Page 26 of Mistaken
“Well, it’s official. I’m completely screwed.”
I’m staring at myself in the monstrously large mirror, all dolled up and looking regal and untouchable and totally not like myself.
“Yeah, you are,” Tania agrees, hovering behind me. “At least you’re gorgeous.”
“Well, the dress is…” I look down, absently smoothing the full skirt, a cream chiffon overlay, and the pale, strapless silk underneath. It reaches mid-calf and it actually is something I would have picked myself.
If I was getting married to someone I loved. By choice
“At least they didn’t trowel the makeup on,” Tania was still trying to cheer me up, in her Tania-like way, “just enough to make you look like a much hotter version of your actual self.” She’d shoved everyone out of the dressing room for a moment, telling them we needed “a heart-to-heart.”
“Uh, huh…” I could feel the tears rising and I struggled to stop myself.I was dead if I messed up this makeup job. “I’m not getting out of this, am I?” I could see her sympathetic gaze over my shoulder and the finality was painful. “No climbing out the window. No carjacking the limo.”
“Yeah, I don’t see that happening,” she said, trying to straighten my veil. “Look. You’re getting married to a rich, hot, bastard. That’s the dream of like seventy-eight percent of the female population of Manhattan. He’s letting you keepme, which is a massive bonus. I think Maksim sees me as your emotional support animal, or something.”
I gave a watery chuckle. “Yeah…”
“Oh! I almost forgot…” Tania hands me a little box. “Your blue.”
Maksim’s mother gave me the ‘borrowed,’ an alarmingly large teardrop diamond necklace, and the ‘old,’ the family’s diamond earrings that matched the necklace, which was currently hanging off me like a noose. I opened the box and found her half of our friendship bracelets.
“Remember? We got these at the mall when we were fourteen?” Tania prodded, “You have the half of the heart that’s red, my half is blue.” She’s putting the little chain around my wrist and straightening it. “You can do this. Sure, you’re kind of fucked, but you might end up liking that big-dicked mob boss, right?”
Naturally, Maksim’s mother steps back into the room at the end of Tania’s pep talk. “Are you ready?” Her tone is glacial.
Maksim…
It’s likely my mother will never forgive me for not having the ceremony at the St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Manhattan, but there are people even my considerable fortune and persuasive abilities cannot sway and the Archbishop is one of them. He did, however, deign to marry us here, and he is standing behind me, Yuri at my side, as we wait for Ella to enter the ballroom.
The doors opened and the guests rose, turning en masse to watch my bride walk toward me.
o Gospodi…she is exquisite. I’ve seen this woman filthy and dragged from a river. I’ve seen her looking demure and proper to meet my mother. I’ve seen just how sexy she can be in the right dress. But here? My bride is elegant, regal. She sails down the aisle in a dress that clings to her breasts and waist and flares out at her hips. She’s wearing the Morozov diamonds. They belong on her. They belongtoher.
And she belongs to me.
Her hands are shaking when I take them in mine, and I squeeze them lightly. “No fears,????????,”I whisper, and she nods, just a bit too fast, but we turn to the waiting Archbishop, and he begins. I hold her gaze with mine as he blesses us three times, I hold her hands for the?????????,and guide her on to the??????to make our vows. Yuri and her irritating friend Tania hold the golden crowns over our heads and I look into her translucent green eyes, keeping her with me, here, in the now. I can’t let her drift away from me.
When the Archbishop proclaims us married, I cradle her beautiful, fragile face in my hands and kiss her. I devour her. Ella’s lips are soft, and she allows my tongue in easily and it twines with hers. Her chest is heaving against mine and I can feel her soft breasts. I ignore the cheering crowd and the Archbishop who clears his throat repeatedly, and I keep kissing her until her first, helpless little moan and she sags against me.
When we turn to greet the guests as husband and wife, I’m stunned. I had never, never expected to feel this solemnity, the power, and seriousness of the words and rituals. Ella was mine, completely and utterly.
I would show her that tonight when I finally had her alone, in my bed.
Chapter 10 - Where’s the Lemur Sanctuary?
In which Ella and Maksim’s union is consummated. A lot.
Ella…
At least the wedding wasn’t Christmas-themed.
The massive ballroom was transformed into a glittering snowscape, with silvery white trees, strings of lights that glistened like stars, and bountiful arrangements of flowers in every shade of white. Ribbons and embellishments were all navy blue, and it might have looked overly masculine if it hadn’t been for the whole fairy tale forest feel.
At least that spiteful cow Karida got that part right, even though my girl parts still stung and throbbed from my waxing attack. But as for walking down that aisle… Mrs. Morozov had suggested they grab a male relative at random and have him walk me, but I turned them down, it was one of the few battles I won. I was coming into this with no one, aside from Tania, who had my back literally and symbolically, being just behind me as my steps slowed the closer I got to the arch where the dude wearing a huge gold and white crown thingie was waiting with…him.
IhatedMaksim, and I hated him more and more with each step. I finally felt a punch in the region of my kidneys as my best friend whispered, “Get moving!” I realized I’d stopped at some point and the guests were beginning to murmur.
I couldn’t feel my arms or legs, everything felt numb; except the heat from Maksim’s hands as he squeezed mine. As much as I hated his guts he grounded me, anchored me enough to attempt repeating what I was told to say. My teeth chattered against the goblet of wine he drank from, then offered to me, so Maksim held it steady, his hands wrapped over mine.
