Page 14 of The Pakhan's Sold Bride

Yet Argyle is still talking. “Do you, Nestor Rostov, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?” he asks, looking directly at Nestor.

Rostov. That was the name written on the front of the building. Does he own that building? Why would someone so powerful want to marry me? What the hell is going on?

“I do,” Nestor says, firm and deep.

“Do you, Lara Abakumov—"

“No, no, I don’t. This is some kind of a joke, right? This isn’t real? This is a stupid joke,” I blurt out angrily, my cheeks hot with rage as I yank my arm away from Nestor’s grip.

He sneers at me, his hazel eyes flaring with rage.

I step away from him, looking to Argyle for support or help. “I’m not marrying him,” I say desperately.

Argyle’s expression doesn’t change. He’s calm and patient as he waits for my outburst to come to some kind of conclusion.

“You can’t make me marry you. There isn’t even a witness.”

“The documents say otherwise,” Nestor says with disinterest.

“Why in the world would you do this? I don’t understand the point of this,” I say, my eyes pleading, stinging with tears.

Nestor, to my surprise, starts laughing. It’s a dark, malicious sound that sends a cold shiver running down my spine. He’s taunting me. He’s mocking me somehow.

“What are you laughing at?” I scream at him. “This isn’t funny.”

His face floods with annoyance as he steps close to me and grabs me around the throat.

“Stop messing with me, girl. You can play cute and coy and innocent all you want. I know your father, and you are from the same line of liars and cheats. Stop wasting my time and get this over with.”

“No,” I say angrily. “I won’t.” Tears are flowing down my face now, but I’m not scared, I’m furious. I can feel the tension in my brows and the locked set of my jaw as I glare at him.

His hand tightens around my neck, and for a moment, the air is cut off. I gasp, then gag in panic, reaching up to grab his wrist and try to pull him off me.

“Listen to me very carefully, girl. I’m not playing games. I’m not fucking around. You can drop the act and stop pretending to be the victim here. I’m not falling for any of it. You will marry me. You will honor the deal, and you will stop wasting my time.”

His hand loosens, and I gasp for air, my head throbbing, screaming for oxygen.

“I-I can’t—" I stammer.

“You can’t? I see. Well, I tell you what—if you don’t marry me, I will kill you. Then I will hunt your father down and kill him as well. So, either you stop arguing, say the vows and sign the documents, or die. It’s as simple as that. And if you know anything about me, you know not to test me, Lara.”

The way he says my name, with that dark music in his voice, stabs fear into my heart.

I believe him.

I believe every word he just said to me.

He stares at me for a long moment, his fingers still around my throat, letting his words soak deep into my mind, making sure I understand that this isn’t some kind of game or joke like I accused him of.

Weakly, I nod.

I have no idea what is happening, or why it’s happening, but there is no doubt in my mind that he will kill me if I don’t go through with this.

Chapter 5 - Nestor

Her eyes are wide and flooded with fear as she stares up at me.

I can feel her shaking, my hand wrapped around her throat, tight enough to hurt, but not tight enough to cut off her air anymore.

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