Page 78 of The Bratva's Arranged Virgin Bride
“Hmph. We’ll see, but don’t look at me like that. I want you to be right.”
Back at our new home, I was bursting with happiness and energy to explore all the grand rooms I was going to decorate. The place was huge, rivaling my father’s mansion, and like Kolya had said, hardly furnished. I couldn’t decide what theme I wanted to go with, or if I just wanted to go in a different direction in every room, but I knew every single wall was going to have at least one of my paintings.
The fire to create had returned. My depression was lifted, and my confidence was sure to come creeping back the more I worked. I was just about to head to my new studio to see what was up there, when Kolya had to sour my mood with a worried look he wasn’t quick enough to hide.
“What?” I asked. Everything went so well at lunch, but he seemed determined to stay under a cloud of negativity. “What now?”
“Nothing,” he said, too fast. “Go paint. I’ll join you and set up an easel after I make some calls.”
“Liar,” I accused. “Don’t you dare start. You’re worried about something. No more secrets, right?”
He took me in his arms, resting his chin on the top of my head. “Right. Okay, I was thinking about your father returning home soon. Not worried, just thinking about it.”
I wilted against him. There was no denying I was worried about it. My father might have agreed to the arranged marriage under duress, and when he thought it was strictly business, but now? When it was real, and I’d never leave Kolya? I was his now, and he’d never let me go.
He loosened his grip on me, and I tipped my head back to look into his eyes.
“He’s not going to be happy, is he?” he said, giving me no time to give a fake, reassuring answer. “What will you do if he remains opposed to us?”
I dropped my gaze, keeping my hands pressed against his chest as I thought about it. I saw what Mila had been going through since she refused to leave Arkadi, and what she was still going through after months of him trying to prove he wasn’t a threat or an enemy. She had to sneak around to meet my uncles’ wives in secret, and then was completely cut off at the first sign of a problem.
That problem being Kolya.
But still, as awful as that had to be, Mila made her choice, and it was clear she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Could I be that strong? Could I give up my beloved father? As tough and strict, and overbearing as he could be, he was my Papa, and he adored me. Even if I could give him up, could I bear to break his heart? I wasn’t sure my own heart could withstand the pain of losing him. Or Katie, or my uncles, or their wives, or my cousins. I might lose them all if I chose Kolya.
I looked up again, and the look of concern on his handsome face told me all I needed to know. He would never let that happen. He’d never give up showing them how right he was for me, and I’d never give up fighting if Papa did decide to dig in his heels. I reached up and traced the lines furrowing Kolya’s brow and then wrapped my arms around his neck.
“It doesn’t matter what my father says,” I told him. “I warned you once before that our marriage won’t end in divorce. Now that’s a promise.” I took a deep breath, ready to dive in with all my heart and soul. “I love you. There’s nothing I wouldn’t give up to be with you.”
Kolya’s hands slid around my waist, tugging me close, his dark eyes blazing with his own promises. “I’ll make sure you never have to give anything up,” he said.
Just like I knew he would.
