Deadly Vows

“I will never marry you!” I spat, my voice sharp with fury. His eyes didn’t flinch. But the fire behind them told me one thing, Luca Moretti was not a man who heard no often. Or ever. Too bad. I didn’t care who he was. Or how powerful. I only knew one thing: I would never be tied to a man I didn’t love, especially not one who treated marriage like a business deal. He took a step closer, slow and deliberate. “Maybe you will… when your father pays the price for your refusal.” My blood ran cold. “You won’t touch him!” I snapped. His smile was all teeth and ice. “Then I suggest you start practicing your vows.” I stared at him, at the man who controlled empires with the flick of his fingers. Now, that same man was standing in front of me like a reborn nightmare. “You’re quite smart, I must say. Joyce Mok,” he said slowly, as if tasting the fake name on his tongue. “Was that really the best you could come up with?” I didn’t reply. I couldn’t. My heart was thudding against my ribs so lowdly it might just have drowned out my thoughts. “How did you find me?” I demanded. My anger pushing past the fear. “Does it matter?” He shrugged, as if tracking people down was just another day at the office. “The most important thing is, I did. I wonder how long you thought you could run from me. Run from Luca Ricci. Your husband.” “You’re not my husband, you bastard.” I hissed. His brows lifted, amused. “I don’t know who or what you think you are, but I don’t give a s**t about you or your power games. You can burn your stupid contract. I’m not yours and I’ll never be yours.” “Language, language,” he said smoothly, taking another step forward. I held my ground this time, although my fingers curled tightly into fists. “You’ve been a very bad girl, Eva.” I flinched at his words. Hearing him call my real name felt like a slap. “Or are we still pretending to be Joyce?” he added. “Cute, but that is over now. This game you’re playing. The running, the fake, quiet little life. It ends now.” My anger kept rising and I swallowed hard. “You have no right to decide what ends and what doesn’t. It is my life and you have no say whatsoever.” “Oh, but I do,” he said. “Your father signed everything over. The businesses, the marriage contract, he gave me every single thing and that includes you, miss.” I shook my head, my anger bubbling like acid in my chest. “I’m not a goddamn asset.” “Then stop behaving like one.” He tilted his head a bit. “You think you’re so free here, in this pathetic town with your equally pathetic little job and cheap coffee? Tell me, Eva, did you think disappearing would cancel your reality?” “This isn’t my reality. You are not my reality.” I screamed. He let out a quiet, cold and humorless laugh. “Then I guess I’ll have to make it yours.” I wanted to scream. Not because I was afraid. Okay to be honest, I was afraid. God knows what this man is capable of. But, I wanted to scream because, this moment meant I had failed. All of it. The escape, the quiet life, the endless planning, all useless. Luca Ricci had found me. Every sound around me suddenly felt so distant, like I’d stepped out of my borrowed world and into someone else’s. I felt trapped. “Pack your things,” he said, his voice like a blade. “We leave in ten minutes.” “You must be out of your mind,” I shot back. “I’m not going anywhere with you.” He didn’t flinch. “You don’t have a choice. Don’t make me carry you out of here.” My mouth parted, but the words wouldn’t come because he was right. There were no choices left. I couldn’t run again, he’d find me. I could remember the last conversation I’d had with my father before I left. The guilt in his eyes. My own father didn’t know about my whereabouts. I kept it to myself to keep me safe from this man. “If you think I’ll stand next to you at some fake altar, reciting useless lines I couldn’t care less about, you must be delusional.” “Oh, we’re past that sweetheart,” he said. The wedding is in two weeks. Everyone’s already talking about it. The society pages are gushing. Your dress fitting is tomorrow.” “You’re crazy, Luca Ricci.” He turned to walk away, as if that was that. And I did the only thing I could. I picked up the closest thing I could find. A porcelain vase and threw it at his head. He ducked, just barely, as it shattered against the doorframe behind him. He turned slowly, eyes blazing now. “You’ve got fire,” he muttered. “Good, you’ll need it.” I glared, breathing hard. “Touch me or my family, and I swear to God, I’ll kill you myself.” He walked back up to me until only inches remained between us. I could smell the expensive cologne clinging to his skin. Sharp, musky and suffocating.” “You don’t get to make threats, bride,” he whispered. “You only get to obey.” With one last look, he turned to exit the room. “In fact,” he said turning around. Next thing I knew, my feet were off the ground and this man flung me on his back. “Put me down,” I yelled. Hitting his back with my fists. There was no stopping this man and he remained adamant to my struggles. I resorted to my fate as he put me into the waiting limo. I sat still. Everything inside me waging war with itself, rage, confusion, fear. But, beneath all this was something worse. A flicker of curiosity. The way his jaw tightened when I said no. The darkness in his eyes. The way he looked at me like I was something he already owned. I hated it, I hated that I felt anything. But feelings were dangerous. And now, they were the only weapons I had. And just like that, the world I thought I rebuilt in peace, came crashing down.