Page 18 of Merciless Promise
“Thank you. I’ll be down there in ten minutes.”
Kingston said nothing else, then turned and walked away. I returned my focus to the mirror and actually did agree with him on something. The blue was much more fitting for the occasion than traditional white. This particular dress was an all lace, mermaid-style dress with an extended train and corseted bodice. It was very simple in comparison to most wedding gowns, but since I didn’t view this unholy union as an actual marriage, it was perfect.
I completed my look by putting on a veil made with the same lace as the dress. At least my paleness from earlier had gone away. Kingston would be expecting me soon, so I bunched up some of the dress and carefully made my way downstairs. As I descended each step, I couldn’t help but admire the beautiful scenery out the small windows.
I was getting married at an actual castle. If nothing else was fitting for a Bratva princess, I didn’t know what else could be. The brochures for this place had touted it to be set on hundreds of acres of gently rolling parkland in the heart of Ireland. From the grounds, you could see the River Maigue. This place was one that Kingston indicated his family had been using for decades, and I could certainly see why.
If nothing else, the pictures will be absolutely stunning.
By the time I reached the ground level, I shook my head lightly. It was still so surreal knowing I would be marrying not just someone Irish, but the brother of the mafia son I had killed a few years earlier. Also, a man who hated the very sight of me unless I was naked. There wasn’t much I could say about that as I so easily lay beneath him and spread my legs.
Kingston was a machine. Not just when it came to stamina, but power. The things that man could do to me never failed tostop my toes from curling. He’d make me come so hard, then before the haze could even clear, I’d be reminded of who he was when he’d flash that all-knowing smirk at me.
A sudden heat flared to my cheeks, and I knew appearing pale would no longer be an issue. Besides saving my own ass and that of my father, I’d also be helping Kingston stick it to another man who hated the very ground I walked on.
These are certainly going to be fun family gatherings and holidays.
If there was ever any motivation to put on a show, this would be it. I’d been counted out my entire life because I’d been born a girl. I wasn’t weak, and now would be the time to prove it. I’d not only stand up to my father and let him know I could make my own decisions, but...
Well, this isn’t actually my choice, but at least it’s not his.
My thoughts had digressed, but I took a deep breath to compose myself once more. This might not have been entirely my decision to marry this man of all men, but it was not my father’s either. I had refused to be sold like a possession and forced to enter a marriage where there was no love. I didn’t hate Aram, unless you counted his desire to make me wed him despite my objections.
Now, Kingston Brannington was a completely different story. I hated everything about the man, except the way he could make me so easily orgasm for him. I also hated the way I seemed so subservient to him already, which was a direct contradiction to the woman I was. And I hated his arrogant smirk, controlling nature, and the fact that I was being forced to abandon what was left of my own heritage to not only get married, but in a tradition that was all his and his Irish roots.
There were no Russian traditions to speak of, which felt a lot like I was giving up a part of myself. Before long, the only part of my heritage that would remain would be my first name becauseeven my last would change. Ekaterina Brannington. It didn’t fall easily off the tongue now, and I doubted that it ever would.
I have to do what I have to do.
It didn’t make it easier, and by the time I descended the final step of the windy, marbled staircase, my feet would no longer move. Both heeled feet felt as if they were encased in cement. From off in the distance, I could hear the chatter of guests, all of whom he knew and had invited, while there was no need for sides because no one I knew would be in attendance.
Not my friends from Russia, or even America. As tears sprang to my eyes, I realized that I didn’t actually have anyone I would consider a friend outside of Rebekah. Now, I hated that I hadn’t thought to invite her. I could’ve used a friendly face in the crowd, and a shoulder to cry on after I gave my life away to this man who hated me as much as I hated him.
My life was about to be in someone else’s control, and as the fear over that entered my bloodstream, I could feel the burn from it as it flowed through my veins, creating a panic I was powerless to stop. A thin sheen of perspiration now covered my skin, all while goosebumps rose up on my heated flesh. I was certain my makeup was melting as well, and in hindsight, I was glad to have worn as little of it as possible.
“Are you ready, Ms. Brannington?” I heard and looked up to find Nolan, one of Kingston’s most trusted men.
“It’s Kotov,” I corrected him in a flash.
He grinned at me, then slowly perused my body as I stood there, before turning away. “For another few minutes at least. Kingston has asked me to walk you down the aisle.”
“Is he afraid that I might try to flee this farce?” I asked him.
Nolan pushed the suit jacket of his tuxedo enough for me to see the outline of the gun strapped to his waist. “You wouldn’t get far, at least not enough to live to regret it. I suggest that you do nothing to embarrass Kingston or the Brannington name.”
I scowled at him. This was about to be my life. I just hoped this brute wouldn’t be the one that Kingston assigned to me once this sham of a ceremony was complete. I knew I would be under his protection, and this man’s manners left something to be desired.
“I’m as ready as I will ever be,” I said, then took a step forward and was relieved when I could actually lift my foot. I then shivered both because of the cold sweat and my new destiny.
As I waited at the altar for my bride, I tried my best to hide my disgust and had been doing a very good job of it until I looked over at my grandfather. Between him, Ekaterina, and I, there was no way to tell who was more miserable about this ceremony, which was comical at best, as my Daideó was the one to have put this all in motion.
I took a final glance at him as he sulked in his seat beside my cousin, who still looked intoxicated from the night before. He’d been forced to throw me a bachelor party, and every time the words ‘marriage’ or ‘bride’ were tossed around, he’d slam back a shot. Something was up with him and the idea of marriage. It was repugnant to me, but it extended to something far worse for him. He wasn’t the one signing his life away for a wife and kid, so he had no reason to be so miserable.
I had to pretend to be anything but that myself, and as Nolan and Ekaterina appeared in the doorway of the castle, everyone turned toward them, and the music started. I wiped away any signs of displeasure and plastered on a smile. If nothing else, thismarriage would be one destined to be unhappily ever after. Not just for me, but for my bride as well.
Ekaterina proceeded down the carpeted walkway toward me, and as she got closer, I noticed that everything was done according to the Irish traditions—from the dress color to the wildflowers prominently displayed in her bouquet. She also wore a chain around her neck with a small horseshoe, which was supposed to symbolize good luck. She would need it, because I still could barely look at her without wanting to throttle her.
She continued to walk on Nolan’s arm, and I couldn’t help but wonder if this would’ve been Princeton standing where I now was, and if this would have been his wedding to a woman of his choosing. Hopefully, a woman he didn’t get off to when fantasizing about her demise. Would he have been standing here beaming at his bride-to-be, with my grandfather smiling proudly at him as he prepared to expand the Brannington Empire? We would never know, and it was all because of her.
