Page 14 of The Irish Arrangement

Fuck no.

I extended my hand for her to shake it. “It’s a deal,” I lied.

She narrowed her eyes, cautious as she stepped forward. Her fingers hovered over mine until she lowered her hand and touched me. The first press of her warm grip surprised me. Firm, strong. She was no weakling, bold and not too shy to give me a real shake.

“Deal,” she agreed, stepping closer.

I kept my hand on hers, tugging her out from the pebbles lining the path, and hauled her right back into the church.

I hadn’t realized how fun this would end up being.

At her attempts to pull her hand from mine, I grinned, knowing she would never run away from me again.

You’re mine. For good. Whether you like it or not.

6

CARA

Declan didn’t let me go. Each time I tried to wrench my hand free, his fingers locked down tighter. If it wasn’t a show of his strength, a reminder that he was bigger and stronger, it was a sign of how badly he wanted this wedding to happen.

I didn’t need another example of his power. He’d caught me—easily and without so much as a grunt of exertion—when I fell from the wall I’d so foolishly thought I could climb over. Really, in heels and this enormous dress with so many layers I felt like I was wrapped in a bubble of lace? It had been a dumb plan to try to run. The front doors were locked, which raised red flags.

The courtyard had no exits, and a knee-jerk reaction to the vision of having to be with Declan for the rest of my life had me panicking and wishing to run.

He frightened me, even if he was strong and able to prevent me from crashing to the path and breaking a bone. It still hurt. I’d sprained my ankle, and it throbbed as he hurried me back into the empty church.

I didn’t say anything. I didn’t utter a damn word, and I refused to let out a sound of discomfort or pain. Letting this man see me vulnerable would be too much to bear. With someone so dark and impatient as him, I had to make sure I presented myself as an equal, not a thing to push around.

Even if he literally dragged me like I was an object to place at the altar.

I didn’t bother smiling, facing him off with all the disdain and irritation I could muster. He didn’t care. Staring right back with that frustrated glare, he gave me the impression that making him run after me was a grievance he didn’t care for.

Why? Why me?

As the timid priest cleared his throat and began speaking, Declan squeezed my hand tighter. A signal that this was happening.

But why?

Tiring of maintaining this glower on Declan, I shifted my focus to the only other people in the room.

Shane and Keira stood together in the first pew. They’d switched sides, standing behind Declan, and I couldn’t look away.

My father had never acknowledged me. Not once in my life once he met Keira. I thought back to how he’d been so annoyed with my late arrival to his mansion, disobeying his request that I come speak to him about that “favor” earlier this week.

Behind him, Saoirse smirked. Smug and stuck up. I seldom ever spoke to her, but it all clicked now without any words needing to be shared.

Declan must have made an offer for her. And seeing what a hulking thug Declan was, she'd refused.

That’s why. My father expected me to marry Declan so Saoirse wouldn’t have to. I was the backup. The sacrifice. The spare to dispose of.

Keira tipped her chin higher, and I was pulled to consider her haughty expression as the priest droned on. She slit her eyes, honing her anger on me.

You fucking bitch. I didn’t react to her direct glower. I kept my face masked and locked in this frown as I revisited the image of my phone. I’d received a text from her when I'd so idiotically tried to escape in the church’s courtyard.

Keira texted me a simple warning, Marry that man or else. Attached was a picture taken of a document. I’d stared at that simple paper many times, wondering if and when my mother would be not only accepted for the kidney transplant, but also to be matched before it was too late.

I didn’t want to know how Keira got her hands on a copy of that document from the farm. She knew how to use it with maximum effectiveness.

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