It's Done
CULLEN
I felt my body fill with dread but I gathered myself, got into the car, and drove toward the casino.
I couldn’t remember how I parked. I don’t think I even looked. I stormed into the building, straight to my father’s office.
I didn't bother knocking. I just pushed the door open and walked in.
My father was behind his desk. His consigliere was seated in Infront of him. Cyrus was there and my mother was by his side.
It looked like everyone was there— except me.
“What the fuck is going on?” I asked, my voice already brimming with heat.
“Mind your tongue,” my father said sharply. “Take a seat.”
He didn’t give me a chance to argue.
“Cyrus, get your brother a drink.”
Wow! So the golden child was going to serve me today? This must be bad...
Cyrus didn’t argue or say anything. He simply poured the whiskey, walked it over, and handed it to me. I downed it in one go. The burn didn’t even register.
I scanned the room. Everyone looked like they’d been sitting here waiting for this... For me.
“So?” I asked. “What’s going on? Where’s Sarah?”
“You know where she is,” my father said calmly.
“That’s not enough,” I snapped. “Tell me. She’s my wife. I deserve to know where she is.”
My father looked tired. Resigned.
“Cullen, for the past year, you haven’t been treating her like your wife. Or giving her any of the things a wife deserves. So I don’t know why you keep clinging to that title. You don't.....”
“Because she is!” I shot back. “I married her. I have the certificate to prove it.”
My father swallowed hard. Then he said it.
“Sarah went back to her family.”
I blinked. “Why? I’m her husband. You didn’t tell me. You didn’t call. Why didn’t anybody call me?”
And then it suddenly clicked.... The meeting with Ronan Sullivan senior.....The timing....The setup.
“You told me to leave the hospital,” I said, my voice sharpening. “You sent me away so you could sneak her out.”
I stood, pointing straight at him.
“You planned it with the Sullivans. You planned to take her away from me...”
My voice rose—furious, panicked.
“You lied to me. You planned this!”
“Calm down,” my mother said gently, placing her hand on my shoulder. But I didn’t want to calm down. I couldn’t.
I hadn't even seen her move from my mother's side.
My breathing was ragged. My chest rose and fell like I’d just come out of a fight....because I had. I was angry. Furious. Betrayed.
“When is she coming back?” I asked, my voice sharp, raw. “When do I get to see her? When do I get to see my wife?”
I looked directly at my father, eyes blazing. Like I said before, I had never hated my father.
But in that moment...I did. I hated him with a fire I didn’t even know I was capable of.
How dare he do this to me? He’s the Don, yes. But Sarah is my wife. This—my marriage—is not his to control.
“That's not happening,” he said, voice cool, unreadable, “she’s not coming back.”
And that’s when I snapped.
“What the fuck do you mean she’s not coming back?”
My mother’s hand on my shoulder tightened, but it wasn’t enough to anchor me. I was seconds from erupting.
Then my father said it.
“Sarah is not your wife.”
I froze.... I stared at him like I hadn’t heard correctly.
“Excuse me?” I said, low and deadly. “What did you just say?”
He repeated it, louder, firmer.
“Sarah is no longer your wife.”
I laughed. A sharp, bitter sound. It cut through the tension like broken glass.
“I married her,” I said, stepping forward. “You were there. Everyone in this damn room was there. Do I need to remind you again that I have the marriage certificate to prove it?”
My eyes scanned the room—Cyrus, my mother, the consigliere.
“You all saw it. You all know it. She is mine... You can't take her from me.”
“She was,” my father corrected. “But your marriage is going to be annulled.”
“Annulled?” The word hit like a bullet.
“Yes,” my father said. “You heard me right the first time. Your marriage is going to be annulled.”
“Are you crazy?” I snapped, my voice rising with each syllable. “Can you hear yourself?”
I turned to my mother. “What the hell is happening? Mom?”
But she didn’t meet my eyes. She didn’t say a word. Instead, she placed her other hand on my other shoulder, now both of her hands were on me, almost like she was trying to pin me in place, to hold me down. As if she were afraid of what I might do next.
I looked around the room, Cyrus, the consigliere, even my father’s damn right hand. They all looked the same. Like they were bracing themselves. Like they knew this would break me.
So I swallowed, clenched my fists, and tried to hold back the wave rising inside me.
“Sarah is my wife,” I said again, slower this time, grounding every syllable in stone.
But my father didn’t budge.
“You never treated her like your wife,” he said.
My eyes narrowed but he continued,
“You never gave her the attention she deserved. You never respected her, Cullen. You broke every rule... in the Bible, in the house, in morality. You didn’t even know the girl.”
“That doesn’t matter,” I said, jaw clenched. “She’s still my wife.”
“You never consummated the marriage,” he added, his voice flat.
And that... that....hit a nerve.
“That’s none of your damn business.”
“Well, it became my business,” he fired back. “Because Sullivan, her father requested a meeting with me today. And in that meeting, he told me how poorly you treated her. He told me you never consummated the wedding. And since he doesn’t want his only daughter to die, he requested an annulment.”
I shook my head, disgusted. “So you agreed.”
“Yes,” my father said, unapologetically. “I agreed. I saw the way you treated that poor girl. I saw her spiral. Getting drunk. Falling apart. In the end, she nearly lost her life...”
He paused, his voice like steel.
“And I’m not going to start a war over a marriage you didn’t even care about.”
He looked me dead in the eyes.
“We’ve already signed the contract. It’s done.”
My world tilted.
\-
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