Substitute Bride

. This wasn't the wedding she'd rehearsed in her head since she was sixteen. No Rose giggling beside her as bridesmaid, adjusting her veil and whispering, _"You're gonna cry, I know it."_ No fathe

s and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?" The silence after the vow was deliberate. Calculated. "Yes," Liam said. His voice was velvet over a blade. "I do. I will cherish her. Love her. Be loyal to her... till death." That smirk again. Small. Lethal. "Chloe Adams," the priest turned to her, and she felt the weight of God and ghosts in the room. "Do you take Liam Reigns to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?" Her tongue went dry. The words were stones in her mouth. "Y-yes." The stutter betrayed her. "I do." A lie before God. Would He forgive her? Would He even listen in a church this empty? "This is a commitment of forever," the priest said, almost in a rush. "You may now kiss the bride." Liam didn't hesitate. One hand seized her waist, pulling her flush against him. The other caught her chin, tilting her face up. She saw her own terrified reflection in his eyes. She moved to turn her head, to deny him this last piece of her. His whisper stopped her cold. Lips brushing her ear, for her alone: "This is what you owe me and Rose. It's too late to run." Rose. Her best friend's name on his mouth felt like a slap. Her knees nearly gave out. The kiss wasn't a kiss. It was a brand. Slow, deep, punishing. He took his time, like he wanted her to memorize every second of her surrender. Her hands went numb at her sides. The bouquet nearly slipped. She tasted betrayal. She tasted salt. She didn't know if it was his or hers. When he finally released her, the air rushed back into her lungs in a broken gasp. The priest had alrea