His kiss felt gentle and loving yet demanding at the same time. It felt sweet yet slightly aggressive and unlike any kiss that I had ever experienced before. It left me curious and also eager for more. His lips worked to seduce mine until I felt like my body would melt in his arms. My lips slowly parted to grant his seeking tongue entry into the wet depths of my mouth. Anthony let out a satisfied moan as he thrusted his tongue firmly between my parted lips and into my mouth.
“Mhmm…” I heard myself moaning even louder this time as my eyes drifted closed.
The way his tongue seduced mine in a fervent dance of passion told me just how experienced and skilled he was. I had thought so since the first time that we kissed that he was such a good kisser, and he was probably the best that I have ever had. Although I knew that countless pairs of eyes were watching us, I couldn’t stop myself from kissing him back hungrily. My mind felt intoxicated with the pleasure of his kiss and thoughts of him, and that only made me greedier than before. I wanted him so badly that I could barely contain myself. Our tongues mingled and entwined together as if they were mating as I stroked his broad back.
“Anthony…” I whispered his name when his lips finally released mine.
I was panting hard as his magnificent blue eyes met and held mine. It felt like he could see through me and my thoughts, but I didn’t mind at all. The sound of everyone clapping and cheering all around us was what brought me back to my senses. Instead of our private passionate little world, we were back again at the evening reception of our wedding. He grinned at me and I was certain that we were both thinking the same thing and wishing that this event would be over so that we could continue where we left off alone in each other’s company.
“I guess we have to save the rest for later…” he whispered to me regretfully.
I guess he was right that we would be doing more than just sharing passionate kisses later on tonight. In just a few hours, the wedding reception would be over, and we would have our wedding night to ourselves. The thought both scared me and excited me at the same time. Then again, who wouldn’t be looking forward to spending the night with the man of their dreams?
The rest of the evening, Anthony was the perfect version of how I remembered him to be. He was the perfect gentleman who guided me by the hand and supported me with his arm around my waist as we made our way through the reception venue to greet our guests. The warm and kind aura that he had about him helped me to relax and it didn’t take long for me to feel like we weren’t just acting like the perfect couple, but we were really a perfect couple. It was thanks to him that I could enjoy myself on my wedding day. Anthony made small talk with me that I found entertaining. He made everything so easy for me that I was convinced that our sudden wedding could turn into a wonderful memory despite the unexpected circumstances that led us together.
…
“Can I have a quick word with my daughter please?” my mother asked before smiling brightly at Anthony.
I felt her thin arm snaking its way to hook mine as she pulled me to her side. Anthony turned toward my mother and offered her a polite and warm smile before nodding his head in approval. I wanted to yell and tell him to save me from my mother because I had absolutely no interest in what she wanted to tell me and would rather be spending time with him, but I knew too well that I couldn’t have done that.
“What is it that you want now?” I asked without masking my annoyance as I shrugged her arm off of mine.
I just married the man that they wanted as their son-in-law in the place of my elder twin sister so what more could they possibly want from me?
“I would like to thank you properly for doing this for our family and also for the stability of this country…” she said with a stern expression on her face.
“If that is all then…” I replied dismissively because I didn’t want or need their thanks.
“Please make sure that you please Anthony and please try your best to maintain this marriage,” my mother instructed with a hint of warning in her tone.
“Are you worried that he would ask for a divorce because he would be dissatisfied with me as his wife?” I asked directly with raised brows.
“We can never be sure of what the future holds. Although this marriage is arranged for the benefit of both of our families, that doesn’t mean that everything is set in stone. Please make sure to keep Anthony happy and satisfied,” my mother advised.
I knew well enough that she was warning me for everyone’s benefit apart from my own. My eyes narrowed at her before my lips curved up into a smirk.
“Are you worried that I can’t pull this off because I’m not your dear daughter, Diana?” I asked what I already knew to be true.
If it had been Diana standing right here married and about to consummate her wedding with Anthony, I doubt that my mother or father would be worried about this.
“You are partly right. You are not your sister…and…” she said before she abruptly pressed her lips firmly into a thin tight line.
What is it that she was about to say just now?
It looked like my mother was about to say something but then she suddenly caught herself as if what she was about to say was supposed to be kept a secret from me. It was only for a fleeting moment, but I thought that she had a genuinely worried expression on her face. However, it was hard for me to believe that she could ever be worried about me.
“You’re right. I am not my sister, and precisely because of that, you don’t need to worry about anything. I’ll survive…somehow…” I replied before glaring at her pointedly.
Before she could say anything more, I turned and quickly walked away from her to rejoin my handsome groom.
–To be continued…
If Desmond was giving Bradon support so publicly, then that only meant one thing. I took in a deep breath and held it as I felt my entire body shudder just at the thought."I would like to wish eternal happiness to the bride and the groom, and it would mean the world to me if everyone could give them your support just like I have chosen to support them," Desmond ended his speech on a very positive note.Everyone in the venue applauded loudly as Desmond made his exit. With one last flash of a smile my way, Desmond disappeared along with all the men that accompanied him. That marked the end of our wedding ceremony, and also the start of what was to come....Our wedding night did not start off the way that I had dreamed of. Instead of making our way to our bedroom and sharing a night of pure hopeless romance, the night started off with a very strained conversation that didn't quite contain many words. The look on Desmond's face as he made his announcement was still glued to the back of
Our lips lingered on each other's probably a moment too long before Bradon finally broke our kiss. Our lips hesitantly parted as we continued to stand right in front of each other. I couldn't stop staring up into his face as his eyes held mine in an intense gaze filled with love and emotions. Suddenly, all the hustle and all the trouble that we went through just to get to that moment faded away and didn't seem to matter. All I wanted, and all that mattered to me, was that Bradon was standing in front of me and that we were now officially man and wife.In a way, I was glad that we could make things official between us after faking it and then feeling so confused as to what exactly we were for a very long time. On the other hand, it also felt like nothing had changed between us in the real sense. Perhaps, for a while now, we had always been acting as husband and wife, and the feelings that we shared had not changed. I found myself unable to stop smiling up at the man who was now my husb
The conductor probably finally realized that I needed to speak, because he ordered the orchestra to stop playing. The music came to a sudden stop, and awkward silence filled the church as everyone had their attention on me. I knew that this was the moment to come face-to-face with reality and break the news to everyone that the wedding wasn't going to take place. I had to tell everyone that Bradon had failed to show up, and without a groom we could not possibly have a wedding. At that moment, I realized for the very first time just how scared and disappointed I was. I wanted to avoid canceling our wedding, especially at the last second, at all costs, but life wasn't easy for us and nothing seemed to be going our way. I tried desperately not to blame Bradon for what was happening, but I couldn't. There was a part of me that was so angry, and I had no one else to lash out at but the man that had failed to turn up for what might be one of the most important events of our lives.I couldn'
The beautifully carved wooden doors of the church that had been chosen as our wedding venue had never looked so daunting to me before. I had always envisioned that I would be filled with joy and excitement when it came time to stand in front of those double doors, waiting to enter to mark the start of my wedding ceremony.In truth, all I could feel at that moment was a sense of failure and a sense of helplessness as a cold void developed in the pit of my stomach. I wanted to throw up and run away from it all, but my feet wouldn't move."I can do this," I told myself in a low whisper.I could hear beautiful classical music playing from inside the church and knew that the live orchestra band inside had no idea that the groom had not yet turned up. It was a sudden change of plans that no one could have anticipated. After closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I opened them again and firmly pushed open the double doors before walking into the church with my head held high. My heart rac
"Don't call off the wedding just yet. Let's buy as much time as we can. We came this far, we can't just back down now," Diana said stubbornly."What's the point? Bradon isn't going to make it. We need to call off the wedding. Trust me, I don't want to do this, but what other choice do I have?" I replied to my sister as I felt tears stinging the back of my eyes.So many emotions welled up inside of me, and I felt like I was ready to lose control. I wanted to break down and just curl myself up into a ball and cry myself to sleep. It felt like a disaster was waiting for me no matter what I decided to do. I felt mortified, scared, frustrated, and also angry all at the same time.I wanted to lash out and blame Bradon for abandoning me at such an important time in our relationship and our lives, but I couldn't quite do it. I wanted to let my rage take over and escape somewhere where I could be alone. In the end, all I could do was think rationally and act according to logic. That was the be
"Nope. He's nowhere to be seen. Should we postpone the starting time? I can always make an announcement in your place and smooth things over. We can still buy some time," Diana suggested.I could tell that she was trying her best to remain calm and help me out, but I doubted that we could buy much time. We needed to find out where Bradon was and what he was up to. "We need to find a way to contact him. Is Zain around? He has to be..." I said. "You mean that stoic man that works for Bradon? He's actually no here," Diana replied."What? Zain isn't here?" I asked, without hiding my surprise."The other guards are here. Don't worry about safety, this place is definitely guarded like some top-rated prison," Diana said before rolling her eyes upwards."I'm not concern about my own safety. Right now, I'm worried about Bradon," I admitted.We both looked around us as we whispered to each other, afraid that members of the organization team might hear us. Once we saw that the coast was clear,