comes for me.

7

DECLAN

I can’t stop thinking about the night when we consummated our marriage. That was two days ago, and I haven’t seen Bree since.

Paige insists on showing me the suite that Bree chose, and it is a great suite, probably the best one in the house since it’s the only one with a kitchenette.

But I don’t see Bree, except briefly in the halls. I’m sleeping in my own room because I get up so early for work lately. We’re focused on intercepting the shipment of girls that Murphy’s working on, and I don’t want Bree to get wind of it.

I guess it’s not like she can get word out to her father, but at the same time, I don’t want to risk it.

And frankly, I don’t know if I want a repeat of our wedding night either. It was too good and for my own sake, I should stay away from her.

Too bad that only lasts until dinner.

Bree’s dressed in a yellow shift dress that stretches nicely across her ass and thick thighs, and I can’t help but steal a few glances. Her auburn hair looks shiny and freshly curled, like she’s the belle of the ball, but there’s something wrong.

Her eyes... they don’t seem angry anymore. Not really. It’s almost like something’s dimmed in those hazel eyes, and it makes my stomach twist.

It’s the first dinner that Bree has attended, having always preferred to stay up in our room, and I never thought much of it.

Now, though, I’m a bit worried.

“Don’t you just love Bree’s new clothes?” Paige asks me brightly. She’s had a couple of glasses of wine, and it just makes her even more bubbly.

“It’s a beautiful dress,” I agree quietly, but Bree doesn’t even look up at me, picking at her lamb chops. I frown. “You don’t like lamb?”

“I love it.” Bree looks up at me, and an ember of anger burns in her eyes for a fleeting second, and I can’t help but feel a little relieved. If she started being depressed, I think I’d feel almost bad about it.

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