“That’s not what Torskethorpe is about. You should know this by now. We’re a community. The country has invited you in, and to get married here, where only an exclusive number of people can be present physically, it seems like a slap to the face.”
“I understand that it’s not conducive to everyone’s feelings, but this is also our wedding day, which means we should do the things we want. And I want to get married to you here. It’s not as intimidating.”
“And I want to honor the people who raised me, the community who took me in, and the place where . . .” His voice cuts off, and he places his hands on his hips. He clears his throat and says, “This isn’t up for debate. Norse Temple is the obvious choice.”
“Not up for debate? Excuse me, I thought this was my wedding too.”
“It is. But I’m putting my foot down on this. We aren’t getting married here.”
“You’re putting your foot down?” I ask, stepping back an inch. Color me shocked because I’m pretty sure we don’t ever “put our foot down” at each other. “Should I be scared?”
“You should be respectful,” he says and looks away, avoiding all eye contact with me, which isn’t Keller. He’s the type of man who, when he “puts his foot down,” he owns it. He demands attention when he’s forcing one of his commands on you. So why is he looking away now?
What’s going on that I don’t know about?
I get this overwhelming sense that he’s hiding something. He was reserved and quiet at Norse Temple. And now here, he’s stiff, unwelcoming to any suggestions, like he’s made up his mind, and nothing can change that. It’s unlike him. He’s been different all day, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. Is there a connection with Norse Temple that he’s not telling me about?
I don’t know what hurts more, his silence or his need to rule over me.
I run my tongue over my lips and cross my arms at my chest. “Care to say that again?”
“Don’t test me right now, Lilly. Norse Temple is where we’re getting married.”
“And why is that?” I ask.
But he doesn’t answer, just stares down at me for a few beats before he turns on his heel, and to my shock, he heads back down the aisle to Katla and Adela, where he announces, “Norse Temple will be the choice.”
Pardon fucking me?
“I think that’s a great choice,” Katla says while bringing him into a hug. “That way, your parents can be there too.”
Uh . . . what?
His parents?
I hold my breath, waiting for Keller to respond to Katla, but he doesn’t. He only returns the hug and then walks out of the sanctuary and to the car where Lara is standing, leaving me in his wake, shocked and in disbelief.
What the hell just happened?
* * *
“Can you stop walking so fast?”I ask Keller as he strides double-time down the hallway to where we’re meeting with Gothi Elias.
“We’re going to be late.”
“So we’re late. I would really like to talk to you about the whole Norse Temple thing.”
“We can talk about it later,” he says before opening the door to the ancestor room where Elias is smiling brightly.
“Welcome,” he says while spreading his arms. “How is the happy couple?”
“Great,” I say with so much sarcasm that it floods the very carpet we walk on. I push past Keller, bumping into his shoulder on the way.
During the entire drive back to Strombly, I tried to gather his attention, tried to get him to talk to me. I even texted him several times, but he left them unanswered. And when we got back to the palace, he ushered us right to the ancestor room instead of stopping for one freaking second to discuss things with me.
It was such a brutal, unsuspecting switch in attitude and composure that I feel like I’m experiencing a serious case of whiplash. One second, we’re telling each other how much we love one another, and the next, I’m trying to figure out why my fiancé is not only being a dick but why he’s keeping things from me.
“Hmm, your answer has a hint of sarcasm,” Elias says, concern etched in his brow.
