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Chapter 1
Katerina:
I watched as my mother prepared me to go and marry the man that they saw fit for me.
say in this.
The way they took this as normal sickened me, but at this point, I knew that I had no say They wanted this, and I was forced to comply, and whether or not I liked it, they just saw it fit for me to marry the man that THEY chose.
“He is a good man, Katerina. He has agreed to help our family, and you do realize that no one does that without a price.” She said, making me laugh. I couldn’t help it if I wanted to. The man was taking a price for what he did. It wasn’t like he was doing this for free.
“The man is marrying me, mother,” I said, looking her in the eye “he is not doing this for free”
“You marrying him does not mean that you are paying a price for anything. If anything, you are going to go from living in a bankrupt family, to one that is rich and has saved us.” Mum said, smiling at me. I took a deep breath and nodded. There was no use arguing with them about this anyway. They wouldn’t listen to a word I said, so, why was I even trying, right? Plus, the man didn’t even know that we were going bankrupt. They literally lied to him to get this partnership going, and though I knew that he was not stupid, I knew that they were not completely honest.
“You are going to be a good wife, Katerina
We cannot afford to lose what your father has worked for. If you are marrying him, it is not being done without benefit for both parties. If he wishes to get you in his bed, you are going to get in his bed, and you are going to satisfy him.” She said, making my chest ache, I had to fight back the frown that almost formed on my lips as I heard her sickening words. The way she looked at me, and the way she spoke, her hands which were on my shoulders. Everything about her stance told me that she couldn’t care less about how I felt about the topic. As long as it benefitted THEM, who the fuck cared about what I felt.
“I am not going to be a slave for him, or his bed. If I am treated as a wife, he would be treated as a husband.” I said, making sure to keep my tone as controlled as I possibly could. The last thing I needed was for her to get angry with me right now. Especially since I knew that she could grow aggressive.
“You are going to do what it takes to please him, and I do not care which term you see it as, or what you choose to call yourself. The man is your husband, and you are going to be the wife that you are supposed to be. So, should he complain about you having this attitude, I believe that you know the price that you are going to pay.” She threatened, glaring at me through the mirror. She didn’t even bother waiting for me to respond as she walked toward the door. I frowned as I stared at my reflection, fighting my guts as not to respond to how mean she was currently being. The fact that it was my mother who was saying these words made it a lot more painful; however, I knew at this point that I had to suck it up and take it. “Fix your makeup, and that face of yours. I do not want you walking out with a fucking frown on your face, do you understand me?”
“Yes, mother.” I said, looking down at the dresser that was in front of me, searching for my blusher and mascara. She walked out of the dressing room without saying a word, leaving me alone to my thoughts as I debated. Leaving now would only cause me more trouble than I could afford, but would I really be able to cope with a marriage like this one? It was one that I knew that neither me or Nikolay agreed upon, and had it not been for our parents, I knew that it was the LAST thing the
Chapter I
two of us could think of.
The dressing room’s door was knocked as I was fixing my mascara, and putting it down, I stood up from my chair, already knowing that it would most likely be my father. It was a few minutes into the time of walking the aisle, and knowing that there was no backing out now, I walked toward the door where he stood.
His eyes met mine for a second before he nodded and put the veil on my face. For a man who had his only daughter getting married, I was surprised by how cold he was being, but then again, I knew that the only thing he cared about was how he was going to benefit from this marriage.
The outcome of it was not one that he cared about.
He looped his arm with mine, and placing his hand on my forearm, he squeezed it, making met flinch as I knew that he would be leaving a bruise. He looked at me, his eyes glaring daggers, and feeling my heart race. I waited for what he was going to say without saying a word to indicate to the employees who were in charge that I was in pain. “I heard from your mother that you are rebelling again. Do you need a reminder of what I would do if I hear that you are fucking things up?”
His question caused my heart to break, and shaking my head, he nodded and stood by the aisle’s door, glaring daggers at me as he uncovered the veil. He looked at me, eyeing me up and down as I looked down at my feet. The scar that was on my lower back was yet to heal from his last. punishment, and the last thing I wanted or needed right now was to go through another one again.
“Put on the best smile that you can muster. I do not give a fuck, fake it, and you better remind. yourself of the consequence of every single thing you do, do you understand me?” He asked, keeping his eyes on me. I nodded, not opening my mouth, fearing doing so in case a word I said annoyed him. He nodded and turning to face the door, he looped his arm with mine, this time, his grip softer than it was.
The doors opened, revealing my husband who stood at the end of the aisle, looking at me. His silver–blue eyes met my green ones, and my heart raced as I knew what was to come. I didn’t know what the outcome of this marriage would be, but I sure hoped that I didn’t end up paying the price of something that I took no part in. It wasn’t my fault that they were making me do this, and yet, I was the one that was going to pay the price of THEIR mistakes.
“How about we get on with it?” Father asked, looking at me as he smiled. His fake smile somehow managed to reach his eyes, and despite the pain and fear that I was feeling, I nodded and smiled.
“Let’s go, dad…”
