Chapter 6
I nodded and took the hairpin from his hand.
“Do you like it?” he asked.
I shook my head.
“It’s way too tiny. If you want it to match me, it needs to be at least half the size of my fist,” I teased.
He tapped my forehead lightly.
“Greedy,” he teased.
Maybe because I finally stopped fighting him for once, he did something totally unheard of. He actually let Me out of the estate to wander around.
I hadn’t gone far when the crowd’s chaos grabbed my attention.
I squeezed my way through and saw it was an official bounty notice.
[Wanted: Trevor Dominguez. This rebel has teamed up with outsiders to cause chaos in Stormville. Whoever brings him in gets a fat reward–100 gold bars.]
Draven looked pretty damn satisfied with himself.
“Well, take a good look, this is the guy you chose as your fiancé,” he said, Mocking.
I shot him a fierce glare.
“I don’t buy for a second you didn’t pull the strings here,” I snapped.
His Mouth twisted into a scowl.
“Touching what belongs to me comes with a price. Let’s get out of here,” Draven said.
He yanked me along, Moving so fast it felt like we
were on the run.
A familiar figure flashed by in mu peripheral vision.
That night, I was messing with the hairpin when he suddenly barged in.
“Drop the act,” Draven said.
The bed dipped as he sat down right next to me.
“Turn around and look at me,” he demanded.
I kept my back to him, so he reached out and touched My cheek. It made me shudder in revulsion.
“That’s right, just like that,” he said.
“What, do you see me as your pet or something?” | shot back.
I’d always wondered how much he actually loved my Mother, but honestly, I figured it wasn’t much.
No one who truly loved someone would turn around and Marry their daughter.
He gripped my face, turning it from side to side as he studied me.
“Man, you really are her spitting image,” Draven Muttered.
I hesitated for a long Moment, then finally swung My leg and kicked him right in the knee. He crashed off the bed, but just kept laughing like it was nothing.
“Guess you really outshine your mother. You’re even stronger than she was,” he chuckled. “What a shame. Neither you nor your Mom ever cared for Me.”
His grin disappeared, and suddenly I felt a sense of dread creeping in.
“Trevor escaped. Bet you’re thrilled, huh? Your dream guy doesn’t have to get executed after all,” Draven sneered.
I couldn’t believe how fast he switched topics.
“If it weren’t for you, he wouldn’t be facing all this punishment, Draven said.
He started laughing like a lunatic again.
“Yeah, your MOM loved your dad, and you love Trevor. So where does that leave Me?” he said.
He got up, grabbed the coffee pot, and started chugging straight from it like he was dying of thirst.
“Honestly, your MOM Must’ve been blind. Your dad couldn’t even hold a candle to Me,” he Muttered.
Then he added, even more sharply, “And you? You’re even worse.”
Was he really that full of himself?
Now I kinda get why Mom never married him.
And honestly, it just made it even harder to forgive her for throwing me into this hell.
Lucky for me, Draven was just acting like a drunk lunatic and didn’t do anything to me.
Early the next morning, Draven and I returned to the Spencer estate.
Even though I’d only been gone a week, it felt like a lifetime had passed.
MOM was enthusiastically chatting with Draven, while Dad looked at them with obvious disdain. I awkwardly lingered nearby, not knowing where to put myself.
“Mom, I need to hit the crapper,” I said.
MOM’s bright Smile instantly vanished, her face turning cold.
“You’re married now, and you still go around saying
‘crapper‘ like that? What kind of proper lady talks like that?” she scolded.
“Crapper! Crapper! What, Mom, you never need to use the crapper?” I shot back.
This time, her face really soured.
“Did I really raise you to have zero Manners?” MOM snapped.
I pretended to be mad.
“Oh, right, you’re so proper–Marrying your own daughter off to some old guy who’s still hung up on you,” I shot back.
Dad’s face was livid now.
“Watch your mouth when you talk to your Mom!” Dad barked.
I shook my head, putting on my most shameless act.
“Sorry, but you two sold me off. It’s really hard for me to say anything nice right now,” I shot back.
With that, I bolted, glancing back every few steps, half–expecting them to chase after me.
Mom was left behind, trying to smooth things over. “It’s all my fault–and Draven’s too—for not raising her right. Please forgive us.”
“It’s nothing,” Draven replied.
He kept up that magnanimous act, but honestly, it was hard to ignore how his eyes were practically glued to Mom the whole time–almost obsessively.
I dashed into Mom’s room and started rummaging through her drawers, looking for all the stuff she’d confiscated from me before.
I found the Medicine, but I also stumbled upon Something else. Mom actually still held onto the bracelet Draven had given her.
If it didn’t have those patterns on it, I probably wouldn’t have recognized it at all.
Their relationship was such a tangled web. No matter
what, they just couldn’t unravel it.
Just as I was about to leave, Mom’s laughter drifted in from the doorway.
“Draven, Marrying Audrianna is your blessing. Don’t
sell yourself short,” she said. “It’s just a shame she’s got her heart set on someone else.”
She paused for a Moment.
“I’ll figure out a way to talk her around. I won’t let you be wronged again,” she promised.
I scrambled out the window in a hurry.