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It’s unfathomable that a man as cruel as my soon-to-be husband could be so dangerously enticing. I’ve never been this close to him before, and I find it deeply unsettling that I like the way he smells. The soft, clean scent of lemon and vetiver surrounds him, and when I breathe deeply, a shiver races up my spine.
He guides me up the sweeping stairwell, my heels rapping sharply with each step. And while I march to my doom, I can’t help but notice how peaceful the house is—mere minutes after a firefight. No one’s in a panic. The few guards that pass give me a respectful nod.
Lucian opens the wide double doors to a bedroom, and my heart jolts as soon as my eyes land on the bed. But my momentary flash of fear—that he might have other intentions than a wedding right now—is quickly squashed.
“These should all be in your size,” he says, gesturing to a rack of luxury-line wedding dresses all tucked safely inside designer clothes bags. His eyes skim down my body appreciatively. Thenthey flick back up to my face. “Lucia will help you try them on. If any need alterations, she’ll do that as well.”
“You’re really going to insist we marry today? Why even bother with the wedding dress, then?” I demand. “It’s not like my friends or family will be there. And I doubt you have anyone you could truthfully call a friend.” The snide remark is out of my mouth before I can think better of it—before I can consider how wise it is to be insulting Lucian when I have no real means to protect myself, no one to help me.
But rather than seeming angry, or even insulted by the remark, Lucian actually laughs. “You know, you might be right. But people in our position don’t really have the luxury of friends, do we? But I will have an audience for us. Anyone who’s anyone will be here for the ceremony I have planned. And if you’d like, I’m happy to call your sister back to attend.”
“No,” I say sharply. I don’t want Natasha anywhere near Lucian ever again. Definitely not so she can attend this farce of a wedding. But then Lucian’s words really start to sink in. “You already sent out invitations? You planned for this wedding today?”
A wicked glint lights Lucian’s captivating hazel-gray eyes. “Took you long enough,” he teases.
“This is how you intended things to go all along,” I realize, my stomach plummeting. “You knew I would agree to marry you to save my sister’s life.”
“I knew,” he confirms, turning to face me as I take a half step back.
“How long have you been planning this?” I ask, icy understanding trickling through my veins.
“Since the day your father refused to consider my proposal,” he murmurs, stepping close to hook a finger under my chin.
And I can scarcely breathe as he lifts my face so our lips are mere inches apart.
“What proposal?” I breathe, terrified that I already know.
“Poor Tatiana,” Lucian says, his voice laced with dark pleasure. “Don’t you even know? All this bloodshed, all this death could easily have been avoided if your father simply would have agreed to let me marry you from the start.”
Nauseating horror twists in my gut as his words land with crushing force upon my shoulders.Lucian killed my parents to be with me?He’s spent months waging war between our families. He laid a trap knowing perfectly well that I would send my assassin in to kill him. And he used that leverage to force my hand.But then, does that mean…?
“Did you know? About Natasha?” I ask, my voice quivering with fear.Who is this man that’s outsmarted me at every turn?I’ve spent my life strategizing, learning from a father who knows all the ins and outs of this very intricate game we mafia leaders play. And Lucian just manipulated me like it was child’s play.
The slow smirk that spreads across his face makes me shudder violently.
“You see,principessa, I know how to keep secrets too. When given the right…incentive,” he purrs. “And I have a feeling you’re going to give me all the reason I could ever need to keep that secret locked away nice and tight.”