Page 18 of Monster's Bride
It might explode out of my chest.
Nor, my betrothed, is turned toward me rather than the officiant, so I copy his stance and face him for the first time. Up close, he’s even bigger than I imagined, and he towers over me with a look of absolute loathing in his eyes. That, or his brows are permanently furrowed, and he always looks like he’s about to start a fight.
Hopefully it’s the latter and not the fact that he’s already planning my untimely death.
“Citizens of Ulleh,” the officiant says to my left, and I peek at him quickly from the corner of my eye. He’s old, deep wrinkles creating valleys in his skin, and the baubles hanging from his horns look more like candle votives up close. “We are here today to celebrate and bear witness to the union of Prince Nor and Princess Irissa of Hyatt.”
Without warning, every minotaur in the room aside from the ones standing next to me bellows an animalistic call that explodes throughout the room and echoes off the walls. I jump as my heart slams into my ribcage, but the minotaurs around me don’t seem bothered. It must be some kind of tradition I don’t know about.
I sigh as the officiant carries on with his speech about the sanctity of marriage and what it means for our kingdoms. If we had run through the motions before the ceremony, I would have some sort of clue how weddings in Ulleh work, but I have no idea what I’m doing. That’s probably the way they wanted it—for me to show up and look like an idiot in front of their kingdom—but I won’t give them the satisfaction.
“Nor Ruthok, prince and heir to the throne of Ulleh, do you accept without reservation the bonds of marriage to this woman?”
I stare up at Nor while his eyes continue to burn into mine, wondering if there’s any chance he’ll reject our marriage. While I’m not thrilled about the idea of being bound to a monster, I’m here to make a difference. I’m here to save my kingdom. If the look on his face is any reflection of his thoughts, he wants to call this whole thing off and send me packing.
To my surprise, however, he says, “Yes. I do.”
His voice is deep and rich, like velvet, and takes me aback. Some biased part of me expected him to speak in grunts like an animal, not for the sound of his voice to make my body tingle the way it does.
“And do you, Irissa Glass, accept without reservation the bonds of marriage to this minotaur?”
Knowing that hesitating will only prolong the inevitable, I answer quickly. “Yes.”
For a second time, the audience bellows, and even though I’m more prepared this time, I still jump a little in surprise. Weddings in Hyatt are never this loud.
“Then, by the power bestowed upon me, I declare this union sacred and complete in the land of Ulleh,” the officiant declares. “You may now kiss your mate.”
Kiss?
My eyes flick to the officiant to make sure I heard him correctly, but he merely watches eagerly as Nor takes a step toward me. Despite the countless times I envisioned my wedding, I never let myself consider what happens after. The idea of kissing this monster in front of hundreds of onlookers is terrifying, much less the physical things that come with consummating a marriage.
My knees go weak.
I timidly look up at Nor, who still has a look of utter displeasure on his face, and gasp when he swoops down swiftly to plant his lips on mine. It’s hard and quick but stirs something hot and primal in me that I’ve never felt. Before I have time to wonder if and why I enjoy the foreign feel of his strangely shaped lips on mine, he pulls away like it was nothing.
The audience erupts again, this time bellowing five times back-to-back, and once the hall falls silent, Nor offers me his arm.
“Take it,” he grunts under his breath.
Considering it’s almost level with my shoulder, all I’m able to do is tuck my hand around his thick forearm, but it seems to be good enough for him. Together, we walk down the aisle toward the double doors, where Lizette’s head is poking into view, and I let out a shaky breath. I have no idea where we’re headed, and I’m too afraid to ask.
Instead, I follow his lead silently and trade a nervous glance with Liz as we slip through the doorway. She looks just as confused as I feel, and I know she’s wondering the same thing that I am.
Now what?
CHAPTEREIGHT
Nor
For a human, my mate isn’t the worst thing to look at. If I didn’t hate her so much for ruining our tradition of pureblood minotaur rulers and turning my reign into a mockery, I might venture to say she’s pretty.
Tiny, but pretty.
I’m not sure how procreating with this small creature is going to work without snapping her in half, but if I kill her in the process, it might work in my favor. My parents would have to choose a different mate for me then, and I could argue for a more suitable one.
One not so frail.
My gaze travels from the side of her angular face to her hand that’s curled around my forearm, and I wonder how she expects to handle my cock when the time comes. There’s no way her short fingers will be able to grasp it. Even less likely that it will fit in her mouth.