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Stella
“Anger takes your freedom, anger imprison you in jail of regrets.” Josephs Quartzy, Sweetest song I know
“Isthatreallynecessary?”A cultured deep voice asks from behind me causing the hair on my arms and nape to stand on end. The bright sunshine streams through the windows, professing this to be a beautiful day, except I know the truth. That it is a day filled with dismal despair and categoric doom.
“Is what really necessary?” I turn around and try to contain the evil grin that wants to burst across my face, instead providing the intruder a sheepish smile. My eyes trail over the classic black tuxedo, black polished shoes and crisp white shirt and continue upwards to a strong chiseled jaw, clean shaven face, strong Roman nose and dark haunting pools of malice for eyes. The devil himself, in all his damned glory, stands before me, raking his eyes over me like I am already his.
He is beautiful to look at and if I were a weaker woman I would be counting my blessings, but I’m not a weaker woman and he’s about to learn that first hand when I plunge a blade into his callous heart.
“You’re not going to your own funeral Stella, is the black wedding gown really necessary?” His brows furrow and jaw clenches. He’s displeased with my outfit choice,fucking good. I’m infuriated that he’s breathing. One of us can remedy their displeasure and I have no intention of changing out of this gown.
“Of course not, I’m going to yours.” I dismiss him with an arched brow and give him my back. My gaze locks solely out the window at the freedom that is escaping me. Minute by minute, this day continues to move along, drawing me closer to my impending destiny. My desire to run from this room, from this church and this whole mess, vibrates through my system and becomes throbbing in my veins.Escape!My mind and heart yell, but my feet remain firmly planted.
“Is this how it’s going to be for the rest of our lives?” A deep irritated sigh leaves those traitor’s evil lips. His soft footsteps echo off the stone floor and approach me. Unease skates down my back. I don’t want the monster behind me to come any closer, but I also refuse to show him any weakness. An impasse, I must weather to prove a point not only to him, but to myself.
“I wouldn’t worry too much Jaxon, I don’t plan for you to live long enough to find out.” Ice drips from my voice as I answer him and I bite down hard on my lip to keep from verbally lashing him like my heart demands.Control.We need to keep control.
“I don’t understand why you are so fucking angry Stella, you get everything you want and you didn’t even have to lift a finger to get it.” I feel him move even closer to me, his body giving off heat in the frigid room.
My body turns angrily towards him, hot fury racing through my limbs. My features are filled with sheer contempt at how callous his words are. How fucking dare he utter them to me, I am going to ensure that he regrets his choice of words and the breaths he continues to take. He’s lucky I don’t have anything within reach to bludgeon him with. My asshole of a father, made sure everything I could use as a weapon was removed from this room beforehand. The first intelligent action the man has ever taken and it was against his own daughter.
“I get everything that I have ever wanted? What exactly is it that you think I wanted, Jaxon? Please enlighten me, why should I be happy today?”
“Stella, be reasonable. There was no choice here for either of us. You’re not making out too badly from this situation. You get to be the new reigning queen of the Manhattan elite, everyone will worship at your perfect ice queen feet. You’re about to become one of the richest women in the world. What more could you need?” He throws his hands up in exasperation with a perplexed look on his face.
A shrill laugh leaves my lips. “What more could I need? What a despicable man you are Jaxon Stratford. For your information, I was already one of the richest women in the world, your money is just an extra zero in my bank account. As for being the new reigning queen of Manhattan, I never asked for that title, nor do I desire it.”
I shove both my hands against his chest forcing him to take a step backwards and then another. His molten steel gray eyes widen dramatically at my actions. “As for having no choice, I beg to differ. I had no fucking choice in marrying you…butyoucould have refused. You could have found a willing victim to be shackled to you. You chose me because YOU need my family’s name, connections, and money. Do not flatter yourself that you are the better catch in this scenario.”
He grabs onto my wrist in his tight grip, pulling me forward towards his hard body. His gaze predatory, his nose flaring in anger and teeth grinding together. “You’re right Stella, I had a choice and despite you being the coldest, most haughty bitch in Manhattan, I still accepted the terms your father put before me.” His tongue peeks out and licks his bottom lip, the movement capturing my interest. “Either way Stella, it’s done. You are about to become my wife and a Stratford. With that comes responsibilities and respect, respect you will show me little wife or I will make all your waking and resting hours hell on earth.”
He releases me with a disgusted grimace, like the mere touch of my skin repulses him and steps further back away from my body. His gaze sweeps over me from the top of my crown and black veil adorned head to the tips of my black satinYves Saint Laurentheels and everywhere in between, leaving fire in its wake. I almost think I see a spark of interest or desire in his gaze, but he shuts it down quickly. After all, he doesn’t need to desire me to force me down the aisle. He just needs the determination of a wealthy, privileged man.
A knock at the door has both of us startling and moving further away from each other. The person doesn’t bother to wait for our acknowledgement to enter before the door swings open and my father and mother are gliding into the room. My father’s shocked gaze lands on me and then quickly turns to anger as he tries to control his impending explosive temper. His face immediately resembles an ugly tomato the more he stares at me in disbelief. My mother sweeps her disapproving gaze over my wedding attire but keeps her mouth glued shut, just the way my father likes it.
“Stella, what is the meaning of this? Where is your wedding dress?” Thomas Jefferson Penticton is a menace and a tyrant in a well-dressed custom tuxedo. He stalks towards me, rage vibrating with each heavy step. My meek mother trails behind him in her light pink chiffon dress, head bowed and hands grasped together.Ever the dutiful and submissive wife.
“Whatever do you mean, father?” I smirk my most mischievous smile, the one I know causes his blood pressure to rise. I want him to explode, I want him to acknowledge this fucking tragedy that he is putting into motion. “I’m in my wedding dress.” The reminder that this dress just cost him over fifty thousand dollars, only to bring him nothing but rage brings me immense satisfaction.
“It’s black Stella, a wedding dress is white.” He states with irritation like I’m some incompetent imbecile that didn’t know she was supposed to wear white to her own wedding.Fuck that shit!He wants a sacrificial virgin lamb in white, but I have no intentions of playing the part of the lamb or the virgin for him.
“Yes, well since I didn’t ask to be married and am being forced into a union with this horrendous, malignant creature before me. I thought it was best to dress as if I was going to a funeral. After all, father, this will be the death of me. You have sold me off to the highest bidder and killed any possible happiness I could have ever had. I think the color is very appropriate.”
A harsh grunt leaves his lips and he moves to grab my arm, no doubt to drag me across the room. His usual brutish tactic of making the women around him cower in fear. Before he can get more than two feet from me, Jaxon slips in front of him and blocks his access to me with his large wide shoulders. The move has my father stopping in his tracks. “It doesn’t matter what she wears Thomas, as long as she makes it down that aisle. She could be naked or wearing a brown paper bag for all I care. She will be a Stratford by lunch, and no one touches a Stratford,not even you.”
The large ugly vein on the side of my father’s head is currently doing jumping jacks, a sure sign that the volcano of his temper is about to detonate to the absolute misery and misfortune of everyone around him. “Are you threatening me, Jaxon? I can still pull out of this arrangement.” A trickle of sweat drips down my father’s face, he is so overflowing with rage that he physically trembles before Jaxon.
A whimper escapes my mother, its sound pitiful and timid in the air, just like the slave she is. My mother only seems to fear for herself. I can’t say I blame her, my father is Hades personified and she is an imprisoned Persephone, except without the love story to match. She too, was sold off by her father. One can say the sins of the father always tend to be repeated in our bloodline and I will be no exception it seems.
“Let’s not bluster Thomas, we both know there is no way you are pulling out of this deal, the humiliation alone would be social suicide. You need this deal, you need a legitimate heir to the mighty Penticton throne, and you want that heir to be a Stratford. Your desire to see your precious little dark-haired princess as the reigning queen of our elite society, motivates your actions. Don’t try to play with me Thomas, you are not the biggest predator in the room.”
Jaxon turns back in my direction, his dark slate irises meeting mine. A devious smirk quirks at the side of his lips and the fucker winks at me. I think he might actually be enjoying this whole situation. After all, it’s not every day that someone gets the upper hand on Thomas Penticton. I have been trying for years and look where I have ended up and what it has cost me.
“My little ice queen, if you are not down that aisle in the next ten minutes, I will find you, throw you over my shoulder and drag you down with your ass red and on display for all our friends and family to see. Do not make an enemy of me Stella, you will regret it.” He turns, shoulder checks my father hard, causing him to stumble into my mother and I watch as the both of them get tangled in her dress and fall on their wealthy, privileged asses.
Holy shit!I don’t know whether to be livid at his threat or slightly aroused. The door slamming is loud in the space and causes my heart to clench tightly.SHIT!What should I do? Do I try to run? Where would I be able to run to, that Jaxon Stratford won’t be able to find me?Nowhere, my mind immediately provides.
