would be okay, she told herself over and over. Max wasn’t like the other men she’d known. She could trust him. Of all the men she’d known, she trusted him more than any other. He wasn’t in this relationship for any business reasons, she told herself. What could he possibly gain from marrying her? He was much wealthier than her father and he seemed to desire her. Hadn’t he ignored several women’s advances at various functions, turned to her and smiled each time they tried to divert his attention?
They were at the front of the church and her father lifted the veil and kissed her gently on the cheek before handing Clarissa’s cold, shaking hand to Max who took it firmly, pulling her gently forward so she was standing next to him, facing the priest.
“Are you okay?” he whispered as the kind priest started the ceremony.
Clarissa looked up at him, saw the reassuring look and relaxed. “Yes,” she finally said, as much as for herself as for him.
“Good,” he replied. He then turned to the minister but pulled her hand more securely through his arm, placing his other hand on hers as if to reassure her.
The minister went through the ceremony but Clarissa only grasped half of it since it was in Italian. When the vows came though, the priest switched to English and, for the first time today, Clarissa was amused. Obviously, the man wanted to make sure she understood exactly what she was promising. “I do,” she finally replied in Italian, basking in the look of admiration in Max’s eyes when she did so.
Moments later, the priest declared them husband and wife and if Max hadn’t swooped in and kissed her passionately, she was sure the panic would have come back. As it was, he kissed her so thoroughly, the congregation was actually chuckling and clapping when it was over.
Max was un-phased by the applause but he escorted a red-faced Clarissa quickly down the aisle and out the door. She was surprised when she saw that the rest of the village had all turned out to see them leave the church. Everyone was dressed in their finest and tossing petals over their head as Max ushered Clarissa into a white, open carriage led by two beautiful white horses.
Everyone was invited to the villa for the reception which had tables overflowing with food and wine. The villagers were genuinely proud of who Max was and his success and they all wanted to greet his bride, show him how much they accepted her and, more specifically, tell Clarissa how lucky she was.
Clarissa didn’t feel lucky. She felt overwhelmed. Standing next to Max in his formal morning clothes and her in a silk, beaded gown, she felt as if everything were happening outside of her. She clung to Max’s side, unable to deal with all the people and her wedding vows at the same time. Max seemed to understand and hugged her close, sending people off to get her food, which she barely touched and wine, which she drank a little too much of.
After what felt like hours, it was finally time to leave and Clarissa couldn’t help but sigh heavily with relief. “I’ll go get changed,” she said as Sophia nodded in their direction.
She changed quickly into a white suit and headed down the stairs again. As many people as possible were crowded into the foyer, mostly women who were waiting for her to toss the bouquet. She was surprised as she looked out onto about fifty female faces, all of whom were eagerly waiting for her to toss the bouquet, hopefully in their direction. She looked down at the flowers with derision, and caught Max’s amused look as he stood at the doorway waiting for her. He knew exactly what she was thinking, Clarissa realized.
With a shrug, she turned around and tossed the flowers over her shoulder, laughing at the screams of excitement from the women who were frantically trying to grab for the flowers. She couldn’t believe that so many women were eager to enter into the marriage state, a state she had tried so hard to avoid.
Max walked over to the stairs and took her hand, leading her down the remaining steps. He thanked everyone for attending their wedding and all their good wishes but he was just as eager to leave as she was. The flower petals showered down as Max led her through the crowd and into the back of a limousine.
Clarissa dove in ahead