Chapter 6
6
CELIA
T he ballroom glittered around me. I felt lost in the sea of well-dressed guests, their laughter and chatter a constant hum in my ears. Their good humor seemed like a mockery, though I knew when I heard jeers, it was just my imagination. Royal and my father were here, and that put me on edge too.
I plastered on a smile as yet another guest approached, offering congratulations I didn’t deserve for a marriage I didn’t want. My cheeks ached from the effort of maintaining my facade.
“You look radiant, my dear,” an elderly woman cooed, patting my arm. I tried to place her face and connect her to a name. I’d been sheltered from so much of our family business, and it was a weakness of mine. “Such a lovely bride.”
“Thank you,” I murmured.
As she and I made small talk, my gaze drifted over her shoulder in search of Gabriel. He was across the room, deep in conversation with a group of men I didn’t recognize. He had taken my arm to walk me into the reception, given me a warm smile. I’d breathed in the intoxicating scent of his cologne, felt the corded warmth of his arm supporting me. I had felt, for the briefest, stupidest moment, a sense of hope. Maybe he hadn’t been just manipulating me when he gave me the motorcycle.
Maybe it had been fifty percent manipulation, fifty percent genuine.
When we danced the first dance, I was so nervous it was a blur, but Gabriel led me easily through the steps. I’d felt like a star as he spun me and dipped me, smiled and beamed at me. I’d never seen Gabriel look so happy, and I’d felt a lurch of joy.
Then his hand had slipped from mine as our guests streamed onto the dance floor.
He hadn’t so much as glanced my way since.
My new husband was ignoring me. Or maybe I just didn’t matter to him enough for him to even try to ignore me. He moved through our reception like a circling shark, never stopping, endlessly circling through the crowd and casting that strange, dark charisma of his over everyone.
Everyone except me.
He didn’t have to try to win me over. I had known what my options were; I would’ve thrown myself at Gabriel’s feet and begged him to marry me rather than have Royal drag me home to humiliate and torture me.
My stomach growled, reminding me that I’d barely eaten all day. Between final dress fittings and hair and makeup, I’d been so busy and distracted. Now, the room swam slightly, and I blinked hard, trying to focus. How long had it been since I’d last eaten? All day today, I’d felt too knotted-up to eat, or even drink much. I’d been tormented by thoughts of how I should best handle this situation. If Gabriel and I could figure out a way forward as allies, would I hurt Moriah, Natalie, and Kara by embracing my married life instead of our plans?
“Excuse me,” I said to the woman, “I need to?—”
But she was already pulling me into another conversation, introducing me to people whose names and faces blurred together. I nodded and smiled mechanically, my eyes constantly scanning the crowd. Where were Kara and Natalie? Surely they would have come if they could, even if only to make sure I was all right.
But I was afraid that my girls were in more danger than I was.
The edges of my vision began to darken. I needed to sit down, to eat something before I passed out in front of everyone. What a scandal that would be, the bride fainting at her own wedding reception. I could already imagine Royal’s sneering face, the disappointment in my father’s eyes.
Though I supposed now the only person I had to worry about displeasing was Gabriel, and he seemed impossible to please anyway. It had felt as if we had connected last night, but that was over now.
Just as my knees began to buckle, a strong arm wrapped around my waist.
I looked up, expecting Gabriel, but instead found myself staring into Dante’s concerned face. Without a word, he guided me away from the crowd and into a quiet hallway.
As the door swung shut behind us, we found ourselves in a deep hush. I hadn’t realized how loud and painful the party was for me until we were in the quiet.
He gripped my wrist, and heat flared through me as his fingertips settled on my palm. He was intent on his writing, but as my head spun dizzily, I couldn’t focus on what he was spelling out. All I could take in was his handsome face and the way he leaned over me, his broad shoulders to the crowd we’d left behind as if he would protect me.
“I think I need food,” I said softly, instead of trying to answer the question I hadn’t managed to read.
He nodded. When he left, he didn’t have to tell me that he would be right back.
Dante would always come back to me.
He was back in record time, like he’d plowed through people and taken a tray right off a waiter. He pressed a plate of food into my hands.
“Thank you,” I told him, before ripping into the appetizers. The food at my wedding was delicious, it turned out. Gabriel and I threw a good party. The thought made me smile, even with my mouth full of coconut shrimp.
Dante looked at me curiously.
“I think I’m losing my mind,” I told him frankly. It was easy to talk to him.
I devoured the food, barely tasting it. Dante watched me carefully, his dark eyes unreadable. When I finished, I felt steadier, the dizziness receding. “Thank you,” I whispered. “I don’t know what I would have done if…”
He held up his notebook, almost shyly.
He flipped it open to a page:
I’ll do anything for you .
Impulsively, I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his. For a moment, he was still.
Then he was kissing me back with a desperate hunger that took my breath away. His arms wrapped around me, pulling me flush against his body. His lips were soft, sweet, but he enveloped me as if we were two halves of one whole, finally drawn back together.
His hands settled on my hips. I swayed against him, feeling the same pull to be as close together as possible. His hard, corded muscle against mine was warm; his tall body dwarfed me, but I’d never felt safer with any man. Not since David.
He kissed me as if my lips were saving his life.
His kiss felt so familiar.
Like another time, when a tall, dark-eyed boy had leaned in close to me, half-confident and half-uncertain, and pressed his irresistible lips against mine.
David .
I broke away, gasping.
No, the similarity must be my imagination. Maybe every kiss would remind me of my first love’s.
He tucked my hair behind my ear, his gaze searching my face. His lips parted as if he were going to say something, even though that was impossible.
The sound of approaching footsteps strangled the moment.
We sprang apart just as one of Gabriel’s men rounded the corner. He took in the scene with wide eyes, his gaze darting between us.
“Is everything alright, Mrs. Caruso?” he asked, his hand hovering near the weapon concealed under his suit jacket.
I forced a smile. “Of course. Dante was just making sure I got something to eat. Wedding day jitters, you know. I accidentally starved myself.”
The man nodded. But as he backed away, I had the sudden feeling we were in a lot of trouble. What if Gabriel found us?
What would Gabriel do to me if I embarrassed him by kissing another man on our wedding day?
“I’m sorry,” I told him. “I’ve got to get back to the reception. I shouldn’t be here?—”
I didn’t let myself look back, but I still carried with me an impression of Dante looking stricken, reaching out for me, from the split-second as I turned away.
I half ran back to the glistening party, my heart pounding. The noise and lights assaulted my senses after the quiet.
I scanned the crowd frantically, looking for Gabriel. Had his man already told him what he’d seen?
My stomach churned with anxiety and bacon-wrapped scallops. Consuming all those appetizers suddenly seemed like a mistake, and usually I would consider anything bacon-wrapped to be a gift from God.
What would Gabriel do if he found out I’d kissed Dante? We may not love each other, but I was his wife now. Men like Gabriel didn’t take kindly to perceived betrayals.
Or real betrayals , my brain offered. Because it was, as always, an asshole.
I spotted Royal across the room, deep in conversation with my father. Their heads were bent close together, expressions serious. A chill ran down my spine. Were they discussing me?
What if Gabriel gave me back to them?
The thought made my knees feel weak.
I smoothed my hands over my dress, trying to hide the fact my hands had begun to shake, trying to calm my nerves. Act normal , I told myself. You have nothing to hide .
Just then, Gabriel’s gaze snapped up and locked onto mine. His dark eyes were unreadable as he excused himself from his conversation and stalked toward me.
Panic rose in my throat. I wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go.
I was trapped in this glittering cage of a reception, surrounded by people who saw me as nothing more than a pawn in their games.
But there was only one king on this chessboard, and his overwhelming attention was fixed on me.
“There you are, darling,” Gabriel said as he reached me, his voice low and dangerous. “I’ve been looking for you.”
He wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me against him. To anyone watching, we likely looked like the picture of newlywed bliss.
But I could feel the tension thrumming through his body. “Is everything all right?”
“That depends,” he murmured, his lips brushing my ear. “Why don’t you tell me where you disappeared to earlier?”
My blood ran cold. He knew. He already knew about the kiss with Dante. I opened my mouth, but no words came out.
“Nothing to say?” Gabriel’s grip on me tightened painfully. “That’s unlike you, Celia. You’re usually so talkative.”
I swallowed hard, my mind racing. “I just needed some air,” I stammered. “The reception was overwhelming. And I was hungry.”
Gabriel’s eyes narrowed. “Is that so? And I suppose Dante just happened to need air at the exact same time?”
“I almost passed out. Dante caught me.”
“Convenient,” he said, the word as quick and violent as a whip strike.
“Gabriel, please,” I whispered. “It wasn’t what it looked like?—”
My mind reeled, trying to come up with an excuse for Dante’s lips on mine.
“We’ll discuss this later. For now, you’re going to smile and play the blushing bride. The faithful-to-her-new-husband bride. Understood?” Gabriel’s icy blue gaze made him seem like an entirely different man from the one who held the motorcycle steady for me the day before.
I nodded, blinking back tears.
As Gabriel steered me toward another group of guests, Dante watched us from across the room. His expression was anguished.
I’d made things much, much worse for all of us.
The rest of the reception passed in a blur. I smiled and laughed on cue, accepting congratulations and thanking our guests. But inside, I was screaming. What would happen when Gabriel and I were finally alone? What would he do to Dante?
I felt an intense surge of relief when I caught a glimpse of Kara. Of course Moriah couldn’t come to my wedding, even if she wanted to. I didn’t know what that silver-tongued-sounding man was doing with her—or what she was doing to him—but our families were not exactly on good terms at the moment.
But seeing Kara filled me with joy, muted though it was by my tension with Gabriel. I wove through the crowd of wedding guests, greeting people cheerfully but not letting anyone stop me from reaching my friend.
“Celia!” Her face lit up when she saw me. Kara threw her arms around me, hugging me tightly. “You look absolutely stunning,” she whispered in my ear before pulling back to study me. “How are you holding up?”
I forced a smile, hoping it looked more genuine than it felt. “I’m fine. It’s a lot to take in, but I’m fine.”
Kara’s eyebrows furrowed as she looked at me, concern etched on her face. She must have been really worried for me, because she didn’t comment on my lot to take in slip. Under normal circumstances, she would’ve gone on about my hopes and dreams for Gabriel’s cock. “You don’t have to put on a brave face with me.”
“Nothing matters but…our plans.” I bit my lower lip, knowing we couldn’t speak freely. I wasn’t sure when we ever would be able to speak freely. “Have you talked to Moriah?”
“I’m worried about her,” she confessed in a whisper. “She’s just vanished.”
“I talked to her on the phone for a minute, but then a man took the phone from her?—”
“Someone took something from Moriah? Against her will?” Kara’s eyes widened. She obviously considered Moriah an unstoppable badass, just as I did. “How are we going to help her?”
“I don’t know. She said she had things under control, but…”
“She always does,” Kara said.
“I think right now, I’ve got to help myself so I can get some freedom.” I chewed my lower lip. “I can’t exactly leave the grounds. And I don’t have my phone anymore.”
“You can take my burner,” she assured me. She was already pulling it from her purse, but then she paused, realizing we’d need to wait for a better time. She looked me over, and I knew we were both doing the same assessment. I wasn’t carrying a purse. I had nowhere to hide a phone, not when my husband might peel my clothes off me as soon as we got in the door. “How do we get this home?”
“You can’t just give me your burner anyway.”
“I’ve got a backup,” she promised.
“From Moriah?” I asked.
She gave me a teasing smile. “I have more friends than you and Moriah, you know.”
“Is that so?” I felt inexplicably jealous.
“But no better girlfriends,” she promised me, leaving me with a lot of questions about Kara’s apparently secret life. But she went on. “Is everything okay with Gabriel? I saw the way he was looking at you earlier.”
I sighed, glancing around to make sure no one was within earshot. “It’s complicated. And I may have…kissed someone earlier.”
Kara’s eyes widened. “You kissed someone? Celia, what were you thinking? Who?”
“I don’t know what I was thinking,” I admitted, feeling a pang of guilt. It also felt so strange that my life had changed so much since I last saw her. “It was impulsive and stupid. I just felt so overwhelmed, and Dante was so kind and understanding. He reminds me…I know it sounds crazy, but…he’s so much like David. The things he does…I’m not sure if David is really dead, or if I’m losing my mind…”
Kara bit her lip, looking thoughtful. She knew my villain origin story, so she was familiar with David’s name. “Well, whoever he is, he made this a real mess, hmm? We can’t change what happened, but we can figure out how to handle the fallout. Did Gabriel see you kiss Dante?”
She’d breezed past my half-mad dream of David, and it left me feeling as if I were really crazy. Her instincts were right, though, I was hung up on David/Dante, but what mattered now was strategizing. I needed to survive the night.
“No, but one of his men interrupted us. I’m sure Gabriel knows by now. He seemed already…not thrilled…with my existence before the reception even started.” His distraction during the reception was such a reversal from that moment of connection over the motorcycle, which had given me the faintest hint of hope.
“Okay, let’s think,” Kara said, her mind already working on a solution. “You need to find a way to smooth things over with him. What if he kills Dante? Will you be able to handle that?”
I shook my head.
She took my hands in hers and squeezed. “Yes, you can,” she said firmly. “Dante might be the nicest guy in the world—although if he were, he wouldn’t be kissing you on your wedding day—but you’re my top priority. If he dies, he dies. But you have to live.”
I shook my head, unable to handle the thought, but her affection and worry sent a wash of gratitude through me. “How did I end up with the best girlfriends?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “Sometimes it feels like the whole world wants us to see each other—other women—as enemies. Maybe because that’s the only way to make us weak.”
I nodded and hugged her tight. She hugged me back.
“We’ll figure something out,” Kara assured me. “In the meantime, try to stay calm and act like everything is fine. Don’t give Gabriel any reason to suspect you’re plotting.”
I took a deep, steadying breath.
Kara glanced behind me, and her expression sharpened. She turned, trying to bring me with her, keeping my back to whatever she’d seen. I stiffened, fighting to see what exactly she saw.
“You don’t need to deal with Royal right now,” she whispered.
Royal was here. Of course he was, and yet my sudden blind fear overwhelmed my thinking. What if he took me away with him? What if I hadn’t really escaped him?
“What if Gabriel gives me back to my family?” The thought sent a roll of panic through my body.
“He won’t,” she promised. “Gabriel is a practical man. He has practical reasons for marrying you. He’s not going to give that up.”
I couldn’t tell her that my father might have ruined my value to Gabriel as he schemed to keep his gun running business together.
Kara looked despairing as she realized I’d froze, and then she grabbed my arm and pulled me with her. “Celia. You’re a queen. Someday Gabriel will realize that, I promise you. Everything is going to be okay.”
One of the groomsmen, a tall man with tattoos visible even in his suit, moved toward us with the sleek, dangerous presence of a shark. “Kara. Is everything okay?”
“My bestie and I here just need a moment without any interruptions, Killian,” Kara said, sweet as pie. But the way she turned her face seemed like she was pointing back at Royal as he bore down at us.
Killian’s gaze settled on Royal, a flash of distaste seeming to show through his stoic expression. “That won’t be a problem.”
Kara pulled me into an alcove. “You’re all right,” she told me, squeezing my hands. I stared at her, my body weak and trembling, and she wrapped her arms around me in a hug. As if she could make me be all right through pure force of will.
I glanced back at where Killian had intercepted Royal. “Who was he?”
“Just an old enforcer who works for my family,” she said lightly, in a tone that suggested there was so much she was hiding.
I glanced over at him again. He was broad shouldered, built like a Viking.
“He’s not that old.”
“Don’t start,” she told me, but she grinned, because I sounded lighter and looser than I had a moment before. “I bet he’ll tag Reid in and keep Royal away from us all night. Okay? You just focus on looking like a happy bride. You can handle Gabriel.”
That might very well be a lie, but I still felt some of my tension dissolve. “Thank you, Kara. I don’t know what I’d do without you. And apparently, Killian.”
She smiled and squeezed my hand. “You’re welcome. Now, let’s go mingle and act like we’re having the time of our lives.”
Kara and I walked arm in arm back into the crowd, putting on our best smiles. As we chatted with guests and laughed at jokes, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of dread lingering in the back of my mind.
And I twisted to find Gabriel staring at me, as if he were the source of that dread.
I’d wanted his attention before. Now it felt dangerous.
As the reception wore on, I tried to enjoy the lavish party. I had to appear to be having fun anyway. But the weight of my new husband’s scrutiny was never far from my thoughts. I could feel his eyes on me, watching and assessing, as if he were waiting for the right moment to strike.
As the party began to wind down, I thought of my clothes, abandoned in the suite where I’d gotten dressed.
I made my way to Kara, who immediately abandoned Killian—who shot me an irritated look I was sure he meant to suppress—and came with me to the bathroom. We checked that the stalls were all empty, lingering at the sinks until a woman washed her hands and left.
I palmed the keycard Marcus had left me with, tucked inside my dress in case I needed an escape during the reception. “I’ve got an idea. It might be a bad one.”
“Ooh,” Kara said with a bright flash of a smile. Sometimes she seemed to take our work as more of a game. She hadn’t spent as much of her formative years fearing her murder as I had, apparently. “Bad ideas are fun.”
I held out the keycard. “I’m sure my things will be collected from our suite. Could you hide the phone in my makeup bag?”
“Perfect!” she said happily.
I pulled the card back as she reached for it. “Only if it’s safe for you, Kara. I’m sure there will be eyes in the hall. You could say I needed my lipstick from the bag. If I go up…Gabriel is watching me too closely.”
“Of course.” She took the keycard.
I handed it over reluctantly.
“I’m a little mad about not being a bridesmaid,” she admitted.
“I didn’t plan anything about this wedding!” I reminded her.
“Clearly. If you were planning , I’d be a bridesmaid, and your husband would be the only one you kissed.” Her eyes twinkled with mischief. “But I demand a do-over one day.”
Images of another wedding rose into my mind. I’d dreamed about marrying David on the beach when I was just a girl.
This wedding didn’t feel right. It shouldn’t.
But I deserved a happy ending, a happy wedding, a happy marriage.
“Someday,” I promised.
Kara grinned at me, then headed for the door, clearly eager to run her errand.
I circulated through the crowd, until she returned to my side with my lipstick and a sunny smile.
She slipped her arm through mine and steered me away from the crowd. “Done. Now, can I give you a little marriage advice?”
From my unmarried friend ?
“Sure,” I said, resigned. Kara was going to dispense advice whether I agreed or not.
“ Ruin Gabriel.” She seemed serious now. “Make him need you.”
I scoffed, shaking my head. Gabriel didn’t seem as if he needed anyone.
“You can,” she told me. “He looks at you like…”
“Like he might murder me?”
“No, Celia.” She gave me a look as if I were being ridiculous. “As if you make him undone, and he can’t bear it.”
I couldn’t believe that. Especially right now. But I nodded.
She looked disappointed. “If you don’t believe me, just…think about it. Keep it close.” She put her hand over her heart.
“I will,” I promised.
“Be brave,” she said softly, having seen something over my shoulder that she focused on briefly before her gaze went back to mine. “And when you’re ready…turn around.”
I knew who was behind me from the way my skin prickled, the way I felt tension and longing intermingled.
Gabriel was waiting.
My heart stuttered as he came up behind me.
Gabriel’s hand found the small of my back once more. “It’s time to go, wife,” he said, his tone deceptively pleasant.
I allowed him to guide me toward the exit, my legs weak and thready.
Dante and Luca were nowhere to be seen in the crowd.
Then Gabriel was pulling me through the door.
I took one last glance back at the fairytale wedding behind us: the musicians playing, the glittering crowd dancing, the opulent ballroom.
We stepped into the cool night air. He was so tall, so handsome, so cold and remote. His hand felt heavy against my back, relentless, as he led me toward the waiting car.
I’d found myself in one of the old-fashioned fairy tales, the ones Disney doesn’t touch, the ones that are soaked in suffering and blood.
I think the truest fairy tales were those first, dark stories, where even if the princess wins, she’s forever scarred.