He took another step towards me, pulled his hand out of his pocket and brought it to my face, caressing my cheek.
"Now I understand why your father kept you captive all these years..." he murmured, his eyes taking on a glint that disconcerted me.
My throat was dry, my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth as if my body hadn't seen water in weeks.
"Why?" I breathed.
Dominique caused me strange sensations. It made my body collapse, as if going into ecstasy and a lethargic state at the same time.
"Because you are beautiful, Carmen," he said, his eyes shifting to my mouth.
"And he knew the risks he would run if he left you visible to everyone."
I stuck my tongue out, licking my parched lips. The movement did not go unnoticed by Dominique.
"The same risks I'm taking with you?"
His mouth twitched into a smile.
"Yes, the same ones," he confirmed, leaning in to whisper in my ear.
"And you know what's funnier?"
I shook my head.
"I was just lamenting today that I would have a collar around my neck, and now I couldn't be more excited."
"What do you mean?"
My voice was nothing more than a weak, hoarse croak.
He pulled away, putting enough space between us for my brain to start working again.
"You are still too chaste and innocent for this conversation. Just know that I am not a good man, I will never cast my demons upon you, however."
I looked at him through my lashes.
"Why do I think there's a 'but' in what you're saying?”
He laughed.
"But you were a sweet, adorable surprise tonight, Carmen, and I can't wait to corrupt you," he said, smiling indifferently.
I smiled back, eager for the standoff we would have at the wedding.
"Maybe I'm too innocent to understand what you're saying. I'm sorry for that," I chirped.
"Let's go back inside, bride, it's not the time to have this conversation," he said, making it clear the derogatory condescension with which he called me.
The wedding didn't scare me anymore, on the contrary, it left me in ecstasy. It would be the biggest challenge I would face in my life.
"All right," I confirmed in the sweetest voice in the world.
It was time to take on a personality that wasn't mine, to reaffirm every moment what Dominique thought of me, even if it was a complete lie.
We returned to the hall and my father approached, placing his hand on my lower back. He took a glass from a waiter and handed it to me before calling everyone's attention to us, and then raised his glass in a toast to the agreement between the families, to the pact we were making for the mafia.
They clapped and smiled, celebrating the new phase that was beginning. It didn't matter that they were messing with the lives of two people, it would always be for the mafia and in its name.
I raised the glass to my lips, sealing the toast my father had started. My eyes scanned the room and landed on Dominique, who was staring at me.
He held out a glass of whiskey, a silent toast to the two of us.
With the glass in front of my lips, I smiled, silently promising to be his personal hell, the girl who would share his bed without him knowing who I really was.
He frowned, but returned my smile, unwittingly entering a war from which he would not emerge victorious, for he would always be at a disadvantage.
The games had begun.
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