Arranged Marriage

Chapter 4

I woke to a pounding in my head and stinging eyes. Groans escaped my lips and didn't stop till I ran out of breath.

"Oh God, my head," I moaned, drooling on the soft pillow.

I took in a deep breath, feeling all the bones in my body crack and my muscles relax. There was a slight chill in the air but I refused to get under the blankets or even move. My eyes slowly opened again to a dark wooden headboard that I didn't recognise. I moved onto my hands and looked down at myself.
Wedding dress?

Then it came crashing down. My elbows buckled under the weight of yesterday's exhaustion and the reality of my future. To spend my life with a man I didn't think I could love or could love me back. I felt my heart slightly break at that realization.

Rolling on to my back, I didn't have the strength to lift my arms that covered my eyes. The top of my dress was restricting my ability to breathe and my breasts were falling out.

Gravity, helped push my arms off my face so that I lied on the bed, Jesus-style. All I could do was focus on the physical state of my body than the emotional. My feet hurt like hell from being in heels all day long, my ribs ached from being in a corset and my eyes stung from crying all night long.

"God, what do I look like?" I asked myself, my voice a breath of air.

It felt nice to hear a voice even if it was my own. My eyes looked around the room trying to get familiar with my surroundings. This was my room after all. I spied the light, shining through a gap in the dark curtains. Crawling to the edge of the bed, I found my motivation to move. My feet cracked under my weight but that didn't stop me.

I took a hold of the curtains and pushed them opened letting the morning sun rain down on me. My body completely relaxed under the warmth, welcoming it.

Turning, I walked over to the dresser by the other wall. I looked at the woman that looked very different to the woman I was looking at yesterday in the three piece mirror. This girl was a mess. She wasn't this strong queen that everyone believed she was. She was just a complete mess. Moving closer to it, I focused on the things it held.

Patrick was right. They had brought all my things here. My body products, my jewellery, my clothes, everything a girl could want to make herself feel at home. I guess Oscar wasn't lying when he said that he would try and make my life comfortable here. My shoulders shook at the thought of my father-in-law. Ew, Oscar Maestri was my father-in-law? Why did that sentence sound so wrong?

Spying the digital clock on the dresser, I read the time. Nine-thirty-five. Patrick was probably waiting for me. I stamped my foot, frustrated with myself more than anything. I knew where Patrick and I stood. I was his queen and he was my king. I was now living in his house and I was going to have to play by his rules. But why did I have too? I was a queen in my own right. To hell if I was going to be ruled by him.

With that new thought, I paced for my ensuite. I was stunned by what I found. It wasn't as big as the one at home but it would do. A sink half cover the wall and had a good size space and draw size. A toilet sat nicely next to that and above that was a mirror that covered the rest of the wall. A double shower took up the rest of the room with only a piece of glass for privacy and a window that sat along the built in shelf to bring in some more light.

First thing first, my dress. I reached to the back of it and found the zipper before pulling it down. I clung to the sink for balance as I stepped out of the thing. My eyes avoided the mirror, not wanting to look at the unflattering marks it made on my skin. I kicked it out of the room, not trying to be nice about it. I wouldn't need it again anyway.

After that, I went straight to the shower noticing that my shampoo and my body lotion was already in there. Moans escaped my lips when I felt the tiny warm droplets of water touch my skin. I felt it loosen my tight muscles as I started to take the bobby pins from my hair. It was a tough job and took about ten minutes for all them to be out.