Page 42 of Beautiful Revenge

“Price isn’t an issue. Pick out what ring you want, princess.”

If I’m going to be stuck wearing a ring for the rest of my life to a man I hate, I might as well choose a ring that I love.

My eyes fall onto a classic princess cut diamond ring. Finn notices me eyeing it.

“That one,” he tells the woman – Sarah, her nametag reads.

Sarah gets out the ring and hands it to Finn, who grabs my hand even though I try to fight him. Sarah gives us a concerned look so I stop fighting and let Finn put the ring on my finger.

Just like the dress, it’s a perfect fit. It’s like the universe is trying to tell me something and I don’t like it.

“Perfect,” Finn practically growls.

I snatch my hand away from him the second I can.

“Now, the wedding bands,” he says.

We leave the store a little bit later with matching wedding rings for our wedding that I most definitely do not want to take part in.

“I can’t believe you’re making me do this,” I grumble.

“I’m shocked you didn’t make more of a scene at the dress shop and now the jeweler’s.”

“I was trying to prevent you from killing anybody. I don’t know what you’re fully capable of but what I do know is that you haven’t hesitated to kill people. You even killed those men that you called your friends.”

He snorts. “Those fuckers weren’t my friends. They were just men it was fun to hang around and get drunk with on occasion. But we were never friends.”

I stare at Finn with curiosity. “Do you even have any friends? Anyone you truly love in your life?”

“My mom,” he says simply.

“And your brother.”

He side-eyes me. “My brother betrayed me.”

“But you could have killed him last night and you didn’t. You let him live. That means something.”

His hands clench the steering wheel tighter until his knuckles turn white. “Don’t speak to me about my brother. About things you don’t understand.”

“I’m about to be your wife, Finn. Shouldn’t you start to trust me?”

“We both know I don’t trust you. Don’t try playing games with me, princess. It’s not going to work.”

“You love your brother,” I continue. “Try to deny it all you want but it’s true.”

He stops the car so fast, I jerk forward. The only thing that protects me is my seatbelt. He turns his dark eyes onto me and whips out his gun, placing it to the underside of my jaw. “Never talk about my brother with me ever again. You understand?”

I’ve never seen Finn act like this before. There’s hate there, anger yes, but also vulnerability. His brother is a nerve for him.

I like knowing something personal about Finn. It reminds me that he’s just a man when all is said and done.

“I understand.” I try to swallow but the gun makes it hard.

Finn holds his gun there and glares at me for a long moment before he sits back in his seat. “Now, let’s go get married.”

The church Finn chooses is a simple one. Nothing grand like I had planned for my own wedding.

“Won’t we need the church’s permission to marry us?” I ask.