Page 25 of Praise Me: Priest

Conversely, my heart shoots up into my mouth. “Th-that’s Rune.”

“The priest?” spits Mr. Tandy. “The monsignor warned me he might be a problem.”

Monsignor Hannibal organized this. Of course he did. Evil man.

“Farrah, where are you?” Stomping and crashing ensues, growing louder by the moment. Closer to the chamber. “Which door is it?”

“This one,” I whisper, then louder, “this one! Rune!”

My breath catches when the doorknob rattles. It’s locked.

“Finish the ceremony!” shouts Mr. Tandy.

No!I want to scream back, but have I forgotten why I’m marrying Mr. Tandy in the first place? For security, if nothappiness. I’ve left Rune behind, because it was the right thing to do. He loves being a part of the church. He’s a good man who defended me when I was weak and vulnerable. A man of the people, not self-interest. And I’m the woman stealing him away from his purpose.

But we should at least be given a chance to say goodbye, right? For closure?

I bite my lip, not knowing what to do, though I desperately want to tear from the room and bury myself in the sanctuary of Rune’s arms.

Mr. Tandy grabs a handful of my hair, yanking my head around to face the justice again, pain rippling along my scalp. “Say your vows, you little bitch—”

The chamber door splinters down the middle. A foot kicks through the wooden panels, and then the entire obstacle is ripped down. Rune is revealed on the other side, bare-chested and sweating, looking like a savage brute, his face a mask of utter fury. “You were already warned to stay away from her,” he growls, pointing a shaking finger at Mr. Tandy. “Now you pay the price.”

Mr. Tandy relinquishes my hair and puts his hands up in surrender, backing toward the corner. “I’m only trying to help the girl—”

Rune’s fist streaks through the air and connects with Mr. Tandy’s jaw, sending him airborne across the room where he slams into the wall and slides down into an unconscious heap. He strides forward to pick his adversary back up and slug him again, but I step into Rune’s path to intercept him.

“You’ll kill him,” I whisper.

“Good.”

“No. You’re not a killer. You’re better than that. You’re a good man. That’s…” I exhale rockily, in pain from being this close tohim without touching. “That’s why I left. You are in the right place with the church. It’s what you love—”

“I loveyou, Farrah,” he says, stepping forward, his voice an emotional scrape. “I love you. My right place is whereyouare. Where we can be together.”

I gulp a sob. “But you’re a priest.”

“And I could have gone on being one for the rest of my life, except for one girl. One incredible girl. The only girl for me walked into my life and now I have the honor of changing my path so she can walk beside me.” He delves his fingers into my hair, and I almost collapse at the pleasure of his touch. The safety of it. “I cannot claim to be righteous and reject the gift I’ve been sent by heaven.” He leans down to breathe against my mouth, our lips grazing softly. “My Farrah.”

Yes, I am. His Farrah. Completely. “But you’ll miss it. You’ll miss who you were.”

“I’m not going to change. I’m going to change my circumstances. Ours.” He slants his mouth over mine in a groaning kiss. “Do you honestly think I could survive a world where we’re not together? Where you’re married to a lunatic?”

Tears burst from my eyes, but he only wipes them away with his big thumbs, looking down at me in open adoration. “No. I don’t know. I-I didn’t want to cause your ruin.”

“Withoutyou, I’m ruined. Without you, I was going through the motions. You showed me more. You showed me I’m meant to be a husband.” His gaze transforms with passion. Intensity. Determination. “Marry me, here and now, Farrah. Marry me, instead. Trust me to care for you and your aunt. Trust me enough to build a life with me.”

A moment ago, a miserable existence was inevitable. Now I am floating. More hopeful than I can ever remember being in my life. Maybe for the first time ever. “I trust you. Of course I do,” Imanage, though my throat feels banded with emotion. “Love and trust go hand in hand, and I love you to my very bones.”

His eyes mist, but he doesn’t take them off me. He lets me see the promise of our future there. All the joy it will hold. “Say the words, preacher,” he demands, his voice breaking. “Unite me and this woman. Until the day I die.”

Epilogue

Rune

Five Years Later

Isit in the last pew of the church, a worn leather Bible in my hand. I’m supposed to be mentally preparing for the sermon I’ll deliver this afternoon, but I can’t help but look at what I’ve built and marvel. I couldn’t have built a church from the ground up and assembled a congregation without my wife at my side.

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