Page 65 of Santiago's Conquest (Four Dark Horsemen 1)

My father has always taught me to be proud of my surname and heritage, to remember I’m Lucian’s son.

His one and only heir.

In those eight years of hell, though?

Not a day went by that I didn’t wish I wasn’t his son.

Briseis

“I pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride,” Father Paul announces happily as Santiago looks into my face after throwing back the tule, his thumb gently wiping away the single tear sliding down my cheek, and I scrunch my eyes, revulsion rushing through every pore at the prospect of him kissing me in front of everyone and demanding something he shouldn’t even dream of at this point.

He pulls me toward him and then softly presses his lips to my forehead, murmuring over my skin with his raspy yet deep voice still able to send shivers down my spine. My mind and heart got ripped apart, standing on different sides of the fence, tearing me in two and demanding to listen to one of them while ignoring the other. “Bienvenida a mi vida, mi esposa.” Leaning back, he glides his hand to my neck, a crooked smile appearing on his face. His sapphire eyes hold so many secrets I want to discover them all, despite his earlier words and this horrendous ceremony with serial killers and my beaten-up father as a witness.

How truly pathetic am I?

Welcome to my life, my wife.

He gazes at me with such intensity and desire one might think, looking at us right now, we’re really in love and joined together in an eternal relationship, swearing our hearts to one another.

Only…

He never gave us a chance to develop normal feelings, did he?

He crushed me before I trusted him with my heart.

And besides, fairy tales for villains don’t exist; only princes get the princesses, and goodness always triumphs over evil.

Searching for a heart where it shouldn’t even be would be such a foolish thing to do on my part.

A flash of light hits our faces, and we both shift our attention to Jimena snapping several photos of us, winking. “These are pretty. They’ll go straight to the family album.” She opens her arms wide, and I yelp in surprise when Santiago pushes me into them. She hugs me so tight the air sticks in my lungs. “Welcome to the family, Briseis.” Warmth spreads through my system, somehow serving as a balm over my still bleeding wounds, because I’ve never been welcomed to anyone’s family. Yet this woman barely knows me and accepts me despite this charade, assuring herself her brother made the right choice.

What’s it like to be born into such a family where everyone trusts your judgment so much they never question your choices and accept everyone by default?

“Thank you,” I reply, returning the embrace, not wanting to be rude to her while she’s opening her heart to me. Although she should have never come to this wedding.

Sooner or later, her brother will get bored with this obsession of his that includes me and dump me like an unwanted gift.

Hopefully before I develop Stockholm Syndrome and fall irrevocably for my captor, despite him killing people left and right, or whatever his serial killer schedule is.

“Congratulations,” Remi says next, once Jimena lets me go, his expression blank. Based on him acting as a witness and hugging Jimena, I assume the Cortez family has a special place in his heart. It explains his threat in the helicopter but doesn’t give him a free pass.

He’s still an asshole in my book.

Octavius lifts his bottle to me, and Father Paul huffs under his breath. “Not under the eyes of the Lord.”

“The Lord has eyes everywhere,” Florian fires back, getting up from the bench with my father whimpering, but I don’t make a single move to him.

He doesn’t want my company anyway, and I heard earlier how Santiago ordered Remi to take him to the hospital so they could finish the job.

Whatever the hell that means. As long as he gets medical help, my conscience is clear.

Florian extends his hand to me. “Congratulations.”

Instinctively, I give it to him, and he raises it to his mouth, giving it a gently peck before dropping it.

To my astonishment, I notice Jimena’s gaze on him is full of pain, and Florian’s subtle touch when he grazes her slightly with his shoulder as he steps back.

If I didn’t know better, I’d think these two had a romantic relationship between them, but at the rate Florian whores around, I doubt it. Jimena doesn’t strike me as a girl pining for her brother’s best friend either while he fucked everything that moved.

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