Chapter 3: Runaway Bride
411 Words
Wedding day.
I stood in front of the floor-length mirror, hating the woman staring back at me. The white dress Adam chose clung to every curve, making me look like a sacrifice instead of a bride. Diamonds dripped from my neck, my ears, my wrists. Shameful chains disguised as jewelry.
"You look beautiful, Mrs. Al-Zahrani."
I flinched at his voice. Adam stood in the doorway of the bridal suite, devastating in a black tuxedo. He looked like sin made flesh. Like the devil himself come to claim his due.
"I'm not your wife yet," I said, lifting my chin.
"Three hours." He stepped inside, shutting the door. "Three hours and you'll say the words. You'll be mine forever."
"And if I refuse?"
His eyes went flat. Dangerous. "Then I'll carry you to the imam. I'll hold you there while he pronounces us married. I'll—"
"Force me?" I finished bitterly. "Like you forced me into this dress? Into this penthouse? Into your bed?"
"I never forced you into my bed, habibti." He was in front of me now, his fingers tracing my bare shoulder. "That night at Inferno, you begged me to take you."
Heat flooded my cheeks. "I was drunk. Grieving. I didn't know—"
"Didn't know what?" His mouth was at my ear. "That I would ruin you for all other men? That one night with me would leave you craving me even as you hate me?"
I hated that he was right. I hated the way my body leaned into him. I hated that part of me wanted this marriage.
"Why are you doing this?" I whispered. "You don't love me. You don't even know me."
Adam went still. For a second, his mask slipped. I saw something raw in his eyes. Possession. Need. Something that looked terrifyingly like... fear.
"I know enough," he said finally. "I know you're carrying my child. I know I can't sleep unless I know you're safe in my bed. I know the thought of another man touching you makes me want to burn the world."
His hand splayed over my stomach. "This baby is mine. You're mine. End of discussion."
Tears burned. "You can't just—"
A knock interrupted us. "Boss. It's time."
Adam stepped back, his face hardening into the Mafia King again. "Don't try anything stupid, Maya. There are 50 armed men downstairs. You won't make it off this floor."
The door shut. I was alone.
This
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