“It’s too late for that!” Marlen snaps.
“The right girl?” I blurt out, pausing my attempt to undo the ropes. They both ignore me.
“The lawyer is on the way, I’ll marry this one. I’ll make it work.”
“Are you sure, man?” Bardil asks.
“Hey, stop talking about me like I’m not here!” I shout, picking up a pillow from the sofa and tossing it at Marlen. He spins to face me, and in three strides, he’s by my side, his cold green eyes piercing into me.
“You are not important in this equation, girl,” he mutters beneath his breathe.
“Stefania. I have a name. You might not know it because you were so stupid you kidnapped thewrong girl!”I shout at him.
“Regardless, you’ll have to do,” he huffs.
“For what? Marriage? Why the hell would you marry me? How insulting is this? You kidnap me, the inconsequentiallywronggirl, and now you think I’m going to marry you? Are you completely insane?”
I’m shouting so loud my voice is shaking. The anger is like a fire inside me, spreading and growing. It’s heating my veins and clouding my thoughts.
The audacity of this man is unbelievable.
“Marriage requires a signature. I won’t sign. And if you fake my signature, it means nothing,” I argue, my face heating, my emotions becoming an overwhelming mess.
Being kidnapped is one thing. Being targeted because you have some kind of perceived use to someone makes sense in a sick and twisted way. But being kidnapped because of mistaken identity,nothaving any real use, and still being forced to marry the asshole who took you is a whole new level ofnot going to happen.
“Nikita is probably still at the bar. If I leave now, I can grab her when she leaves,” Bardil says.
“Nikita?” I hiss. “You were meant to takeNikita? We don’t evenlookthe same, are you blind?” I scream at Bardil.
Marlen, briefly, finds this amusing, but I don’t share his sentiment. I’m offended, angry, and not going to let them do this to me. “Just because you stuffed up your plans doesn’t mean I have to get dragged into the rest of this mess. Let me the fuck go!”
“No,” Marlen says, void of emotion. Heartless, cold, and quiet.
“Yes,” I snap back.
“No,” he snarls. “This is happening, Stefania. And this conversation is over.”
“No, it fucking isn’t, you fuckingmonster. Who the fuck do you think you are?”
“Someone get some soap for this girl’s mouth. She’s gone dark mode,” Bardil laughs.
Marlen glares at him. “None of this would be happening if you hadn’t fucked up!” he snaps.
Marlen turns back to me, leaning so close I can smell his aftershave. In a voice so hushed it causes goosebumps to spread over my skin, he whispers, “I am a monster, girl, best you keep that in mind.”
I scoff, trying to ignore how good he smells. He’s standing too close, and his good looks are aggravating me.
“Even monsters bleed,” I mutter back, my face turned up toward his.
His eyes flare with surprise. I guess he’s not used to his kidnapped victims not showing fear. I’m too angry to be afraid.
Chapter 3 - Marlen
She’s become an unstable firecracker. Fascinatingly wild and erratic. It’s like she’s lost control of herself, and if she got half the chance, she’d rip me open and tear me to shreds. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a woman this angry before.
She shifted from bewildered, on first arrival, to antagonistic and argumentative… but now that she’s found out I still intend to marry her despite taking the wrong girl, she’s outright fuming.
Her rage is glowing like fire in her dark eyes. So brown they could be black in this light.
