The Bride He Hates-Chapter 17: Most Convincing Performance

Azrael walked Lyanna to the bed slowly. She sat on the edge of the bed. He stood before her, looking down at her like a predator with his glowing silver eyes.

He wants me broken. I won’t give him that.

Before he could speak or do anything, Lyanna stood up and looked straight into his eyes.

"I know what you want. You want me broken. You want me to beg. You want to see me destroyed."

Azrael raised his eyebrows slightly.

"And?"

"I won’t give you that. You won’t get the satisfaction you are hoping for. I’ll endure whatever you do, and I’ll survive it."

For a moment, he just stared at her. Then he laughed.

"You really are amazing." He said, shaking his head. "Even now, you’re looking for a way to win."

"What did you expect?"

"Tears, begging, and surrender." He walked closer.

"Then I’m disappointing you."

"No." He cupped her face, his thumb brushing her cheekbone. "You’re doing something far more interesting. You’re making me question what I actually want."

"The council is waiting." She said, because she didn’t know what else to say.

"Yes." He dropped his hand, turned away, and began pacing the room. "They’re waiting for the confirmation that this marriage has been consummated."

"Then do it. What are you waiting for?"

He turned to face her, looking torn.

"I won’t do this."

The words hung in the air between them.

"You... won’t?"

"No. I’ve done terrible things in four hundred years. I’ve killed, manipulated, and destroyed those who wronged me. I’ve been ruthless, cruel and cold.

But I have never forced myself on someone. And I’m not doing it now either, regardless of vampire tradition or my revenge."

Lyanna stared at him, trying to understand his words.

"But all those things you said about..."

"I said them to terrify you, to punish you psychologically." He replied. "I’m cruel, Lyanna. I married you for revenge, I’ve controlled every aspect of your life, and I’ve humiliated you publicly. But there’s a line I won’t cross. There are things I won’t do, no matter how much I hate someone."

"So all that talk about the consummation, about forcing me to respond..."

"Just psychological warfare. I would have kept threatening you right up until this moment, letting you believe it would happen, breaking you down mentally. That’s the kind of bastard I am. But when it comes to actually doing it?" He shook his head. "No. I won’t cross the line, ever."

"But the council..."

"Is waiting for our consummation, I know." He was completely calm, unlike Lyanna. "We’ll give them what they’re expecting to hear but without me actually touching you that way."

Lyanna felt something change inside her. She realized Azrael was cruel, and controlling but he had boundaries that he would never violate.

"You could have told me this from the beginning instead of terrifying me for hours."

He smiled unapologetically.

"What’s the fun in that? I said I have a line I won’t cross. I didn’t say I’m a good person, Lyanna. I still wanted you afraid. I still wanted you to suffer.

I’m still your captor. You’re still trapped in this marriage. I’ll still make your life difficult in a thousand ways. But not like this."

"So you’re a monster with standards?"

"Exactly." He smiled. "Now tell me, are you capable of helping me deceive the council, or should I come up with an alternative explanation for why my new wife is still untouched?"

Lyanna straightened herself.

"I can do that."

"As expected of you." He said. "The council knows vampire consummations take hours. "We’ll need to create a believable timeline. We’ll start slow."

"How do you know what they want to hear?" Lyanna asked.

"I’m four hundred years old. I’ve attended a lot of consummation ceremonies. I know exactly what the council is waiting to hear."

He walked towards the bed, testing how much noise it made when moved.

"This will creak well enough. I’ll create a rhythm with it." He glanced at her. "You’ll need to make sounds. Can you do that?"

"I can act."

"It’s more than acting. It needs to sound genuine." He walked around the room, adjusting things, creating the illusion of intimacy. "The council, particularly Helena, has centuries of experience. They’ll catch it immediately if there’s even a single mistake."

"Then tell me what to do."

For the next two hours, they became co-conspirators. Azrael moved the bed, so it creaked, his breathing grew heavier, filled with low sounds that could pass for pleasure.

Lyanna played her part by imitating soft gasps, quiet moans that slowly grew louder, and calling his name at carefully chosen intervals.

It was strange, awkward and weirdly intimate despite no actual touch. At one point, Azrael even coached her. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Louder now. We’re approaching the climax. Make it sound convincing."

"How am I supposed to know what convincing sounds like?" Lyanna hissed back. "I’ve never done this!"

He looked surprised.

"You’re untouched?"

"Yes." She whispered.

He laughed.

"Of course. I forgot you were a sheltered princess, preserved for a political marriage." His lips twitched. "Just think about the most intense pleasure you’ve ever felt and build from there."

"That’s not helpful!"

"Try your best. I’ll fill in the gaps."

The climax was loud, dramatic, and very convincing. The bed shook, they both cried out as if it were real, and then there was complete silence.

They collapsed on opposite sides of the bed, both breathless from the effortless performance.

"That was exhausting." Lyanna said.

"Welcome to the theatre." Azrael replied. He stood up, moved around the room, making final adjustments. "They’ll wait for about thirty minutes before checking on us. We need to look the part."

He pulled out a knife, cut his palm for the blood evidence, and stained the sheets. Then he messed up both their clothes and hair.

When he returned to the bed, he looked at her.

"We’ll need to appear intimate when they enter."

"How?"

"I’ll keep my hands to myself, but we need to look like we’ve consummated the marriage."

"Okay."

He lay down beside her and put his arm around her. She rested her head on his shoulder. They lay there in silence, waiting for the council to make their move.

Then someone knocked at the door.

"Your Majesties, the council wants to confirm the union."

Azrael’s arm tightened slightly around Lyanna.

"Enter." He replied.

The council members stepped inside, their sharp eyes noticing all details. The dishevelled bed, the blood on the sheets, the intimate position of the king and queen.

"The consummation is confirmed. The marriage is legitimate." Helena bowed. "Congratulations, Your Majesties."

When they left, and they were truly alone, the atmosphere in the room felt different. Azrael let go of her and moved to his side of the bed.

"Sleep, Lyanna. From tomorrow on, it’ll be difficult for you to sleep." He smirked.