Page 20 of Defying Love

"Very well," he said at last, his voice a low rumble that resonated in the space. The words were simple, but they felt like pawns toppling in my mind, each one a concession to my will. "Your terms are acceptable."

I was no longer merely an object of his desire but was now a player in his world, a piece on the chessboard of his future empire.

"Are you ready to face what comes next?"

"Are you?"

Dominic extended his hand, palm up, an invitation cloaked in shadows. I placed my own atop his. We stood there, connected yet apart, the future stretching out before us like a path shrouded in mist, uncertain and inevitable all at once.

"Then it's settled," he declared, the corner of his mouth twitching with the barest hint of a smirk. "We'll walk this path together."

He made a phone call, and not even two minutes later, a woman was taking my measurements to get a gown for me to wear.

“I don’t need a dress.”

He put his hand over the phone. “This might be a last-minute ceremony, but you deserve a dress. Catharina will be able to grab something fitting.”

This was not how I saw getting married, but what else could I do? Maybe we would come to love each other. A marriage of convenience wasn’t always bad.

She was only gone for twenty minutes and came back with a gorgeous gown. “Try this on.”

I went into the next room and he wasn’t kidding. It fit like a glove.

When I came out, the light glimmered off the dress and I stood next to Dominic.

Dominic towered at my side, his posture rigid with a controlled anticipation. His eyes, those pools of obsidian, were fixed on me with an intensity that bordered on reverence, searching my face for a sign of hesitation or fear.

But I would show him neither. I met his gaze head-on. My lips, painted a daring shade of red, were a line of defiance against the traditional silence expected of a bride. Standing there, I was the embodiment of resistance within the opulent cage they had built around me.

Dominic's focus on me was unyielding, a silent vow that he recognized the tempest cloaked behind my calm exterior. He seemed to admire the storm, the independent spirit that even this union could not tame. And as the officiant began to speak, Dominic's attention did not waver, as though every word spoken was a chain linking us tighter, every sentence a lock clicking into place.

As the officiant's voice droned on, the weight of Dominic's gaze was like a physical touch, branding me with a mark more profound than any wedding band could. Whatever the future held, I was no mere pawn in his game. I was a queen, and I would play by my own rules.

The officiant's words sliced through the thick air, a final decree severing the past from the present. "I now pronounce you husband and wife."

An invisible mantle of my new title settled upon my shoulders. I turned slightly toward Dominic, my eyes lifting to meet his.

The officiant's steps echoed through the cavernous hall as he departed, leaving a lingering silence that seemed to thrum with the gravity of what had just transpired.

Dominic moved with a purposeful grace, his dark eyes scanning the remaining staff who stood at attention around the room's perimeter. "You may leave us for the night," he commanded, his voice resonant and unyielding. The attendants bowed their heads in unison, shuffling out of the room like shadows fleeing the light.

"Except for you two," Dominic added, nodding to a pair of bodyguards stationed by the door. Their imposing figures, dressed in sharp suits that did little to conceal their readiness for violence, remained steadfast. My heart skipped a beat at the implication of privacy and the imminent intimacy of the isolation.

I swallowed hard, the dryness of my throat making it difficult to speak. "What happens now?"

Dominic's attention turned to me, his gaze piercing through the dimly lit distance. For a moment, I saw something flicker behind his eyes—a hint of intrigue or perhaps understanding. He stepped closer, closing the gap until we shared the same breath, the same sliver of reality within the vastness of the uncertain future.

"You're my wife," Dominic stated, simple yet loaded words that carried the weight of worlds not yet explored. "But there's much I have to learn"—his gaze traced the contours of my face—"about you."

I was his wife, a title that bound me to a man whose depths I had yet to fathom, whose darkness whispered secrets I had yet to uncover.

Chapter Fourteen

Dominic

The door gave a soft click as it fell shut. My hand twisted the lock with deliberate slowness, ensuring that nothing could interrupt this sacred moment.

"Are you ready?"

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