Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 105679 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105679 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 528(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
He walked forward, coming to my side. I flinched back, wanting to sink and disappear into the mattress. But Damon didn’t berate me like I thought he would. He leaned down, cupping my cheeks, his thumb wiping my tears. “Did he force you, Serafina?” he asked, his voice tinged with concern. Distressed on my behalf. “Tell me and I’ll fix this. I promise you I’ll fix this.”
Adrian let out a small, dark chuckle. “I did no such thing. Whatever happened between us… she chose this. She chose me.”
My chin wobbled and I let out a choked cry. “I’m s-s-sorry.”
My brother’s eyes darkened with unmistakable fury. “That’s enough!” He let go of me gently and stepped toward Adrian, body tensed and jaw locked with determination. “If this happened with both of your consent, then there’s only one way to fix this now.”
The room fell silent. Even my tears seemed to freeze on my cheeks as the weight of Damon’s words settled over us all.
And then the room erupted again. I sat frozen, the blanket pulled tight around me as their voices washed over me, a torrent of rage, politics and consequences I couldn’t begin to process.
“She’s supposed to be my bride,” Matteo hissed.
“Will you accept her then? Knowing that she’s ruined?”
“Your brother is to blame.”
Damon and Adrian remained strangely quiet. My brother watched Adrian carefully as he sauntered over to the dresser and poured himself a glass of whiskey. Adrian took a slow sip, eyes gleaming with amusement.
How could he be so amused? So entertained at my expense?
How could he be so heartless?
There was no shame or remorse in his expression. No guilt for what he had done to me.
“You’ll marry her,” Damon announced, his voice cold and final, cutting through the chaos. “Today. Before word gets out.”
The silence that followed was loud.
Blood roared between my ears and my heart almost burst out of my chest.
Adrian’s grin widened. “I will.”
I blinked. Thud.
What did he just say?
My heart ricocheted. Thud.
I couldn’t have heard him right. No, that couldn’t be.
Adrian was a heartless monster. He would never marry me to save my reputation.
“You will?” Matteo’s voice cracked with disbelief.
“I will,” he repeated, turning to face me as I remained on the bed, cowering under the blanket with utter humiliation and now… shock. His gaze found mine across the room.
And for a moment, I saw past the arrogance, past the mockery, to something raw and vulnerable beneath.
“I’ll marry her,” Adrian said, his voice dropping low, a heated cadence that made my skin prickle. “But not because I defiled her. Not because of honor or obligation or any of your precious traditions.”
He took another sip of his whiskey before placing the glass down and taking a step toward me. I found myself unable to look away from the intensity in his gaze.
“I’ll marry her because I love her.”
The words hung in the air, impossible and absurd. Devastating.
Love?
No, this wasn’t love.
This couldn’t be love.
He’d ruined me, humiliated me, destroyed everything I’d been raised to become.
Adrian Salvatore didn’t love me.
This was manipulation, revenge, cruelty wrapped in pretty words.
I shook my head, hysteria bubbling in my chest. “You don’t love me,” I whispered, my voice barely audible.
I didn’t think anyone heard me, but Adrian did.
Adrian’s eyes softened, and for a moment, I almost believed him.
Matteo let out a harsh love. “You’re fucked in the head, Adrian. You know nothing about love,” he roared.
“Maybe I was fucked in the head. Maybe I was delusional.” Adrian didn’t look away from me, almost like he wanted me to believe his words. Pleading with me to see his truth. “Why does any of that matter? I love her. I made her mine. She is mine.”
“She stays,” Enzo announced, his voice firm. “The wedding will proceed as planned, but with a different groom.”
“How will we explain this to everyone?” My father threw his hands in the air. He turned away from me with disgust etched on his face. “This is utterly humiliating.”
“We’ll find a way,” my brother interrupted calmly. “What’s more important is that we protect Serafina’s reputation."
“Her honor is now mine,” Adrian growled, finally tearing his eyes from me and stalking to the center of the room, facing them. Something shifted in him. The earlier arrogance and amusement? They were replaced with something else, something darker that I couldn’t quite understand. “Her life, her body, her heart… mine. And it’s my duty to protect her. From this moment forward, no one will ever question her dignity. Not any of you and no stranger would dare doubt my wife’s honor.”
“This is madness,” Matteo spat. “She was supposed to be my bride.”
“Not anymore,” Adrian said quietly.
“I’m going to fucking kill—”
“Matteo,” Enzo warned, cutting off his heir before he could finish his sentence.
He faced his second son, eyes dark and cold. “It’s done. Adrian and Serafina will marry. No one will know what happened here. If word gets out, I will personally see to it myself that their head is delivered to you.”