Page 3 of The Mistake

With the bridesmaids across from me, it was time to bring my bride.

I spotted Rage. He sported his leather cut. Ivan had insisted on it being a tuxedo affair, but like all the Evil Savages MC, they hadn’t listened to Ivan. That was their first mistake. Rage was in charge of the club, but there would be consequences for not following Ivan’s orders.

Charlotte’s face washidden behind a veil. She held onto Rage’s arm. I did notice the tightness of her grip. The dress she wore was beautiful. The veil came to below her chin, but the dress had no straps. The bodice was molded to her like a corset, wrapping around her tits, gliding down her waist, and ending at her hips. It gave the illusion of a tiny waist.

Charlotte was not a small woman. Trust me, I knew. The few times I’d caught up with her, she’d gone limp in my arms, attempting to drag me down and stop me from taking her back to my home. She was not light.

She possessed curves, and when she wasn’t trying to starve herself, she also had quite a bit of an appetite. I’m not going to lie, I enjoyed watching her eat. It was a pleasure I didn’t think I’d enjoy but I did.

Rage got her close and I took the few steps down, waiting for him to place her hand within mine. Ivan insisted we follow tradition. Rage was not Charlotte’s father, but with how he’d fought for her and turned against his original MC President, he was the closest thing she had to a father. I didn’t trust him.

He lifted her veil and I saw the tears in her eyes. Rage hesitated. He held her hands and I tensed up, waiting.

No one should have guns at the church, but everyone had a way of sneaking them inside. I had one strapped to my leg. I also had three knives inside my trousers. I never went anywhere without being prepared.

Rage placed her handin mine, but I knew he didn’t want to. As for Charlotte, she shook. I expected her to put up a fight, but she surprised me. I moved her up the steps and she followed. It was then I noticed her feet were bare. She didn’t wear any heels. I wanted to ask her why, but now was not the time.

The music came to a stop and a priest started his sermon. I drowned out the noise because I wasn’t interested. There was a time I did have faith and believed in a higher power. It had taken years for that belief to be stripped from me, but it had, and now, I ignored the words. They meant nothing. They were nothing.

Neither of us had written vows and when the time came to recite them, Ivan stepped in and whispered against the priest’s ear, and the priest’s face went bright red. I didn’t know what Ivan said, but it was enough to make the priest blush. I had to stifle a laugh.

He asked the question about anyone objecting to the marriage and part of me wanted Rage to scream out, to tell them that he did, that he didn’t want us to get married. My wedding would end in a bloodbath, and I so wanted to kill someone.

Nothing. No one said a word.

“You may kiss the bride.”

Now there was a whimper. The sound was subtle but I heard it. Charlotte looked terrified.

Tough. She had to kiss me.

****

Lottie

“You may now kiss the bride.”

This is so not fair.

I’m eighteen years old and forced into a marriageI don’t want. My husband, Ive Yahontov, looked pissed off. I was not surprised. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that he didn’t want to get married. Neither did I. Why did he have to glare at me?

I wish I’d worn the heels. I’m ashort person. I’ve been small all my life so a lot of people tower over me. The shoes had hurt my feet. I’d only worn them for a few minutes, but I wasn’t used to wearing heels. I liked my sneakers. They made running a lot easier. I wish I had sneakers. I wish my life had been different. No, that wasn’t true, I wish I had never been fucking born. If I’d died on that day instead of my mother, there would have been no life to worry about. No panicking when my dad had one of his anger issues to deal with.

Even though panic had started to build up inside me, I’d spent years perfecting my mask. When at the club, hearing the insults my father threw my way, or beer bottles, or anything he wanted to vent his anger out on, I didn’t show any emotion. I wasn’t allowed to. The more I showed, the more acute his anger got.

Unlike Cassie, I wasn’t loved. My father had even welcomed my death. He’d told Ivan Volkov to kill me. He didn’t care about his daughter being in the hands of his enemy. If it had been Cassie taken, he’d have taken the whole club and slaughtered everyone.

Me? Nothing. No one. Instead, Rage, the only person who’d been kind to me, hadto turn on his very own in order to save me. It’s why I was here. It’s why he didn’t point a gun at my head and take me out of the equation. I didn’t know what the consequences would be for him, and I didn’t want him to suffer.

Ive leaned in close and his lips brushed against mine. Therewere no feelings. He kissed me.

The church was still silent and then a round of applause, followed by themusic. Ive pulled away from me but kept a firm grip on my hand. He knew I was tempted to run, even without my sneakers. Back at his home, I’d run. I’d done anything I could to get as far away from him as possible. He wasn’t quite so easily tricked as his staff or servants or slaves, whatever he wanted to call them.

Other men approached. A couple of them I recognized. They shook Ive’s hand and then kissed my cheek. Again, years of practicing not to react came in handy. Aurora, Adelaide, and Cassie came over, embracing me. I didn’t feel anything. There was nothing to feel. Nothing to acknowledge.

Cassie held me tighter but it didn’t last. Ive hadn’t let go of my hand and I turned to see Ivan Volkov.

“You’re one of our own now,” Ivan said.

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