Page 14 of Claimed and Bred By the Bratva

My heart races as I scan the counter. My face wash, my moisturizer, and the special hair products I use for my braids are all arranged like they've always been here. I yank open a drawer—my makeup, organized better than I ever managed in my tiny bathroom. Another drawer reveals my hair tools. The medicine cabinet holds my vitamins, my prescription allergy medication, and even the specific brand of tampons I use.

"What the hell?"

I stumble back into the bedroom, towel clutched around me, to find Dimitri calmly getting dressed. He glances up at my expression and raises one dark brow. "Problem?"

"My stuff is in your bathroom."

"Ourbathroom," he corrects. "And yes."

"How—when—" I sputter, trying to form a coherent question. "My things were in my apartment last night."

"Not anymore." He buttons his shirt with methodical precision, watching me with those bronze-flecked eyes. "You said you're mine. This is what that means."

"I didn't mean—" I swallow hard. "We didn't… That was just pillow talk."

He's across the room before I can finish, crushing his mouth to mine in a kiss that steals every thought from my head. His hands tangle in my braids, tilting my head back to deepen the angle, and suddenly I'm pressed against the wall with his body caging me in.

"Say it," he growls against my lips. "Tell me who you belong to. And don't blame it on a fucking pillow. Because this is real and hear me well, there's no going back on it."

"Dimitri—"

His hand drops to where I'm already embarrassingly wet again, fingers finding my clit with devastating accuracy. "Say it, Amani. Let me hear those pretty lips tell me the truth."

"I'm yours," I gasp as he works me with expert precision. "I belong to you."

"Good girl."

Then he's lifting me, pressing me harder against the wall as he frees himself from his pants. The towel is long gone, and when he drives into me, I can only cling to his shoulders and hold on. This coupling is different from last night—harder, more possessive, like he's trying to brand himself onto my very soul. Each thrust pushes me up the wall, and I know I'll have bruises on my back, but I don't care.Can't carewhen he's hitting that spot inside me that makes stars explode behind my eyelids.

"Did you think I'd ever walk away from this?" He pants against my throat, teeth scraping over my pulse. "You're mine, Amani. You belong to me."

His hand slides between us to rest low on my belly, and his next words freeze my blood. "So will this, when it happens."

"What?" I gasp, but he's already moving again, driving thought from my mind.

Only after—after he's wrung two more orgasms from me, after he's filled me again with his release, after we're both breathing hard and tangled together on the bed—do his words fully register.

"About last night," I say carefully. "I'm not on the pill. We should probably use protection."

He props himself up on one elbow, studying me with an expression I can't read. "The only thing needing protection is you. And our baby, when she's here."

My mouth falls open. "Our—what? Dimitri, I'm twenty-one years old!"

"I'm aware." His hand returns to my stomach, palm warm and possessive. "I'm not some horny kid who got carried away, angel. The moment I saw you, I knew I wanted you. And I knew I wanted my baby growing inside you."

"That's insane," I whisper. "You can't just decide—"

"I told you last night," he interrupts calmly. "Asked if you'd like carrying my child. You screamed yes."

Heat floods my cheeks as the memory surfaces. "That was during—I wasn't thinking clearly!"

"You were thinking perfectly clearly." He leans down to kiss my belly, right where his hand rests. "Your body knows the truth even if your mind's still catching up."

"I'm a student," I protest weakly. "I have school, a job, a life—"

"You had a job," he corrects. "Your life is with me now. I'll allow you to continue school as long as you're safe and happy, but our family will always come first. For both of us."

The casual way he's rearranged my entire existence makes my head spin. "You can't just—"

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