Page 144 of My Ruthless Husband

He releases me and pockets his hands. “Then go out. And trust me.”

For a second, I hesitate but I take a breath and obey, knowing that I trust him with every fiber of my being. I trust him with my life.

As I rejoin the party, my father is immediately at my side, gripping my elbow with an iron-like grasp. “Where have you been? I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” His voice is a furious whisper, a muscle jumping in his jaw.

“I—”

“Doesn’t matter. Come. It’s time.” He begins to steer me toward the grand staircase where Edward is waiting, my palms clammy with anxiety as I feel the weight of everyone’s gaze on me. I desperately scan the crowd for Damian, but all I find are the curious faces of the elite surrounding us.

Once we reach the foot of the staircase, my father pivots to face the room, and I hold my breath, bracing for what’s to come. But before he can utter a word, a commanding voice slices through the murmurs of the crowd.

“Ladies and gentlemen.”

All heads snap toward the voice. They part like the Red Sea, revealing none other than Damian.

The shock of his presence sends a ripple through the room, and my father’s grip on me tightens.

Edward, who had been standing proudly by my side, instinctively takes a step back, his expression morphing from arrogance to fear.

Damian strides forward, his movements purposeful and fluid. The tension thickens as he reaches the dead center of the room, eyes locked onto mine.

“I know it’s unusual to steal someone else’s moment,” he says, his voice resonant, “but I have something that needs to be said.”

The air crackles with electricity as he extends his hand toward me. “Angel, come here.”

In a heartbeat, I find myself moving toward him, drawn to him like a moth to a flame. The crowd blurs around me, their whispers and shocked gasps suddenly muted. I can’t think about anything but reaching him.

To my surprise, my father’s grip on my elbow slackens. Perhaps recognizing the scandal brewing or he seems to understand that confronting Damian here would only make matters worse. I don’t know the reason and I don’t care.

As I reach him, Damian doesn’t take my hand; instead, he wraps an arm around my waist, pulling me close against his side. I blush furiously because his hand rests possessively beneath my breast. And nobody misses that. Especially my father and Edward. It’s a clear message to the world. That I am his.

The room falls into a heavy silence, everyone anticipating, curious. My heart races, but in this moment, I feel unbreakable, safer, shielded by the man beside me.

“I’m glad to see so many familiar faces here tonight,” he begins, his voice cutting through the stillness like a knife. It’s amusing how detached he sounds, as though he couldn’t care less about the crowd around him. My lips twitch into a small, private smile. That’s Damian.

“I have an announcement to make.”

I glance up at him in confusion. He looks down at me intently as he addresses the room. “River has consented to be my wife.”

My eyes widen. I hear ripple of gasps and murmurs. A camera flashes but all I can do is stare up at him. Everything was happening so fast, I couldn’t concentrate. One second, Damian was announcing about our supposed engagement and the next I hear Dad’s bodyguards ushering everyone. For what? I have no idea. I only register Damian’s head lowering as he captures my mouth. All I remember is us kissing. Like really kissing, greedily, hungrily, our tongues sliding together in a heated, erotic, shameless dance.

Without caring about the audience, my hands reach up and circle his neck. All that matters is the feel of his mouth on mine, the way his hands grip me like he never wants to let go.

He picks me up with strong hands and begins walking without breaking the kiss.

Am I dreaming? If so, I never want to wake up. I don’t know where he’s taking me, but it doesn’t matter. The only thing I’maware of is the heat of his body, the way his mouth refuses to part from mine, and the thudding of my heart.

Tonight, Damian claimed me, he didn’t ask, he just took what he believed was already his. Me. As his future wife.

A sharp thrill courses through me, and suddenly I remember something. My wish. I had wished to be his in every way on my 21st birthday. And here we are, my wish becoming a reality, only more intense than I could have ever imagined.

It was really meant to be. Me and him. With a kiss on my eighteenth birthday, he stole my heart. And on my twenty-first, I willingly bound my fate to his with another kiss.

I’m his now. Entirely, unmistakably his.

I’m going to be Mrs. Damian Montgomery.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

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