There’s nothing I can do now but wait.
The road curves, and something massive comes into view—a building, a house maybe; no… It’s too ornate. It’s gothic, built entirely in stone, with vines carved into the marble walls like they’ve grown from the earth itself. It’s stunning. Haunting.
The driver parks the car, and I immediately spot the other SUVs. Declan’s. Flynn’s. Kian’s.
Why are they all here?
Kaden gets out and circles around to open my door. He offers his hand. I take it, letting him help me out, though my legs already feel unsteady. As I take a better look, my stomach knots.
It’s not just a house.
It’s a chapel. An old one. A stone chapel in the middle of nowhere.
Why is there a chapel here? Why the hell are we here?
And then it hits me like a slap to the face, cold and sharp.
A chapel.
Flynn’s words echo in my skull.“Just admiring what’s mine.”
I look down at myself.
The dress.
White. Elegant. Timeless. Almost… bridal.
I turn fast, eyes locking on Kaden. My voice comes out sharp, panicked. “What the fuck is going on?”
My breath turns ragged, my hands trembling, ice cold.
“Ease up, Autumn. Nothing bad is going to happen.” He lifts a hand slowly, like I’m a spooked animal.
“No.” I step back, already shaking my head.
“Autumn,” he warns, tone low and steady.
“No!” I scream it this time, spin, and run.
The heel digs into the dirt, nearly tripping me right away, but before I can fall, Kaden is behind me, catching me by the waist, steadying me like it’s nothing.
“Come on. We can’t get the dress dirty,” he whispers near my ear.
His tone is so casual, so firm that it makes my whole body freeze.
“Let me go!” I scream, raw and feral, my throat already burning as I kick at him, twist, try to scratch, to bite, anything. I reach for his hair, desperate to rip and claw, but he just laughs like I’m amusing, like I’m a child throwing a tantrum.
He throws me over his shoulder, holding me so tight my ribs burn. He walks inside the chapel, and I keep screaming; I’ll scream until my voice gives up.
“Fuck.” I hear a grunt and turn my head to see Declan Callaghan and his brothers at the end of an aisle. No one else is on the chairs or the pews. There are two other men I don’t recognise.
“Trouble.” I hear Flynn.
“Fuck you!” I yell at him, still trying to fight Kaden.
“You sure you want to do this?” I hear Declan ask.
“Yeah.” Flynn says with a thick accent and a damn smirk on his face.
