The Unwilling Vow: A Lifetime Promise

forced marriage

Pearl’s P.O.V.

If someone had told me this yesterday, I would be standing at the altar with someone who is still mourning her dead wife, who died three years ago, and I am nothing but a way to save his son, I would have slapped his face without thinking much.

But the cruelty slapped me hard. Not only was I standing in front of that person, but I was also marrying him.

Above all, my whole family, who supported me in my every decision till this day, forced me to be his marriage partner.

“Ms. Pearl Nickelson, do you, in the name of God, take Mr. Arthur Froste as your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish and obey, until you part by death?”

My eyes, hidden behind the veil, were unfocused. I didn’t know where I was looking or what I was listening to.

The only sound that was echoing in my ears was the howling of the wind.

“Ms. Nickelson?” Someone called my name aloud, but my brain had stopped functioning a long time ago.

I guess it was the time when I was told that I had to marry Arthur Froste, Jack’s older brother, instead of him, because this was the only way to save Vera’s daughter.

I flinched hard when a hand grabbed my hands, clasped tightly over my stomach.

I almost screamed in panic when I couldn’t recognize the touch, but came back to my senses at the same time.

God!!!!!

What was I even doing here? This wasn’t the dream wedding that I had planned with Jack.

This wasn’t the right thing to do when Jack was lying in the hospital; his last memories were still about us going to marry soon.

“Ms. Nickelson, do you take Mr. Arthur Froste, as your husband?” The officer asked me again.

“Pearl. Get a grip on your emotions, honey. None of us sees that coming, but this is about Evan.” Mom whispered in my ear from behind.

It was when I registered that she was the one who was holding my hands on my stomach.

“I do,” I spoke absentmindedly; my own voice was foreign to me.

My mother’s grip on my hand loosened at once.

She was relieved.

But what about me?

It was so easy for her to say, but I couldn’t be able to see them with the same respect as I had done in the past.

“Mr. Froste, please put the ring on Ms. Nickelson’s finger.” The officer requested Arthur Froste in a cheerful voice, but it sounded like a slap on my face.

Mom pulled my hand out of the clasp and raised it towards Arthur.

It was when I slowly lifted my eyes up. His dark hazel eyes were still cold and detached as if he wasn’t attending his wedding, but a funeral.

His face was completely blank as if he weren’t on earth.

He raised his hand and took the tip of my fingers.

The cold touch of his fingers made me shiver hard.

This was it. There was no way back now.

The tears were now hanging at the base of the eyelashes, but I couldn’t cry.

The cold metal against my skin made me realize that now I was bound to him in a relationship that should be a source of happiness, but it only brought pain to me.

Everyone clapped, but the excitement and happiness were missing in their claps.

“Ms. Nickelson, please put in Mr. Froste’s finger.” The officer requested me in the same cheerful voice.

My hands were now shaking badly. I slowly lifted them to get the ring, but a whimper escaped from my lips.

God!!!!

I felt so vulnerable and humiliated.

I was still having a hard time believing that my parents….

My biological parents intended to use me as a breeder.

I jolted when Arthur suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled it up.

I looked at him in shock, but all I saw was an expressionless face.

He helped me get the ring and then raised his hand towards me.

Every moment was robotic.

As if someone had put him in autopilot mode.

I slipped the ring on his finger, still looking at him in a daze.

Vera wasn’t that close to me, but our whole family knew how deeply they were in love.

Everyone called Vera a blessed woman because of Arthur’s devotion towards her.

I saw that in Vera’s last days.

I watched Arthur sitting beside her for hours, holding her hand tightly.

He was a practical person. He accepted his fate without showing vulnerability, but we all knew that he never let any other woman come close to him after Vera's demise.

He refused to accept this arrangement but suddenly agreed.

“Just do what they ask, Pearl. I know that we don’t have much interaction with each other, but trust me on this if you can.”

This was his statement when I asked him angrily how he could agree on something absurd like this.

But in the end, I trusted him.

I don’t know why, but I trusted him.

“Now the groom can kiss his bride.” My whole body trembled hard when the officer announced cheerfully.

My breath hitched, and for a few seconds, my heart stopped beating too.

Arthur was still holding my hand. He tightened his grip on my hand.

My heart raced in my chest.

Kiss?????

If it were Jack, I would have thought about kissing him, but Arthur?????

How????

I looked at Arthur through tears.

He slowly pulled me towards him, his face still blank, and eyes were cold and dull.

My body was now shaking badly, and breathing was ragging.

He didn’t leave my hand. I tightened my grip on his fingers.

I was now hell scared.

My parents could have stopped this.

My body jolted hard when I felt Arthur’s lips at the top of my head.

I breathed out aloud, and my body suddenly lost all its strength.

Relief washed over me with that kiss.

He finished the ritual differently, and I was glad….

No…

I was grateful to him for finding a solution to this horrible situation for me.

My knees buckled, and I fell forward.

He immediately wrapped his hand around my waist and pressed my body against his chest.

A whimper escaped from my lips again. I was still in the veil.

So, no one can see my face.

“My wife is exhausted and needs some rest. Please enjoy the feast. I will join you shortly.” Arthur announced in a cold and indifferent tone.

“What happened? Is she okay?” I heard my mother asking him worriedly. I closed my eyes, leaving everything on Arthur to handle.

I now had no strength left to even open my mouth, let alone answer them or explain a thing to them.

“Should she be?” Arthur asked her coldly, bending our bodies together.

Before I could understand, he slipped his other hand under my knees and scooped me up into bridal style.

I wrapped my hands around his neck and hid my face in the crook of his neck.

He walked steadily in long strides. I resigned to my fate, but my heart still refused to accept this.

“They calculated everything, Pearl.” I stiffened when Arthur suddenly spoke in a cold and monotonous tone.

I didn’t understand the meaning of his statement.

“It’s your ovulation period. Did you understand the meaning of this? Why do they want you to consummate your marriage tonight?” He asked me again, but I frowned in confusion.

Ovulation period????

I slowly lifted my head, looking at him through the veil, still trying to process what he asked.

My heart thudded hard against my ribcage when my mind slowly processed the phrase.

How could they?????