8. Gabriella
“So, where are we getting married?” I ask.
“A church,” Dante replies. “Now, stop asking questions and put on this blindfold.” He hands me a black blindfold as we stand in the kitchen. “You’re not going anywhere without putting it on. I don’t want you telling your brothers the way back to this cabin.”
I roll my eyes but do as he says. Instantly, the world is black around me. It’s both scary and thrilling. I have to trust Dante when I’m like this, but the reality is, I don’t trust him at all.
And yet … I’m willingly marrying him.
I think I’ve lost my mind. That must be it. That’s the only logical explanation for this.
I can feel Dante grab my hand, and his touch sends a fire right up my arm. He walks me out of the house and into the car. His hands grip my hips as he helps me into the seat before shutting the door. When he releases me, I can still feel the ghost of his touch.
Dante gets in beside me, starts the van, and then we’re off.
Off to get married.
God, I can’t believe this is happening. Why am I agreeing to this again? Sure, Dante kidnapped me, but the reality is I don’t feel like a captive. Maybe I already have Stockholm syndrome though I’m not sure how. Dante has never abused me. Sure, he spanked me once, but it didn’t bother me as much as it should have. Honestly, I kind of liked it. No man has ever dared to touch me the way Dante has. All my potential suitors were terrified of Rocco.
But Dante isn’t scared of Rocco.
And it’s refreshing. It’s exhilarating. It makes me want to be with him just to be in rebellion against my brother, who kept me under lock and key for most of my life.
I try to be sneaky and slip my fingers under the blindfold to see where we’re going, but Dante catches me.
“I see you, you know,” he says.
I put the blindfold back in place. “I just wanted to see where we’re going. I’m going to be your wife, Dante. You might as well start trusting me now.”
He scoffs. “I don’t trust you at all not to run given the chance. You claim you want to marry me, but you also don’t want to be tied down. So, which is it? And which one can I trust?”
“It’s both,” I admit. “I think I’d much prefer to be married to you than Antonio. You’re a lot more fun than he is. But I never wanted to be a wife. I’ve only ever wanted freedom.”
He’s silent for so long I think it’s the end of our conversation. Until he says, “I want you to have freedom, Gabriella. I just want you to have it with me.”
“Why do you like me? Is it just to hurt my brothers or …”
“Or because I can’t stop fantasizing about you at night? Is that what you want to know?”
His words send a heat through my body. “You really fantasize about me at night?”
“Every damn night,” he growls.
I shudder. It’s like every nerve within my body has woken up.
“You like that,” he says. “I know you do.”
“Who says I like it? In fact, I’m repulsed.”
He chuckles. “I’m sure you are. Not so repulsed to not marry me.”
He has me there. My feelings for Dante are mixed. A large part of me wants him to kiss the life out of me while another part of me wants nothing to do with him.
“Let”s just get this over with,” I mutter.
“We can do that. I can’t wait to be married to you, Gabriella De Luca.”
I don’t respond.
We continue driving for quite some time. I count the minutes in my head as we go but quickly lose track of time. It’s hard when you can’t see.
Eventually, Dante stops the car and tells me I can take off my blindfold.
We’re parked in front of a small church. Looking around, I see we’re in a small town. It just has that small town vibe, from the buildings to the cute shops to the people walking around. I try to look for street signs, but Dante is already out of the car and opening my door for me before I can see anything. Once we’re out of the car, he ushers me inside the church.
A reverend stands at the end of the aisle, holding onto a Bible.
“I’m Dante. I called earlier.”
The reverend nods his head. “I’m Reverend John. I’m glad I can marry you two today.”
There’s no one else inside the church. Dante really did plan this so I couldn’t escape.
“So, how much are you paying him off?” I whisper to Dante, nodding at Reverend John.
“Not much. But enough to keep him quiet.” Dante turns to the reverend. “We’d like to start the ceremony immediately.”
Dante and I face each other as Reverend John begins reciting things about marriage. I zone out. I never cared about marriage-related things, and I still don’t. But if my fate is to marry a Mafia man, then I’d much prefer it be Dante than Antonio. So far, Dante has proven just how exciting he can be. I don’t want a boring life locked in a tower.
Though, right now, I have a boring life locked in a cabin, which is worse. Hopefully, Dante will trust me more once we’re married and give me more freedom.
Freedom enough to escape, and then … what? Go back to living under lock and key with Rocco? Is that what I want?
Neither option sounds good to me, which, in turn, leaves me more conflicted.
“Do you, Dante Romano, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?” Reverend John asks.
“I do,” Dante responds in a crystal clear voice. Hearing him say that jolts me to the core. This is really happening. We’re really getting married. I kind of want to laugh at how much this will piss off Rocco.
“And do you, Gabriella De Luca, take this man to your lawfully wedded husband?”
Do I? Well, seeing as I don’t have any other choice …
“I do,” I say, trying not to sound too annoyed.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
Dante smirks as he cups my face and leans down to kiss me. I hold my breath as our lips touch. The kiss only lasts a moment, but at that moment, I know what I just did.
I just sold my soul away to a bad man.
And I don’t regret it.