Monday morning didn't feel like a wedding day.
It felt like I was being prepared for the slaughter.
I was currently being swarmed by what felt like an entire battalion of beauty professionals. There were maids for my hair, a woman solely dedicated to my cuticles, and a makeup artist who looked at my face like a canvas she was about to turn into a Louvre-worthy masterpiece.
"Alexandra, breathe! You're turning the color of a blueberry," Penelope hissed, leaning against the vanity with a glass of champagne. She was already dressed in a sleek sage-green slip dress that made her look effortless.
"I am breathing," I choked out as a stylist yanked a strand of hair into an intricate pin. "I'm just.….oxygen-efficient right now."
"You are marrying Adrian Reyes. In an hour. In that dress." Penelope pointed to the ivory silk hanging on the door. "If I were you, I'd be hyperventilating into a paper bag."
"Gee thanks. Way to make me calmer."
When the final pin was placed and the last layer of silk was zipped, the room went quiet. I turned to the full-length mirror, and for a second, I didn't recognize the woman staring back. The halter-neck dress was a stroke of genius, it made me look tall, regal, and sophisticated. The ivory silk shimmered like water against my skin.
"Wow," Penelope whispered, her eyes widening. "Alex.…..you look like a dream. No, you look like a queen. Adrian is going to lose his mind."
"He doesn't have a mind to lose," I muttered, but I couldn't stop my eyes from tracing the reflection. I found myself wondering, just for a fleeting, traitorous second, if he would actually look at me. Not 'Alexandra the Headache,' but me.
I quickly squashed the thought though. I couldn't entertain such.
"Okay, shall we?"
~
The drive to the ceremony was a blur of Penelope's nervous chatter and my own heart trying to beat its way out of my ribs. We were whisked into a private wing of a historic cathedral, just the kind of place people with nine-figure bank accounts went to keep things "intimate."
Beatrice swept into the holding room, looking radiant in lavender. "You are gorgeous, my darling! A vision!"
My cheeks could have nearly burst from how hard I was smiling. "Thank you, Beatrice."
Behind her stood a man who looked like a mountain carved from granite. His hair was iron-gray, his suit was stiff, and his expression was even stiffer.
"This is Arthur," Beatrice said, waving a hand toward him. "Ignore his stern countenance. He's like that sometimes, but he's secretly a softie. Arthur, say hello to the girl who finally got Adrian to stop scowling for five minutes."
Arthur Reyes didn't smile. He looked me up and down with eyes that were exactly like Adrian's, minus the hidden fire. "Miss Calloway," he grunted.
"Mr. Reyes," I replied, summoning every ounce of composure I had. An eyebrow shot up, but he didn't say anything else.
"Who will lead me down? During the walk." I asked, looking at Beatrice. My father died a long time ago, and my mother….well…
I had no one that could do that.
"Arthur will," Beatrice announced, clasping her hands together cheerfully.
Arthur looked like he had just been told to make a sculpture from horse poo, and began to protest, "Beatrice, I am not—"
"Don't be a bore, darling. You are the patriarch, act like it." She shushed him with a finger to his lips and winked at me.
Arthur deflated and….wait did he just pout?
"If you insist," he agreed.
Wow. This woman really had them wrapped round her finger.
Then, the music started.
It wasn't a crowded church. There were maybe seven people in the pews, the board members and family. But as the heavy oak doors opened, the only person I saw was Adrian.
He was standing at the altar in a tuxedo that should have come with a warning label. He looked devastating. As I stepped onto the aisle, his eyes locked onto mine. For a split second, he froze. His hand went to his cufflinks, fiddling with the silver, and he looked away for a beat before his gaze snapped back, more intense than before.
The walk felt like it lasted a century. Arthur deposited me at the altar with a stiff nod, and Adrian reached out to take my hand. His fingers were warm, steady, the only grounded thing in my world.
The vows were a haze of legalities masked as romance.
"I do," he said slowly.
"I do," I whispered, my voice miraculously steady.
"You may kiss your bride," the officiant smiled.
Oh. I forgot about this part.
Who forgets about the most famous part of a wedding???
My heart began to race as Adrian stepped in slowly. He reached out, his large hands cupping my face with a gentleness that caught me completely off guard. He leaned down, and when his lips met mine, the world went quiet.
Hmm. Warm…a little salty. I nearly flicked my tongue over his lower lip when a sound tore me out of it.
"Awww!"
Beatrice and Penelope, coming together in a matrimony of squeals.
We snapped apart, both of us looking slightly dazed. Adrian cleared his throat, immediately sliding back into his "CEO" mask, though his ears were suspiciously pink.
"Smile," he hissed out of the side of his mouth as we turned to the small crowd. "We are happily married."
"I'm trying, Ma—Reyes. My face muscles are cramping," I hissed back, flashing a dazzling, fake grin for the cameras.
The "reception" was more of a networking event. Adrian led me around, his hand possessively on the small of my back. Penelope came over to hug us, nearly knocking my tiara askew.
Then came the cousins. Damon and Jasper. They looked like carbon copies of each other, expensive watches, vacant expressions, and sneers that looked like they had been practiced in a mirror.
What separated them however, was that Damon had blue eyes, and Jasper bore the same set of gray eyes that Adrian had.
Asides that? They were practically twins. Same black hair, same cocky smile.
"So this is the little 'step-sister' turned bride?" Damon drawled, looking me up and down. Wait how did they know….
"Adrian, I thought you had better taste than a charity case."
I didn't even wait for Adrian to defend me. "And I thought the Reyes family prided itself on intelligence," I said, tilting my head. "But looking at you two, I see the gene pool was clearly having an off-day when you were conceived."
Jasper's jaw dropped. Adrian's hand tightened on my waist, and I could hear the faint sound of him stifling a laugh.
"As you can see you, cousins, my wife is not someone to be meddled with." Adrian said quietly. "And I would suggest, you fucking keep that knowledge of her being my former step-sister to yourself." He whispered, his tone going aggressive.
"I know you two are desperate and upset that our grandparents seem to favour me more, but leave her out of it. If you don't, you'll have only yourselves to blame for the consequences."
Their faces paled and they scurried away. My heart, little traitorous thing, beat even faster at the sound of Adrian so bravely defending me against the two cunts.
"Sorry," he faced me, looking remorseful. "They know about it. It happend to slip when I was first getting to know the Reyes family."
Looking at the tender expression in his eyes, how could I be mad?
"It's fine, Adrian," I said softly.
As if the devil had specifically sent his minions to destabilize me, a tall, blonde woman in a dress that was two sizes too small lingered nearby, glaring at me like she wanted to set my hair on fire. "I see you found a.….colorful bride, Adrian," she sniffed.
"She is certainly more interesting than a trophy, Elena," Adrian replied coolly, not even looking at her. Ouch. I would definitely try to get more information on her later.
By the time we got back into the Maybach to head to the estate, I was exhausted.
Thoroughly exhausted.
"We still have the gala tonight," Adrian reminded me, loosening his tie. "I have to present you as my wife to the rest of the world. It's going to be ten times the size of this."
I leaned my head back against the leather seat, closing my eyes. "Great. More sneering cousins and women in tight dresses. I can't wait."
"You did well today, Alex," he said quietly.
I opened one eye. "Was that a compliment? From the Devil himself?"
"Don't make me take it back."
"Too late. It's recorded in my brain forever." I let out a tired chuckle. "God, I need a burger before I put on another gown."
Adrian looked at me, a smirk playing on his lips. "A burger? You are wearing a ten-thousand-dollar dress."
"And I have a ten-million-dollar appetite. Deal with it, husband."
He just shook his head, looking out the window, but the smirk didn't fade. "Fine."