Chapter 12 – Gabriella #2
My heart crashed against my ribs. Excitement and a keen anticipation thrummed in my veins.
Those grey-blue eyes were the only thing that mattered.
They watched me with a steadying certainty.
Drinking me in. I felt…seen. Which was silly because a church full of five hundred guests stared at me. The tension ebbed.
I inhaled. The scent of fresh pine and something darker, something that was wholly him, filled me, my first real breath all day. It sent a shiver of relief down my spine.
But a jerk from my father brought it crashing back.
“What are you doing?” Papa demanded.
“Taking my bride to church.” Liam’s brogue was thick and harsh. He pulled my arm free, not unkindly, and tugged me to his side.
“I’m supposed to give her away,” Papa hissed.
“Thanks, but you’re done.” Liam pried me free. His body was angled between us. I wasn’t sure if it was intentional or not, but my next breath came easier. “Go. Find your seat.”
He didn’t wait to see if my father obeyed. As we stepped to the raised platform, the comfort faded. The monster’s grip was iron. Unbending. A different flavor of threat that I had to digest.
I flicked a nervous glance, studying his beautiful profile. Carved of stone, it was the face an angel would weep over.
Liam’s jaw flexed. He felt my gaze but didn’t meet it.
The priest began the holy rite, welcoming the guests to St. Vincent’s. “If there is any reason why these two should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace.”
Those words sent an electric shock through me. It wasn’t the muffled jabs, whispering behind us like living creatures. The source was deep inside my belly, radiating between my legs. The ghost of the surgeon’s touch echoed with the memory of a hurt I fought to conceal.
I’ll run.
This was just a change in location. Nothing more.
But still, the soul-crushing wounds transcended time and space.
Caught up in my own agony, I didn’t register that the whispers were outright taunts. No one was happy about this arrangement. Why were we standing here, forging an alliance no one wanted?
Liam’s voice broke the spell. “Proceed.”
I tensed, but the monster’s grip tightened.
He wasn’t letting me pull away. Our fingers were entwined, a symbol of this forced unity.
I disassociated from the ceremony, grappling with my own demons.
My fingers were numb as I slid the thick, white gold band on the finger the monster presented.
It gleamed, matching the one he pushed on mine.
It nested next to the solitaire, the metal making the weight impossibly heavy.
Nothing felt real. Not until the priest made the final announcement.
Man and wife.
“Finally,” Liam rasped as he turned to me. Hunger flashed in his eyes. He bent, clasped his arms around my back. “You belong to me now,” he growled.
A shiver raced down my spine.
There wasn’t time to draw a breath. I couldn’t think. His mouth covered mine, lips hard and warm. Those iron bands tightened around me, lifting me off the ground. I dangled in the air. He wasn’t going to let me fall.
The feel of his mouth made the place between my legs pulse with a wicked heat.
The kiss went on for what seemed an age. Liam wasn’t in a hurry. He didn’t let propriety rush him as he devoured my mouth.
“What? No teeth,” he murmured against my lips.
I gave him the barest shake of my head. I was dizzy. My lips tingled, swollen from the brutal claim. I was turned on, hot and needy. My eyes fluttered open, and I saw that possessive smirk. That mouth that was made for kissing.
“You taste so fecking good, cailín.” He brushed his nose against mine before taking my mouth again. His tongue thrust against mine. The buzz of electricity shot to my toes. I slowly slid my arms up, wrapping them around his neck.
I moaned against his lips.
Dio sacro, he kissed me like a sinner in the hall of the saints.
This time, I kissed him back. Screw everything else.
This moment was mine. I had a husband who knew how to kiss, and I was going to take advantage of it.
He tasted of something warm. Something dangerous.
Whiskey and promise. I couldn’t get enough of it.
Breathing hard, I brushed my tongue against his.
I moaned again, and his arms flexed against my back.
When I reached to splay my fingers through his hair, Liam stiffened.
He set me down slowly, breaking the kiss when my feet hit the ground.
I wobbled. The delicate strap wasn’t enough to catch me.
The kitten heels left me feeling unbalanced.
But those hands, gripping my hips, refused to let me fall.
As I steadied myself, catching his stare, I felt myself slipping into dangerous territory.
His turbulence was a place I might lose myself in, and the worst part was the temptation to willingly give into his stormy, frightening promise.
What have I done?
In the silence that followed our X-rated kiss, I couldn’t find the answer to that question.