I want to wipe each one of them from her memory and replace them with dreams, but sometimes I wonder if she will ever give me such a chance to make everything right again.
Because I will grab it with both hands and not let go until she becomes blissfully happy, and all the sorrows in the world pass her by, too afraid to come near a woman who is mine.
“Zachary, please tell us how you fell in love. The article said…,” one of the women asks, extending a microphone to me, so that means Dad clearly allowed the press to come for an exclusive sneak peek into the event.
His philosophy never wavers through the years, as he believes in it so much. The majority of people who come in contact with him praise him for it.
Invite the enemy to your domain, and you will be able to control his mind to use it in your games.
My raised hand stops her, and I grin warmly, masking my annoyance with joy as I squeeze Phoenix in my arms. “I would love to answer all your questions, but I’m afraid my fiancée would like to greet the family first.” I wink at them. “I prefer she stay in a good mood. You know how it goes. Happy wife, happy life.” A chuckle erupts among the men while the women blush, and I add, “We will answer all your questions later. For now, let’s enjoy this party. Otherwise, the good champagne and food will be wasted.” I snap my fingers to the musicians, and since they always play during the parties at this place, they instantly know the meaning of this.
In a second, the soft jazz resumes, flowing from the various speakers, and with one last smile that fucking hurts my mouth, I pass through the crowd, moving in the direction of my “family,” who gape at us as if we are monkeys in a circus.
I guess in a way we are.
Although one of the stares is different.
“Are you all right?” I murmur into her hair, still walking but at the same time keeping her in the tight crook of my arm so none of the sharks will have an opportunity to bite her flesh. “You’ve gone all pale. Is it the crowd?”
She shudders a little and then sighs heavily, placing her hand on my chest and mustering a smile that doesn’t reach her chocolate pools that I love so much. “Yes. I’m not used to all this attention.”
“As a King, you’ll have to,” I tell her, and her nails dig into my chest, making me groan, vicious little creature indeed.
“I might not even be a King if we catch him right now,” she whispers, and part of me wants to stop, grab her shoulders, and shake her till her teeth clack, all while asking if she is fucking insane to think she can get away from me. The barbarian part… that I’ve discovered I possess when my claim on her is threatened.
The rational one, the one that belongs to the cold-hearted businessman who is used to winning, knows better than to act on my impulses and push the phoenix in a direction she doesn’t want.
Otherwise, I’ll have nothing but her ashes to hold on to, and such a future is unacceptable to me.
“We’ll see, darling.” That’s all I manage to say before we finally reach my family and I address Charlie, who flashes all thirty-two of his teeth at us. “There was no need for your introduction.”
He puts his hand on his forehead and exclaims dramatically, “How rude you are, brother of mine.” Since people’s attention is still on us—after all, everyone loves to spy on the Kings—I grin back at him and keep my tone even.
“Twenty-five years and you still can’t learn the simple truth. I’m not your brother. Unless my dad was cheating on his wife with your mother.” Charlie’s eyes narrow while Olivia exhales heavily, her hand trembling a little as she takes a sip from her champagne glass, but as always, she says nothing.
At least she never comments on my indirect jabs or sarcastic remarks, oh no. Instead, she runs off to her husband to complain about me, and then Daddy dearest chooses an appropriate punishment for my deeds.
“You fucking—” Charlie starts, stepping in my direction, but Olivia stops him with one single look that speaks volumes. Charlie fists his hands, huffs in frustration, but does as he is silently ordered.
Oh, of course she stops him.
God forbid any of her children cause a scene that might anger my father and cause him to doubt his eternal devotion to her and her perfect children.
Felicia decides to break the tension, clapping her hands and giddily announcing, “I was so happy to hear about your engagement! I plan to do a painting for you as a gift.” Although happiness shines on her face, I don’t miss the forced smile and wary look she sends Phoenix’s way while leaning a little bit on Sebastian, who still stays silent, broodily watching us all.
Felicia might fake it till she makes it, but for now, happy is not a true word describing her emotions.
“I think surprised is a more appropriate term,” Lydia says and comes closer to me. “You certainly know how to hide a relationship well.”
My brow rises. “I had no idea I should alert all of you about my personal life.”
She rolls her eyes, popping another cherry into her mouth. The girl has some kind of addiction to all the berries in this world, because Dad constantly orders them for her from the best shops. She’ll inhale them in a day and not even share with anyone, so I always associate the rich smell of berries and cherries with her.
“I’m her lawyer, okay? I had the right to know. Although, I was surprised to see you the other night.” She spits the seed out into her empty glass and murmurs, “This family has too many secrets; one simply can’t keep up.”
“That would be a valid observation if we were a family. But, oh well,” I reply, and she chokes on the cherry, sending daggers my way while Felicia just sighs in distress.
Phoenix finally speaks for the first time in their company, her body a little warmer, so she must have calmed down. “It’s really nice to meet you all. Thank you for coming to our special day.” She steps out of my embrace, and without thinking, I wrap my hand around her waist, not letting her wander far away from me.
Sebastian’s gaze lands on it for a second before he lifts it back to her face, sipping his drink. I notice his knuckles have become white, so should I expect them to crack at any moment?
What is it that he is bothered by anyway? Based on what I’ve seen, he is madly in love with Felicia and doesn’t exactly act possessive over Phoenix. That one time in the bar was more of a protection mode of the person he cared about, rather than a display of jealousy.
So why the anger?
Olivia opens her arms and motions with her head for Phoenix to come closer, and she does as the woman’s arms wrap tightly around her. “Welcome to the family, Phoenix,” I hear her murmur, and she leans back, patting her gently on the cheek. “We are happy to have you.” She glances at Sebastian. “Both of you.” For as long as I’ve lived, all I remember about my stepmother is how fucking much I resent her for causing a rift between my father and me.
And in this moment, I wish I could say she lies through her teeth, but it would be a lie on my part. She is genuinely happy about the new addition and even graces me with a warm, tentative smile. “I hope you like how we organized it all. I wasn’t sure about your preferences, so we went with a classical style.”
“Everything looks great,” Phoenix replies and then nudges me a bit. “Right, Zach?” There is a challenge in her gaze along with mild annoyance at my rudeness I bet, and although another insult is on the tip of my tongue, I swallow it back with a sip of champagne that tastes like shit.