Page 14 of Owned By Shadows

“You can’t come in the ladies with me, Bubby,” I state, rolling my eyes. I tug his hand, which gets him moving, Dima following us.

“No one will stop us,” Dima replies, and I stop, my eyes wide as I look at them.

“Us? As in, both of you are coming in with me?”

“Nik would chop my balls off and make me eat them if anything happened to you,zaya,” Dima replies, his voice matter-of-fact.

“Hunt would do the same to me,” Bubby adds, and I let go of his hand to throw mine up in the air.

“You’re all bloody cavemen, the lot of you!” I huff, but don’t stop them as they follow me into the ladies’ restroom, waiting right outside the bloody toilet door as I do my business.

I can’t be too mad though. Nothing can touch the happiness that has taken over my entire being.

Roman is alive, and in a few brief hours, I will see him again.

CHAPTER NINE

“I WAS MADE FOR LOVING’ YOU - FROM THE FALL GUY” BY YUNGBLUD

ROMAN

There was no way I could go back to sleep once Nik told me that Iris was on her way. On the one hand, I want to throttle the bloody woman. To travel all the way to Russia—and Dima confirmed she only had Bubby with her and not Hunt or my brother—is fucking madness. She’s six months pregnant, for fuck’s sake. Never mind, Sergi doesn’t seem like the type to give up, especially given the fact he ordered his son to shoot me.

Yes, I’m fucking livid with her, but I also just want to wrap my arms around her and hold her close until the end of our days.Fuck. Nik may have told me that the world would be a dark place without me—I’m still processing that and what it means—but without Iris, I know my world is shades of grey. Dull. Lifeless.

She is my sun, the star that I orbit around, and I need her like I need the air to breathe.

So, here I am, the sun breaking over the horizon as I watch the road through the forest that leads to this cabin.

“You really should be resting,Lev.” Nik sighs from his position on the large sofa next to me. For a safe house, it’s still pretty luxurious.

It’s a wooden house, but unlike any I’ve ever seen. The detailing is stunning, with fancy wood painted blue and carved details in bright orange. It’s spacious inside, open-plan downstairs, with a beautifully carved staircase which I believe leads to several bedrooms. I refused to go up to one, deciding to wait on the sofa that is in front of a bank of windows. Watching. Waiting.

“Would you be able to rest? Knowing that she’s so close?” I ask, not taking my eyes off the road as the sky lightens. He sighs once more.

“No.” The cushions shift next to me, and I swallow, because the heat from his body is just a breath away from mine. It’s a bit distracting, truth be told. “I bet you’ll listen to her when she gets here.”

I huff a laugh at the grumble in his tone, but also at the fact that I know he’s right. I will let Iris boss me around as much as she likes, so long as she joins me and I can feel her pressed against me.

I sit up at the sound of a car, headlights shining down the long driveway. My heart thrashes inside my chest, all other thoughts forgotten as it makes its way towards us. It’s the car we took here, so I know Dima is driving it and Iris is in there. Bubby too. I’ll need to have words with him about this, though I know how bloody stubborn our woman can be, so it’s no surprise the teenager folded so easily and decided Hunter’s wrath was better than Iris’s.

It feels like an age but also mere seconds before the car pulls up in front of the house, the back door swinging open before it’s even fully stopped.

“For fuck’s sake! She’s going to hurt herself,” I hear Nik hiss, but I’m already up and out of my seat, the pain in my shoulder forgotten as I rush to the door and wrench it open.

All the breath leaves my lungs at the sight of her, wide hazel eyes and cheeks flushed, staring at me as if I’m a dream.

“Ro!” The words leave her in a cry, and I’m down the few steps and gathering her in my uninjured arm before her knees buckle from underneath her. She clings to me, sobs making her entire frame shake as I hold her against me, breathing in her scent and proving to myself this is no dream.

“Fuck, you’re a sight for sore eyes, Princess,” I rasp, my throat thick and tears dripping down my cheeks.

“I–I never t–thought I’d see you a–again,” she stutters, pulling her face away from my chest to look into my eyes. Her eyes are red, her cheeks wet, but she’s never looked more beautiful.

“Come on, you know I could never leave you. My heart wouldn’t allow it. My soul will always fight to get back to you,” I tell her, lowering my face so my lips hover over hers. “I love you, Iris.”

“I love you, Roman,” she whispers back, our lips meeting in a kiss that speaks of the wonder of finding something you thought had been lost forever. Her lips tremble against mine, her fingers gripping my hoodie as if she’s worried I will disappear if she lets go.

“I’m not going anywhere, baby,” I murmur against her lips, diving back in and stroking the seam with my tongue. She opens for me, like a flower opening for the sun, and I waste no time in pillaging her mouth.

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