Page 77 of The Carnage We Keep

“Little jumpy?” She smirks. “Hey, it’s okay to be nervous. But don’t worry.” She leans in closer and lowers her voice. “I’ll be gentle tonight for your first time.”

I give her a cold, humorless glare as she pulls back, her lips curling devilishly.

“Maybe I wasn’t putting it past you to shank me at the altar, dear,” I growl.

“You know what, that’s fair.”

I let go of her wrist.

This is why she drives me fucking insane. Because on the one hand, she’s Satan’s dildo of consequence. She’s pure chaos, fucks with my shit, gets under my skin, and pushes me and pushes me and fucking pushes me. Trying to keep up with her shit is exhausting.

But on the other hand, apparently we can’t be in the same zip code without my dick standing up to say hi. I’m halfway hard now, for fuck's sake.

She’s infuriating. Completely fucking unstable.

And right now, she looks so fucking good I want to bite something.

Preferably her.

Ever since that fucking photo…

My jaw sets.

No. I am not thinking about that photo, with her topless on my bed, pierced nipples on full fucking display while she flips off my camera⁠—

Cenzo clears his throat. “Are we ready?”

“Yes,” I growl.

“Fuck no,” Bella mutters darkly at the same time.

My brother looks way too amused as he rubs his hands together. “Well, this is gonna be awesome.”

The ceremony moves mercifully quickly. We breeze through an opening statement about “the beauty of forever” that literally no one asked for, thanks so much, Cenzo. Then he gets to the traditional vows.

“To have and to hold⁠—”

Bella makes a gagging face. I glare at her.

“—from this day forward, for better, for worse⁠—”

“Definitely worse,” she mouths.

“—for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part.”

Bella smiles sweetly. Then, hidden from everyone else's view by the angle of her body, she lifts her index finger and slowly drags it across her throat.

I mouth “psychopath” at her. I’m pretty sure she calls me a cunt.

My brother looks at me with the world’s biggest shit-eating grin on his face, then announces “You may kiss the bride” before mouthing if you dare at me.

Then, a series of events happens in quick succession.

I’ve never once had any interest in actually kissing Bella at our wedding. But Mom got weirdly emotional this morning and asked if I could at least do a cheek one for the photos, and I agreed.

So that’s what I go to do. Just as I see my mother gleefully raising her phone to take a photo, Una Kildare says “smile!” as she raises her phone to snap a pic.

My lips close in on Bella’s cheek.