The Marriage Deal

Chapter 1

Hello people! This is the first time i am publishing my work on the ineternet or anywhere else. I am extremely shy about my work but my best friend convinced me to give it a try :)

I would really appreciate it if you would too and provide me suggestions about how to improve..please don't be too harsh but constructive criticism is always welcomed...:)

"Just when you think it can't get worse, ii can. And just when you think it can't get any better, it can"

She was terrified. She was aware that she was supposed to put one foot in front of the other and walk down the aisle, but she could not bring herself to move. She closed her eyes, but they immediately shot open when her father asked her, “Are you alright, sweetheart?”

She took a deep breath and prepared to confess, but one look in his eyes and she changed her answer, “Of course Dad. Just need a moment.”

He smiled as she knew he would. He gave a reassuring squeeze to her hand, the familiar gesture brought tears to her eyes which she refused to shed. She turned her head and faced the front. She could not tell him, would not tell him. His delicate heart condition and his joy at finally seeing his daughter married was way too risky to be spoiled. She mentally prepared herself. Except her, only her two cousins, Chloe and Sara knew, and they each guarded the other’s secret with their life.

How could she tell her father that the man she was going to marry was forcing her into it? How could she tell her Dad that the only way to pay off the loans was to sell the house he was living in; the same house that he and his beloved wife had built together? The loans they had taken to cure her brother, Ashton had been too large an amount for her to repay it on her own. And the bank was not being very kind either.

Michael Fury had literally swept in like a knight in shining armour ready to sweep her off her feet. Except that his armour was made of tin, had bumped her scooter with a Mercedes instead, and swept her on the road. The fact that he had the audacity to accuse her of being blind wasn’t what made the man infuriating, it was the fact that he was already tearing out a cheque and telling her to pay for her own damages. Then he wanted her to go to a hospital for a check-up so that she could not file a suit against him. When she had refused, he had simply leaned his hip against the fender of the car and calmly told her that he could easily lift her and carry her in the car if she was not willing. She was not ready to go, she had a million things to do and she did not have time to go to the hospital. But when he simply dangled the keys of her scooter out of her reach, she knew she had no option. Even now, just thinking about that incident made her blood boil.

She was jolted from her thoughts when her Chloe came rushing in. She came to halt when she saw her expression and tried to smile reassuringly, but they both knew that it was strained.

“It’s time,” Chloe said.

 She tried to lend courage to her cousin with her eyes. God knows they both needed it but her cousin needed it more than her. She relaxed a bit when Violet nodded. A gesture that communicated that she was as ready as she would ever be. She allowed her elder sister, Sera to walk before and followed after her.

When Violet heard the wedding march, she gripped her father’s arm. He patted her hand in understanding and started walking. When she entered the church, a hush fell over the crowd. She didn’t want to think about what they were thinking; knowing that most would be snide and nasty thoughts about her questionable pedigree and lowly profession.

She lifted her eyes and looked at him and was unexpectantly caught in his eyes. She could not read the expression in them but they were intense. It made her heartbeat quicken and she felt the stirring of butterflies in her stomach. With a jolt she realised that it was a pleasant sensation. She pushed the feeling aside. When she reached him, her father took their hands and looked up at Michael, “Take care of her,” he said. He put her hands in Michael’s hand and walked towards the front row.