Page 43 of The Hermit

Dominik is dressed in a black suit, not a hair out of place, and looking way too handsome.

Evinka slaps his shoulder, and his head whips around, his eyes locking on me.

I hear Dad behind me, and needing to prove that I’m stronger than I feel, I force myself to close the distance between Dominik and me. Evinka starts taking photos as if this moment actually means anything.

When I stop beside my husband-to-be, my body’s a trembling mess and my mouth is bone-dry.

The priest, who’s a perfect stranger, doesn’t even look at me as he asks, “Dominik and Grace, do you stand here before God, willing to enter into marriage without coercion, freely and wholeheartedly?”

No, no, and no.

“I do,” Dominik answers.

Shit. I do.

I do.

I do.

My lips part, and all that comes out is a pathetic squeak.

Dominik reaches for my hand, but I quickly take a step backward.

The priest must be paid a lot of money because he ignores me completely, and as he continues, I realize the ceremony has been shortened a lot.

The priest only pays attention to Dominik as he says, “Repeat after me. I, Dominik Varga, take you, Grace Devlin, for my lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. I will be loyal and honor you all the days of my life.”

When Dominik repeats his vows, a frown forms on my forehead because ‘love’ has been replaced with ‘loyalty.’

Maybe our marriage will be in name after all? Only time will tell.

“Your turn,” Dominik murmurs, his intense eyes not leaving me for a second.

When my lips part, I tremble horribly. “I, Grace Devlin, take you, Dominik Varga, for my…” my voice disappears, and it has Dominik tilting his head at me.

I quickly clear my throat and rush through the words, “For my lawful husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, hopefully for better, but I get a feeling it will be for worse,” I add my own little twist before continuing, “For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part, which I’ll definitely give my best try if you attempt to consummate this marriage.”

Evinka’s shoulders shake with silent laughter, which she doesn’t even try to hide, while Dominik just smirks at me.

“I will be loyal…” the priest says, reminding me of the last sentence.

“I will be loyal and honor you as long as you do the same,” I mutter.

Evinka hands us two simple gold bands, and when Dominik touches me, my body tenses to breaking point while he pushes the ring onto my finger.

I quickly shove his ring onto his finger and step backward again.

“I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride,” the priest announces, and a hot-as-hell smile stretches over Dominik’s face.

Instead of forcing a heated kiss on me like Braden did, Dominik closes the distance between us and only presses a soft kiss to my forehead.

When he pulls back and looks down at me, he says, “You look beautiful in the dress, but go change quickly so we can leave.”

I give him a cautious look, and only when Evinka comes to pull at my arm do I walk away from the spot where I just tied my life to Dominik’s.

I completely ignore Dad, who rushes to Dominik so they can shake hands.

After all, the deal between them is completed now.

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