Chapter 36 The Wedding
SANCIA
The Wedding
“Do not think to disgrace me, Sancia,” Papa growled when my feet stuck to the ground and wouldn't move despite my best efforts right outside the wedding hall.
Several people looked back from their tables to stare at us. However, I didn't see them and didn't care about their whispers. I only saw the devil waiting for me at the end of the hall.
Dressed in a charcoal gray tux and white shirt, the second time I had seen him wear since I knew him.
Dark, long, silky brown hair tied up in a man-bun from the top and shaved very low halfway down. His hard face, as though carved from rock, stared back at me; his honey-brown eyes looked darker from where I was.
Those eyes narrowed on me; even from where I stood, I could see the curl of his lips as he dared me with his eyes. It says, "Try it, try me, and see."
My courage was faltering, giving way under the debilitating realization of what would happen to me if I dared cross over this threshold.
While I had convinced myself I could handle whatever punishment I might receive, in truth, I was terrified. And seeing this devil had me questioning my sanity for not running while I still had the chance.
“Sancia, you will move, or I will drag you inside in front of all these people,” Papa threatened; I knew he would do it, too, and no one would dare try to stop him.
“I will walk, Papa, I'm just a little nervous,” I said. But he and I know the truth; for a second there, I almost ran.
And I would have done it if I knew there was at least a ten percent chance of my succeeding; I would have risked it and taken that odds. But there was no way I could have escaped. If my papa's men didn't catch me, Lorenzo's men would.
Swallowing down my fear, I throw my shoulders back and place one shaking foot after the other. Instantly, the soft piano music started.
I knew this song, Isabella had composed it, and I had instantly fallen in love with it. Soul-wrenching, I glance to the left side of the hall, where the grand piano is.
I was right, Papa must have talked her into playing this song for me. Because right there in her purple bridesmaid dress was Isabella playing so elegantly, her hair swept over one shoulder, eyes closed in concentration.
She looked so utterly beautiful, so graceful, doing what she loves most. I envy her every single thing: her kind soul, her soft-spoken voice, her long blonde hair. I even envy her for the death of her fiancé, despite knowing how wrong that was. And I would never wish death on my Antonio.
But since the tides had turned against me, I often wonder, maybe if I had been like her, Lorenzo Marchetti wouldn't have chosen me.
Maybe he would have been shown the other marriageable girls in the famiglia besides my sister and me. I have been so engrossed in my thoughts that I didn't realize I was right at the altar.
Until I felt the brush of Papa's kiss on my forehead before he walked away. I raise my eyes and stare into light brown eyes that stare at me like I am prey he couldn't wait to devour. Not for the first time, I wonder how a face so beautiful, so angelic, could hide a monster inside.
Lorenzo Marchetti is a good example of how appearances can deceive; he looked like a god, but beneath that handsome facade lurked a devil in disguise. The saying 'handsome as the devil' finally made sense to me.
I've been so immersed in my thoughts and scrutiny of him that I didn't see him move until both his hands reached out and lifted my veil so slowly. Until we stared at each other without any barriers.
“Hello, wife,” he drawled, voice husky. Those dark and soulless eyes stared at me in that unsettling way.
“I am not your wife,” I hissed.
“Yet,” he countered darkly. I bite my tongue to stop from refuting his claim because I know how futile it is.
“Did you miss me?” he drawls, his eyes gleaming wickedly.
“I will miss you when hell freezes over or when you find your way back there, where you obviously belong,” I muttered under my breath, forcing a smile that said I would gladly send him there if I could.
“I hate to disappoint you, wife, but I like it here way too much,” he drawled, grinning. I couldn't stop myself from glaring at him.
“I will make you rue this day, Lorenzo, mark my words,” I gritted, staring him dead in the eyes with all the hate I have for him in my heart.
“I can't wait, Tesoro.” He grinned so wide that his twin dimples appeared, making him so outrageously gorgeous. His eyes, though they made me squirm, there was amusement there, and I hated it.
I don't know why, but it makes my insides twist into a knot. That look in his eyes, and his smile, were just too much. It was unfair for a man as evil as him to be this beautiful; it just wasn't right.
But with the minister staring at us, there was nothing I could do. The gauntlet has been tossed, and I just hope I live to see the end of my enemy and not the other way around.
Lorenzo took my hand, sending an electrical current through me. I tried to pull my hand free, but he wouldn't let go.
The minister cleared his throat, and we both turned and faced the man who would bind us in matrimony. Or rather bind me to slavery.
My future isn't looking too bright right now. The minister droned on about the sanctity and importance of marriage, and I couldn't help being dragged into memory lane.