Page 72 of His Beloved Princess
“I have—" I started, pointing with my index finger at his chest, but I was cut off by the strong voice of Mr. Thorn, who brought us back to reality in a millisecond.
“That’s enough!” he rumbled, standing. I shut my mouth, but the staring contest between me and Andreas continued. “You two are the strongest defense Bastian has. Don’t fight over something you can’t change.”
“I want to prevent that from happening in the future,” I said, my voice slightly trembling, but I did my best to sound normal. Mr. Thorn didn’t know me well enough to understand that this wasn’t my usual self. This beast woke up when I realized Bastian’s life’s work was endangered by someone who made up false accusations to gain money, fame, or maybe revenge for something he did in the past.
“And I’m sure Andreas learned his lesson and will update you on everything,” Mr. Thorn replied, giving his son a pointed look. I turned to him, unsure if I heard him correctly, but he only gave me a small, tired smile and touched my shoulder. “Welcome to the family, honey. I believe you will find out soon that we are more protectors than attackers.”
With one last look at his sons, he left the room, leaving a heavy silence behind.
“He wasn’t talking about you, right?” I said quietly, casting Andreas a glance, and he narrowed his eyes at me. Despite my voice being low on volume, he heard me clearly.
“You know nothing about me, Electra,” he pointed out, handing me a file that appeared out of nowhere in his hand. “Sign it and make it official. Police will want to see it.”
“Police?” I echoed, frowning. I took a silver pen from him, staring at the dotted line in the bottom right corner.
“I was already there,” Derek uttered, looking at his vibrating phone. His bored face almost made me smile. I liked the guy even when I didn’t know him well.
“We’ll all end up there,” Peter sighed, grimacing. “They will want to know everything about this marriage, about their relationship, not to mention the contract.”
“That’s insane. It’s our privacy,” I mumbled under my breath, writing my name on the marriage certificate and handing it back to Andreas. He took it, his face his typical emotionless mask again.
“You’ve got this, Electra,” Rosalind said, a small smile appearing on her red-painted lips. A breath hitched in my throat, and my eyebrows shot so high they almost met my blonde hair. That’s how shocked I was to hear her speak. “I didn’t believe you had it in you, but I finally see what Bastian saw in you the entire time. We’ll kick Sarah’s ass and send her back to Alabama.”
“I’ll send her to prison for this,” Andreas growled, flashing Rose an angry glance. “And when she gets out, she’ll be working her butt off to pay for the public insult on Bastian’s name. I’ll wipe the fucking streets with her stupid face.”
I watched as a grin settled on Peter’s face, and Frederick chuckled. Derek leaned into his seat, still looking like he was attending some boring show, but he lifted one eyebrow at Andreas, almost like he was challenging him to do what he said.
“You know it’s just a matter of time until the lawsuit against Electra attacking Rick Mallard shows up,” he remarked, referring to the incident that happened months ago. I slapped Rick and fired him in Bastian’s name. Because of his insults, Bastian ensured all of Rick’s contracts were terminated, and from what I heard, he filed for bankruptcy.
“He wouldn’t dare,” Andreas stated confidently, smirking arrogantly. “They didn’t know about the marriage. It’s a huge difference between suing an assistant and the company owner. That lawsuit won’t ever make it in front of the judge.”
I looked at him, feeling lost. I still hadn’t calmed down after the press conference and the argument with Andreas, and I was already facing more unexpected news. I wasn’t used to such an eventful life.
“Okay,” Rosalind broke into the conversation, leaning over the table to grab a copy of my marriage certificate. “How are we going to play it?”
“You’ll say the truth,” Derek replied, and Andreas nodded in agreement. “Bastian came to you to ask you to be the witness at his secret wedding. As it comes for us, we didn’t know about the marriage. It was a private ceremony, without any fuss or guests.”
“You claimed that?” Frederick asked, confusion written all over his face. He was quiet the entire time, and I could only imagine how hard it was for him to keep track of everything said.
“Yes,” Derek confirmed, standing and buttoning his black jacket. “They were skeptical but didn’t have any other choice but to believe me.”
“Wait, wait, wait.” I raised my hand, quickly connecting the dots. “You spoke with them before the press conference?”
“Yes, Mrs. Thorn,” he answered, winking at me with a sly smirk. “You’re the only one who wasn’t sure about your decision.” He stopped beside me, fishing a small red velvet box from his pants pocket. “This is the engagement ring.”
He took my wrist and placed it in my palm. Tears welled in my eyes. I imagined this moment a million times, but certainly not like this, with Bastian’s brothers and friends, yet without him.
“I have the wedding rings,” Fredy said gently, giving me another box that was black and shiny. “I tried to match his taste. I hope you’ll like them.”
“Thank you,” I whispered, doing my best not to start crying. All the strength I felt before vanished into thin air, and I felt broken and vulnerable again. This was entirely different from the fairytale living permanently in my head, and I couldn’t even be sure it would ever be like it.
“We would like to congratulate you, Electra,” Rose announced, offering a smile that didn’t reach her sad eyes, and the others nodded in unison.
“We’ll send presents to your apartment,” Andreas added, and Fredy rolled his eyes.
“Would you like a new coffee machine?” Peter asked, scratching his chin, and I burst into tears mixed with laughter.
“Stop making it weirder than it already is,” I muttered, shaking my head. I felt highly uncomfortable with two boxes with rings in my hands.
