Page 38 of Deceptive Vows
“You’ve known me less than a week. What if…”
Just as I went to press my lips to hers, my phone chimed. It was the alarm system alerting me.
She startled and pulled away, putting distance between us.
Chilly disappointmentsettled in my gut. I’d tasted those lips once, and it was far too short. “I believe your sisters-in-law have arrived.”
I pulled my phone from my pocket and tapped the screen. I was right.
A sigh came from her. “Good. I desperately need a long, hot bath.”
While I needed a long, cold shower. “I’ll go get them so you can visit and they can deliver your items.” I turned to walk away.
“Nazar…”
I stopped. “Yes?”
She chewed her bottom lip. That was the first time I’d ever seen uncertainty in her. Silence stretched a moment, almost like she was trying to figure out what she wanted to say. “Thank you for letting me stay here.” She crossed the small space and pressed her lips to my cheek.
“You’re welcome.” I smiled as my skin flamed and the flush spread through my limbs.
I wouldn’t call it love—not yet. But I’d fallen. And somewhere between the fire and her kiss, I saw a life with her written across the horizon. She could be mine. If I could convince her.
Chapter Fourteen
THEA
A week after the fire,I was trying to piece my life back together. We hadn’t made official wedding plans yet, but with Thanksgiving behind us, I’d expected to start scheduling appointments—Sealed with a Kiss, the dress shop, the florist, the bakery. The show was supposed to go on, but it'd ground to a halt.
Instead, I spent the time making calls and traipsing all over Chicago with Claire and Anna, tackling one painful government process at a time. The sheer number of hoops I had to jump through just to replace my license could’ve qualified me for a circus.
Conveniently, I wasn’t tasked with replacing everything I owned right away. It was surprising the number of things stashed in drawers that I never even thought about—pain medicine, pens and pencils, phone charging cords—all the little things that were just there when I needed them. Sprinkled throughout the endless list making and shopping was turning off all my utilities and beginning the process of replacing my wardrobe.
Just as Claire, Anna, and I exited my favorite clothing boutique, a dark SUV pulled up next to the curb and slowed to a stop. When I’d told Nazar where I was, I didn’t expect him to show up outside the store, but I knew it was him before the door even cracked.
The excitement I felt at the prospect of seeing him should have set off an alarm. Instead, the moment his face came into view, I was already moving, drawn to him before I even realized it.
Seven days of living in Nazar's world had shifted something in mine. I’d gone from being completely content returning to an empty house to my heart skipping a beat at the thought of seeing him at the end of each day.
“Hello,lover.” I smiled.
The way his eyes brightened, and his lips curved up the moment our eyes locked, sent a delight through me that made my entire body warm. A dark blue vest covered his crisp white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, showing off his incredibly toned arms. Taut veins bulged as he flexed his fingers and held a hand out to me.
“Tyomnyyangel.” As soon as our hands touched, he pulled me flush against him. "I have missed you today.”
Butterflies stirred. The feeling was mutual. I’d missed him too. “You have?”
That first night, after the fire, had nearly ended with us kissing. Never in a million years would I have ever thought my sisters would rescue me, but they had. Another minute, and I’m sure we would've crossed a line that might have made everything even more complicated.
Perfect for me…His words from that night echoed in my head. The intensity in his eyes when he'd said it had startled me then, and the memory still sent a shiver down my spine.
We were in the middle of a game. A play. I shouldn't trust him or want to, but it was as if the logical, practical side of my brain was being heldhostage by the part that wanted more out of life than blood and darkness.
It was a ridiculous thing to consider. We’d known each other for just over a week. Even if I believed in love at first sight or fate or whatever magic thing might pull two people together, eight days wasn’t nearly long enough to really know someone.
And yet here I was, standing on the busy sidewalk, securely in his arms, feeling like I’d finally found something I hadn’t even realized I was missing.
Still, no matter how conscious I was of that fact, as I’d tried to get to sleep the night before, I found myself wondering what it’d be like to be in his arms, his mouth on mine, and forgetting that the world around me was on fire.
