Forced To The Altar

2 || Tying The Knot

"Time to walk." My father said, his grip strong on my hand as though he was afraid that I was going to pull a Brielle version two point o and disappear.

I honestly wished I had when I saw the look on Noah's face. I didn't blame him. Today he was supposed to marry the love of his life but instead, he finds out that she ran away and he now has to marry her youngest sister whom he despised.

Why he despised me though was a question I never dared to ask him. I did want to know but at the same time, I didn't. The wedding music started and I began to slowly walk down the aisle. Noah didn't even glance at me once. I glanced at my father in my peripheral vision and noticed that he had a huge grin claiming his face. That irritated me but I tried to keep my cool and keep the fake smile plastered on my face.

No crowd of random people I am not utterly miserable at all. In fact, I am ecstatic and joyous. I thought to myself as my father handed Noah my hand. The tension between us was so thick you would struggle to cut through it with a knife. I faced the priest wordlessly and he immediately began the celebration. 

The large church that was once filled with the sound of murmurs quietened down immediately as soon as the priest began to speak. All eyes were now on us and that made my anxiety skyrocket out of control.

I looked around the church trying to distract myself from reality. The church was filled with beautiful white flowers, the chairs all had tiebacks with golden details and three beautiful Swarovski chandeliers were hanging over the red carpet aisle I had just walked on. All of the things Brielle had chosen made for nothing short of an elegant wedding fit for royals but every single damn thing about this wedding felt wrong. It wasn't me, it was all her.

I stood there, my hands shaking inside of my sister's wedding dress, trying to keep my face composed but the stress was eating me alive. What had I done to myself? I had just trapped myself with a monster forever. I could feel the weight of the veil like a heavy curtain falling over me, hiding my expression from the world as well as from the man standing beside me.

Noah Sinclair the green-eyed, dark-haired, well-built Greek God stood at the altar. He was the man I had loved from afar for years. And the man who hated me now.

Looking at him, I saw that he really resembles his mother. I knew his mother, Liana Sinclair, really well. She was my patient and that meant I had run into stoic Noah and his dad a lot. Liana was the kindest person alive, the day she died was one of the worst days ever. She and I had gotten quite close over the few months she was at the hospital.

Looking back at Noah, his face was a mask of indifference, his green eyes cold as they flickered over me. His jaw was tight, his hands clenched at his sides, and the tension in the air was palpable. The words the priest was speaking barely registered in my mind as I kept my gaze on the floor, my pulse pounding in my ears.

This was supposed to be Brielle's wedding. It was never meant to be mine. It was hers.

I could feel my father's gaze on me from the front row, his eyes full of expectation. And then there was Noah's father, sitting there like this was just another business deal for him like this marriage was as easily signed as a contract and to him it probably was. 

The priest's voice snapped me from my thoughts, and I felt the pressure of the moment weigh down on me.

"Do you, Valerie Collins, take Noah Sinclair to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, until death do you part?"

I swallowed hard. My throat felt like it was closing in on me.

I could change my mind now. 

My father narrowed his eyes on me and I felt myself shrink underneath his powerful gaze.

"I... I do," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. 

There was a beat of silence, like the world was holding its breath. Then, priests voice, deep and steady, broke through.

"And do you, Noah Sinclair, take Valerie Collins to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, until death do you part?"

Noah didn't speak for a long time. It felt like an eternity as I felt his eyes on me. My heart pounded wildly in my chest. He could say anything—he could easily call this off, walk away, and embarrass me and my family - after all, I wasn't his true bride. 

Somehow I knew that he wouldn't. Not with the contract and all the stakes at hand. My father would never create a contract that did not somehow benefit him and weaken his opponent in some way.

Finally, his voice, low and laced with a coldness that sent a shiver down my spine, came out. "I do."

The priest smiled, the words "You may kiss the bride" falling from his lips and I dreaded them. But there was nothing formal about this. 

Noah's hand brushed mine for the briefest second, his touch sending an electric shock through my skin. His expression remained unchanged as he leaned in. I could feel the coldness radiating off him as he placed a chaste, almost clinical kiss on my lips. It was brief, distant, and devoid of any emotion.

The kiss was over almost as soon as it had started, but the weight of what had just happened hung in the air, suffocating.

I was his wife now.

But nothing about this was real.

The priest declared us husband and wife, and Noah's cold stare met mine as we turned to face the crowd. I caught a glimpse of my father's satisfied expression, my mother's worried one, and the faint glint of triumph in Noah's eyes.

For a moment, I thought I saw something deeper in his gaze—something dark and twisted, but it was gone before I could even register it. Maybe it was guilt? No, no way. Noah Sinclair didn't feel guilt.

I had just married the one man I loved... and the one man who despised me.

Hi Lovies!

Chapter 2 is now live! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, if you did please make sure you leave a vote and comment your thoughts!

XOXO

Perla