Chapter Three
1098 Words
ELARA’S POV
The cameras find me before I even find my balance as I step out of the car.
Its blinding flashes hit my eyes from every direction.
“Over here!”
“Miss Wynn, this way!”
“Look at the bride!”
The voices increase as each photographer fights to get the perfect shot.
Everything is too bright. Too loud and happening too fast. It’s as if the world has decided I'm no longer a person… just an event.
Twenty-four hours ago, I was sitting in my father's office, signing papers I barely understood.
Now I am here…in an ivory wedding dress I never chose and somehow… It fits perfectly. That detail alone is still the one that bothers me the most. It means this was carefully planned.
“Miss Wynn! How do you feel?”
“How does it feel marrying Cassian Virelli?”
I did not answer. My mind is somewhere else entirely.
Security rushes in and forms a wall between me and the chaos. They guide me to the entrance, but it doesn’t feel like protection. It feels like escorting a prisoner.
Then I see him at the entrance. My father.
He stands stiffly near the door in a dark suit I always loved on him. I can see him trying to blink away the tears so I cannot see it.
“Elara…” he reaches out.
I stop walking. Everything inside me does too. There are so many words trapped in my throat. Questions I probably will never get answers to. But none of them come out.
Instead, I take his arm…not because I forgive him yet but because the only other option is to walk in there alone.
The doors open and soft music spills out. White flowers line the aisle. A decoration for a future I never agreed to.
Each step feels heavier than the last.
I raise my head to see Cassian Virelli waiting at the altar like he already owns the moment. Nothing about this surprised him. He has on him a black suit, with a perfect posture and the controlled expression of a man attending a business meeting.
When we reach him, my father reluctantly lets go of my hand. Cassian takes it firmly in his.
Just like that, I am not my father’s responsibility anymore. I am now his.
The officiant begins to speak, but the words blur together in my head; vows, promises, forever. None of it lands in my mind properly.
Until…
“Cassian Virelli, do you take this woman…”
“I do.” He did not hesitate but he didn't show any emotion either.
Then…
“Elara Wynn…”
The room spins, silence stretches. I sense all of it. The weight of it. The waiting. The eyes begging me to say the words: ‘just say it, just say it.’
My gaze darts to Cassian. He doesn't seem to be anxious. Not even a little.
Then my father. He isn’t just watching me. He is pleading. With his eyes.
I close my eyes for a brief second and force myself to believe something I'm not sure is true.
It’s only for one year, Elara. It will pass. It has to.
My lips part. “I… do.”
The room exhales all at once. A cold metal slides onto my finger. His ring. Cassian’s hand lingers on mine for a fraction longer than necessary before he lets go.
I lift my gaze to him, searching. For a moment… I could swear I saw something flash behind his eyes. It disappears before I can take a closer look.
“You may kiss the bride.”
I’m not ready. I should have been but I'm not.
Cassian draws closer. My heart jumps. His hand rests steadily at my waist… He pauses. In a way that suggests he is giving me a chance to stop him.
But I do not move. Neither does he.
He leans in. Close enough for our breath to mix with each other’s. His palm finds the opening at the back of my dress and rests there. His other hand settles on my waist and holds me still. He brings his lips to mine. The kiss isn’t rushed. It isn’t soft either. It's like a signature pressed onto paper. For one reckless second, everything ceases to exist. No cameras, no contract, no fear. Just him.
Then it ended. Cassian pulls away, adjusts his suit, and turns away as if nothing happened at all.
I do not realize I've been holding my breath until applause fills the hall.
We face the guests. Cassian's hand is at my back… deliberate and controlled.
I stiffen when he dips his head towards me so that his lips are near my ear. His breath brushes lightly on my skin. “Stop looking like you’re being sacrificed.” He whispers in my ear.
I tilt my head a bit, but he is already facing forward. It’s almost as if he has not spoken.
My pulse races. What is that even supposed to mean?
Before I can think further…we are outside. Camera flashes again. The security again clears the way for us to get into the car waiting right ahead of us. Questions fly from everywhere as Cassian holds my hand and guides me to the car.
“Mr. Virelli!”
“Is this marriage political?”
“Is it connected to the investigation into your company?”
I slow down. Investigation? I rotate just enough to face him.
Cassian does not react immediately. Then a pause. Although it isn't visible.
“Mr Virelli!”
A reporter forces his way through. “Is this marriage part of the ongoing financial investigation into Virelli Holdings? Are you therefore, using this wedding as a cover-up?”
Everywhere stands still l. I face him fully now, the confusion rising fast. “What investigation?” I ask.
Cassian studies my face. He doesn’t answer. He tightens his hands a little at my back. Barely invisible but I feel it.
Right then, a voice cut through the crowd. “Freeze!” A man pushes through the crowd of reporters, holding up an ID badge.
He stops directly in front of Cassian. “Cassian Virelli… you are hereby required to present yourself in relation to a federal financial misconduct investigation.”
The crowd let out a gasp. My fingers are freezing inside Cassian’s grip.
I search his face. Waiting. For an explanation, denial. Anything.
But Cassian Virelli… the man who controls every moment of my life for the past twenty-four hours…did not move or speak.
- Writer
