Bound By Desire And Deception

Chapter2

Vanessa's POV.

Karol and I remained staring at each other. I turned to glance at Maximus, who shot me a look that could almost be described as apologetic. Well, he could shove it. He never cared for me, so why was he pretending to be guilty now? They were all a bunch of pretentious humans in this family, for all I cared.

“So, what are the terms?” I asked Karol, feeling my heart shatter in despair as I uttered the words.

“I'm glad you've come to your senses, girl,” she replied, a triumphant look on her face. “You married Mr. Colchester in a week, and you get to remain a member of this family legally. You're so pretentious, acting all angry like you're not secretly elated that you're going to be the wife of a billionaire. Anyway, you're aware of what's on the line. Make some fun moves, and you'll get what's coming to you.”

I felt my insides recoil in disgust at her words. I stepped closer to her, not stopping until mere inches separated us. “You're a disgusting person, Karol, and this only proves it. I'm nothing like you. Why didn't you give this precious opportunity to one of your perfect daughters? Oh right, because you know that it's not what it seems. And you,” I addressed Maximus,” I'm more disappointed in you than anything. I tried everything, everything that could be done to make both of you love me, yet this is how you pay me back. But I'm not an unfilial daughter. I'll do this, not because I love any of you and not because I have any attachment to this family, but only for that company, for the hundreds of people who work hard there, day by day, to put food on their tables. And after that, I'll cut off all contact, and I'll never bother you again. I won't need to; I mean, I'll be living in the lap of luxury, right?” I laughed at that, a self-deprecating sound.

“I'm grateful for what you've done for me so far. You took me in, you gave me a home, and you gave me something worth working for. But know this: you're no family of mine. You ceased to be when you pushed me into this without my consent.”

I took a deep breath at the end of my tirade, feeling a lot lighter now that I had aired my grievances. I saw something akin to hurt flash across Karol's face, feeling a bit of surprise that she was even capable of such an emotion, before shutting everything and everyone out and storming out of the room, slamming the door shut behind me.

I ran to my room, feeling the adrenaline receding from my veins and the tears gathering in my eyes threatening to drop. I reached my room and fumbled with the lock before collapsing to the ground on the other side of the door.

Only then did I let my bravery crumble and the tears fall.

How could they do this to me?

Now, I had always known that they never really loved me; I was just the charity project that they needed to boost their name. It was clear what they thought about me; the open and subtle distinctions between me and my stepsisters only became clearer the older I grew. I was always relegated to the background, was always the shadow, the foil for their light, but I always hoped deep down that they would recognize me as one of them one day.

Well, that dream shattered like glass in front of me today.

But with that realization came a bit of relief. At least, I now knew exactly where I stood. And I wasn't bluffing earlier; once this sham of a marriage was over and done with, I was cutting off all contact with them for good. I wasn't capable of taking any more heartbreak.

After letting the tears fall and relieving some of my pent-up tension, I decided to do one last rebellious act.

I am going to a party tonight.

Who knew if it would be my final chance to let loose before I had to get married to someone who was probably an old stuffy billionaire?

I got up from the floor and headed straight to my closet. Opening the drawers wide, I rifled through the contents in search of an outfit to wear. I found exactly what I was looking for buried underneath piles of clothing.

It was a red dress, one that I bought a while ago but never had the chance to wear. It was made of lace and silk and had thin spaghetti straps, a deep, plunging cowl neckline, and a daring open back, only covered slightly by the crisscrossing spaghetti straps. It was a daring piece, and it was going to be my armor tonight. I took a quick shower, applied some iridescent body cream for a subtle glow, and put the dress on. It fit me like a glove, flowing along my curves like liquid metal. I let my hair fall down my back in big, bouncy waves, applied smokey eye makeup complete with winged eyeliner, and completed the look with deep red lipstick that matched my dress. I finished the look with dangling silver earrings, silver sky-high strappy stilettos, and a small clutch bag. Looking in the mirror, I was extremely pleased with my overall appearance. I looked like a goddess, not a broken girl who was supposed to marry a stranger in a few hours. I applied a few spritzes of my favorite perfume to complete the look and left my room.

I was at the club after about 20 minutes, and I was greeted by a boom of loud music the moment I walked in. I headed straight for the bar and took a seat on one of the bar-stools. Quickly catching the eye of the bartender, I ordered a drink, something strong to take the edge off my rioting emotions.

My order arrived, and I downed the entire thing in one gulp, feeling the alcohol burn the back of my throat as it went down.

I was just about to order another when I felt someone slide onto the bar stool beside me.

“Can I buy your next drink, beautiful?” A deep, strong voice called out from beside me.

I turned my head, locking eyes with a pair of striking green eyes.

I took in the rest of him, enjoying the view of his muscled body clad in dark jeans and a tight black t-shirt, as well as his perfect face.

“Of course you can,” I replied, biting the corner of my lower lip.

I watched his eyes darken as they followed the action. My breath caught a little in my throat as he leaned in, giving me a deep whiff of his musky perfume.

“After our drink, we're going to dance. Then, if you're up for it, we can have a little more fun tonight.” He slid his hand onto my bare thigh and gripped it softly.

I knew that it was crazy. Hooking up with a stranger I found in the club was a terrible idea, but it was the final slap I could give to my parents before heading to a life I knew nothing about.

It was with these same thoughts in my head that I replied to the stranger, “Let's go have some fun.”