Page 73 of Stronger Than Fate

“Are you getting married?!” he insisted, in a tone louder than usual.

I stood watching him. He looked stunning in that dark blue suit, but his face reflected only surprise and desperation. I didn’t understand why he was looking at me that way.

“You shouldn’t be here,” I said.

He approached me so quickly that it seemed like he was running. He stood in front of me and looked me up and down. When he looked into my eyes again, the gleam in his made me think he was... emotional? Or furious? Or alarmed? No, I was probably imagining things.

“Tell me right now if you’re getting married!”

“Don’t yell at me!”

“Then speak up for once! Who is he? Tell me who the damn guy is!” he demanded, grabbing my arms.

“Stop saying ‘damn this’ and ‘damn that.’ Have you lost your mind? Let go of me, Henry.”

He released me and ran his hands through his hair in desperation. I didn’t understand his fit of madness or his demands. Was he jealous?

“Yes, damn it; I’ve lost my mind. I’ve been crazy since I met you.”

And I couldn’t even react. He lunged at me with such force that we almost both ended up on the floor. Before I knew it, his arms were around me and his warm, soft lips were on mine, claiming my very soul. His tongue made its way between my lips and entered my mouth as if by right. My entire body belonged to him and surrendered to him. I had missed him so much and couldn’t resist. I wrapped my arms around his neck and forgoteverything. I returned his kiss with the same passion with which he was kissing me. I could feel his heartbeat, and he could surely feel mine because my heart was about to leap out of my chest. After a few minutes, his lips began to move more slowly until our mouths separated. Henry took a deep breath and rested his forehead against mine.

“Take off this dress, please. You can’t marry someone else,” he implored in a whisper.

What? He still thought I was getting married? I looked at him, breathless, and before I could say anything, he made me turn around and began unbuttoning the tiny buttons that ran down the back of the dress. I noticed his hands were trembling, and just as I reacted and tried to turn to stop him from undressing me right there, Niky's voice startled us both.

“Henry? What are you doing? Get your hands off my dress, right now! If you tear it, I’ll kill you.”

He looked at me and then at his sister.

“If you don’t help her take it off right now, I swear I’ll finish taking it off myself, and I guarantee there won’t be a single button left in place,” he threatened.

“But what’s wrong with you? Have you turned into a caveman?” Niky asked, looking at him as if he had grown two heads, though I could swear she was enjoying the situation because there was an amused gleam in her eyes.

“You’re an absolute lunatic!” I exclaimed, finally coming out of my shocked state.

Holding up the dress, I began walking toward the door to get out of there as quickly as possible. I was completely confused and couldn’t understand what had just happened.

“Dalina, come back here because you owe me an explanation.”

When I heard what he said, I turned and looked at him furiously.

“I don’t have to explain anything to you,” I stated, and left the room, seeing how Henry wanted to follow me, but Niky grabbed his arm to stop him.

I returned to the place where I had been when Niky was adjusting the dress, feeling my entire body trembling uncontrollably. I pressed my back against the wall for support, wrapped my arms around myself, and stood motionless, breathing with difficulty and completely bewildered. That man was my torment, and when he was near me, he turned my world upside down. Yes, I was weak with him and I hated being weak. I hated myself for always succumbing to his charms.

The door opened forcefully and Niky entered with quick steps.

“Dali, I’m sorry. I always end up getting you into trouble with my brother. I swear I’m going to kill him!”

“Has he left?”

“Left? No way! He’s still outside waiting for you to come out, and I don’t think he’ll move until you do. I swear my brother has never behaved like this before, which makes me think…”

“He’s still here?!”

“Look, if you don’t want to talk to him, I can have the security guard remove him. Although I think you two should talk. I know I shouldn’t get involved, but I assure you my brother feels something strong for you. I’ve never seen him so desperate.”

“Niky, we both know what’s going on with him. He’s a man who likes to have all women at his feet, and generally he does, and in a way, I was too…or still am, I don’t know. In these weekswe’ve been apart, I haven’t heard from him, but he sees me in a wedding dress and thinks I’m going to marry someone else, and now he wants us to have another conversation. I don’t believe he feels anything strong for me. What I think is that he can’t understand why I would choose someone else over him.”