Chapter 182
Ellie POV
You know, I expected this.
Even after everything Dominic had done these past few weeks, after the contract and the quiet promises and the way he had looked at me lately as if this arrangement was something fragile and real instead of something written in ink and obligation, a part of me had never fully let go of the possibility that it would end like this.
He had almost convinced me otherwise.
Almost.
So when I turned the corner and saw Vivian standing far too close to him, her delicate fingers curled into the front of his jacket as she leaned into his space, her mouth brushing his like it belonged there.
I waited for something inside me to shatter.
It didn’t.
The flowers slipped from my hands before I realized I’d loosened my grip, pale petals scattering across the marble floor between us, but my face remained calm.
There was no dramatic ache in my chest, no sharp twist of betrayal, only a strange, dull quiet that settled beneath my ribs.
For a moment, none of us moved.
Vivian froze where she stood, her eyes widening slightly as she noticed me, though she made no move to step away from him until Dominic himself pushed her back with a sharp, instinctive motion, his hand firm against her shoulder as he turned toward
“Ellie,” he said, his voice low and tight, already moving toward me, already reaching as if he could undo what I had seen. “It’s not what you think.”
I bent down slowly, gathering the fallen flowers at my train, brushing invisible dust from their stems as if they still mattered.
“You should get to the altar,” I said quietly, refusing to meet his eyes as I adjusted the bouquet in my hands, smoothing the ribbon with careful fingers. “We’re going to be late. The music is starting soon.”
He stopped in front of me, close enough that I could feel the warmth of him. I knew he was searching my face for something anger, hurt, anything but I gave him nothing.
“Ellie,” he said again, softer now, his voice threading with something uncertain. “You’re upset.”
I let out a small, humorless breath, lifting my chin slightly as I adjusted the edge of my veil where it had slipped loose from my hair. “The contract says we’re allowed other partners,” I reminded him evenly, my voice calm in a way that felt detached even to me. “This is a contract, Dominic I have nothing to be upset about.”
His hand closed gently around my arm before I could step past him, his fingers warm through the fabric of my sleeve, the contact sending an involuntary ripple of awareness through me
I hated that it stopped me.
“Don’t,” he murmured, his brows drawing together, his voice rougher now “Don’t do that ”
I pulled my arm free immediately, the movement sharper than I intended, my eyes finally locking onto his “It is our wedding day,” I snapped, my composure cracking just enough to let the edge of my frustration show. “And you’re making us late So walk down that aisle and stand there like your supposed to so we can say yes and get this over with ”
Something dark flashed across his face, his jaw tightening as he stepped closer instead of backing away, his presence suddenly
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overwhelming in the narrow hallway.
“I don’t give a damn if we’re late,” he said quietly. “I care that this is solved. That you are-”
“Happy?” I interrupted, a bitter laugh slipping past my lips before I could stop it. “Dominic, this isn’t happiness. This is survival. My health, my mother, your authority. We both know what this is.”
His eyes hardened, and for a moment he looked every bit the Alpha everyone feared, every bit the man who could command a room without raising his voice.
“You’re acting like I forced this on you,” he said, his voice low, controlled, but unmistakably wounded beneath the surface. ” You set the terms. You made it clear this was what you wanted.”
“I didn’t want this,” I said, the words escaping before I could stop them, my hands curling into fists at my sides. “I didn’t want the bond. I didn’t want the sickness. I didn’t want any of it.”
The music swelled faintly through the glass doors behind us, the sound of shifting guests and whispered anticipation bleeding into the silence between us.
“This isn’t even my wedding,” I continued, my voice trembling now despite my efforts to steady it. “The only thing here I chose was my damn dress.”
He stared at me, something raw breaking through his carefully controlled expression. “That was you’re choice. You didn’t want to plan anything,” he said quietly, almost accusingly. “You refused to care. Now, your saying-”
“Because I don’t want to marry you,” I said. “That is was I care nothing for this stupid wedding!”
Behind me, I heard Sarah suck in a sharp breath, her hand flying to cover her mouth as her wide eyes darted between us.
Dominic didn’t move.
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