Chosen By A Sinner (The Sinners Series)

A pulsing ache in my head wakes me up. Feeling like roadkill, I let out a groan as a wave of nausea hits.

“Dear God,” I mumble.

Throwing the covers back, I almost fall out of the bed. Even my steps feel loud as I stumble to the bathroom.

Jesus, how much did I drink?

I can’t remember much of the night before.

I squint at the toilet, not sure whether I actually need it. I wait a good minute before deciding to brush the horrific taste from my mouth.

Still feeling awful, I shower, and keeping the water cool helps to clear my head a little. After I’ve dried my body, I wrap a towel around me and look in the mirror.

I look like death.

Something sparkles on my hand, and my eyes lower to the enormous diamond on my ring finger.

Wha…

I start to blink faster.

OH.

My breathing speeds up.

MY.

My legs go numb, and I brace myself on the counter with my free hand.

GOD.

Shocked out of my mind and struggling with the hangover from hell, I can only stare at the ring on my finger.

What did I do?

More importantly, who did I do it with?

Jesus, did I get married?

The pulsing ache in my head increases tenfold as I try to recall what happened last night, but the last I remember was Viktor leaving the club.

Rushing into the bedroom to get dressed so I can get to the bottom of what happened last night, I come to a sudden stop when I see Luca standing with two cups of coffee by the foot of the bed.

He’s dressed in a crisp blue suit, his eyes resting cautiously on me.

“Ahh…” My tongue darts out to wet my lips, and it has Luca holding one of the cups out to me. When I take the beverage from him, I ask, “What happened last night? I can’t remember anything after Viktor left.”

He takes a sip of his coffee, then my eyes widen at seeing the black band on his ring finger.

Mother of God.

Shocked prickles spread over every inch of my skin.

“The last I remember, I was having drinks with you,” he says.

My eyes dart to the ruffled sheets, then back to the ring on Luca’s finger.

Did we…?

“Did we…” I inhale deeper. “Did…?” My breaths come faster, then I gasp, “You and me?”

Reaching into his breast pocket, he removes a piece of paper and holds it out for me to take. I set the cup down on a table, my eyes jumping between Luca’s indifferent expression and the paper as I take it.

Opening the document, it’s to see both our names on a marriage certificate.

Oh, God.

Breathe.

My eyes dart back to Luca’s face, and my voice is nothing more than a shocked whisper. “We got married?”

With numb legs, I move to the side of the bed and sit down, staring at the marble tiles beneath my bare feet while clutching the towel with one hand and the marriage license with the other.

I got married to Luca Cotroni?

I don’t know how to feel or what to think.

Closing my eyes, I try to remember what happened, but there are only jumbled flashes of me laughing and Luca smiling.

“Are you okay?” Luca asks.

I shake my head. “I don’t remember any of it. How much did we drink?”

“A lot,” he mutters. He takes the certificate from my numb fingers and tucks it into his pocket. “Drink the coffee.”

The cup appears in my line of sight, and I force some of the warm liquid down.

If we got married, did we…?

“Did we have sex?” I ask.

“No.”

My eyes lift to his. “How do you know?”

“We were both dressed when I woke up,” he replies, then his eyes burn on mine. “Plus, you’d definitely still feel me inside you after I’ve fucked you.”

Jesus.

My eyebrows dart up at his confidence and arrogance.

Before I can comment on what he said, the bedroom door opens. “How was –”

My head snaps toward the doorway, and I watch as Viktor stops.

He looks from me to Luca, then back to me. “Tell me it’s not what it looks like.”

I let out a groan and press my free hand to my forehead.

“Luca,” Viktor snaps, his voice tight.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Luca says, then I groan, “It’s worse.”

“Worse?”

I get up from the bed to tell Viktor the news, but Luca steps partially in front of me. “We’re married.”

Jesus, I can’t believe it.

Is this really happening?

Viktor blinks a couple of times, then slowly tilts his head. “I don’t think I heard right. You’re married?” He gestures between Luca and me. “The two of you?”

“Yes,” Luca replies. “We got married while drunk.”

I expect Viktor to lose his shit, but instead, he bursts out laughing until he’s struggling to get air in.

“Seriously,” I mutter. “This isn’t funny.”

Viktor wipes a tear from his cheek, and shaking his head, he says, “Pack up. We’re going home.”

“What?” I gape at my so-called big brother. “We need to get this marriage annulled before we go home. My dad can’t know. He’ll kill Luca!”

“Just out of curiosity,” Viktor says, his eyes locking with Luca’s, “Just how drunk were the two of you?”

“Very,” Luca answers.

“I can’t remember shit,” I add.

Viktor keeps staring at Luca while my eyes bounce between the two men, then he turns around and leaves the room, saying, “Wheels up in one hour.”

“But we first have to get it annulled,” I yell after him.

“Get dressed, Mariya,” Luca orders before leaving the room.

I stare at the door as it shuts, trying to figure out whether I’m offended or turned on because Luca gave me an order.

Jesus, Mariya. Get dressed!

I drop the towel and quickly pull on underwear, a pair of jeans, a silk blouse, and my favorite Dolce and Gabanna heels.

When I brush my hair and tie it into a sleek ponytail, I pause as the realization hits again.

I’m married to Luca.

I hold my left hand in front of me, staring down at the diamond ring.

It’s pretty.

Shit, I can’t believe I got married to Luca.

Part of me wishes it was real. Under normal circumstances, this would be nothing short of a dream come true.

But there’s nothing normal about us having a wedding in Vegas while drunk out of our minds.

What will this mean for the business ties between our families? How will our parents react?

Dad’s going to lose his shit.

When I finger the platinum band, I notice the ring fits perfectly. Even drunk, Luca or I made sure they got the size right.

God only knows what I said in my drunken state.

Calm down. Even if you spilled your guts and admitted your feelings to him, he doesn’t remember.

After I’ve put on some makeup, so I don’t look as dead as I feel, I gather my stuff into my bag and drag the luggage to the living room.

There’s no sign of Viktor and Luca as I slump down on a couch, staring at the ring again.

I have no idea how to feel about this.

It doesn’t change anything. We were both drunk, so it didn’t mean a damn thing.

Luca’s still indifferent toward me.

We’ll get the marriage annulled and go on with our lives. Luca will marry the woman he’s interested in, and I’ll probably get drunk again.

But truth be told, it hurts knowing the only way I could get his ring on my finger was by him getting drunk.

I hear footsteps in the foyer, and lifting my head, it’s to see Viktor and Luca walk into the living room.

“Did you call your attorney?” I ask. “Can he get it annulled?”

Viktor shakes his head. “There’s no annulment until you’ve told your fathers. I’m not going over their heads with this.”

“But you’re the heads of the bratva and mafia,” I almost shriek.

Viktor pins me with a look or warning. “There’s a lot I’d do for you, but pissing off your father is not one of them. Let’s go.”

My eyes snap to Luca as I climb to my feet. “Can’t you do something?”

“Viktor is right. Let’s meet with our parents and take it from there.”

Gaping at the two men, I can only shake my head as I drag my luggage to the door. “It’s your funerals.”