Page 6 of Velvet Chains

We stepped into the garden together and it was as beautiful as it looked in the pictures. Every inch of it was sculpted to perfection, and the flowers that bloomed all around made it look like a fairyland.

When we stepped into it, all eyes fell on us. I could feel their scrutiny as they not only looked at us but how close we were. I briefly hoped that someone would notice something wrong and call the police but I knew that wasn't going to happen. I had to rely on myself. It didn't look like he was going to let me out of his sight long enough for me to escape. That was a problem.

“Isabelle! You're finally here! What took you so long?” A flurry of excitement arose as a woman in a green dress ran up to me and pulled my arm. I could feel the man beside me growing tense but I was too thankful for the interruption to care.

“Gloria! I'm so sorry I'm late, I got a bit lost. I hope all is good?” I tried my best to sound concerned.

“Of course! But hurry, the ceremony is starting now!” She said as she pulled me forward. Since Vincenzo refused to let go of my arm, he ended up following us too.

The ceremony was beautiful, but with my mind racing, I couldn't enjoy it. The time for my escape attempt, the reception, had come.

Vincenzo refused to let go of me, but I knew that with the open bar, it was only a matter of time before someone got drunk enough to do something stupid and stir up some drama. The confusion that would ensue would be enough for me to slip away unnoticed. I began by picking the closest exit and I waited.

“Stay here. I need to take this.” Vincenzo said before getting up to take a call. His absence was the opening I needed as I immediately got up and began to make my way to the exit. But, before I could get to it, someone stopped me.

“Isabelle.” Mark said, smelling of alcohol, as he dragged me to a quiet corner of the venue. At first, I struggled, but I went along with it when I saw who it was.

“Izzy, I'm so sorry.”

“Mark, you're drunk and married. We shouldn't be talking like this, alone.” I responded, the groom, my ex-boyfriend, shook his head in response.

“Izzy, I'm so sorry. I handled things terribly and hurt you. I just want to-” He spoke with a pleading look that I was familiar with.

Before I could respond, Vincenzo found us.

“Get lost.” he growled as he pulled Mark away from me and tossed him aside easily. Mark backed away so fast that I didn't even have time to feel disappointed in him before Vincenzo pulled me out of the hall.

“What the hell is your problem? Are you trying to get killed?” He practically yelled at me when we got out of the venue.

“Get killed by who? Obviously you're the only person who would want to kill me right now.” I finally felt my anger overwhelm my fear.

“You have no idea what kind of danger you're in.” He chuckled, his breath washing over my face again. I felt something within me waver, but before I could follow that thread, it snapped. Vincenzo held my arm again in a death grip and pulled me toward the car.

He practically shoved me in the passenger’s seat and started driving.

“Where are you taking me now?” I asked.

“A place where you can't cause any more trouble.” He said simply as he zoomed off, taking me away from my best chance of escaping.

CHAPTER FOUR

VINCENZO

The woman beside me was a problem. This I knew for a fact. She was the worst kind of problem, an oblivious one. She had no idea what the stakes were and exactly what situation she was in, so she tried to escape.

The drive was long, and the silence that filled the car only made it feel longer. I was used to silence but I could practically hear the wheels in Isabelle's head turning. For all her plans and schemes, her face was too expressive for her to pull off any kind of subterfuge. If the stakes were not so high, I might have enjoyed watching her and seeing how her mind worked.

As we pulled up to my estate, I realized that I still had no idea what I was going to do with her. What I did know was that I had to keep her under control and I knew that she was going to do her best to escape. Lucky for me, she was on my territory, and that gave me an advantage. I just had to make sure I kept it.

I got out of the car and walked over to her side before pulling her out. Her skin felt soft to the touch. Even when I pulled her out, it was like her body was a piece of soft silk in my hands. She fell right into my arms, and although I could see her looking up at me with indignation, all I could focus on was how sweet she smelled.

She had a soft, floral scent on her which I attributed to us being in a garden all day. The scent was on her skin, in her hair, on her clothes. I briefly wondered what her skin would taste like if I allowed myself a small taste.

This thought was interrupted when she suddenly began moving around, as if she was trying to yank herself out of my grip. The first thing I felt was amusement and a smile spread across my face as I watched her futile efforts. Her movements felt like a small kitten’s attempt at being scary. She wasn't getting away anytime soon. I waited for a while, interested to see how long she would keep it up.

She didn't disappoint me, struggling for longer than I thought she would before finally giving up. I felt a bit disappointed when she finally stopped squirming in my arms. I wanted to hold her longer, to feel her soft body against mine. The way she shivered when I got close to her, I could have bet that the feeling was mutual

“Are you done?” I asked, my amusement clear in my voice. She didn't respond, so I asked again.

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