Page 26 of Cruel Russian Monster
Why?
She could've dropped the car at the compound with me in it. Even called Tomas after she left. But she didn't do either of those things. She stayed.
“Jaroslav…” she whispered in her sleep. “Please, don’t die.”
I exhaled slowly and pulled her closer to me.
Vera, what are you doing to me?
I wanted to hate the woman curled up beside me.
The one who betrayed me.
The one who said what we had meant nothing.
But, how could I?
She had saved my life. She took care of me when she didn't have to. She could've left, could've escaped, been halfway around the world by now.
But here she was, in my arms. A place I didn't think she'd ever be again.
And I hated it.
I hated how good she felt in my arms.
Hated how much I still felt for her.
Hated that she still had this hold on me.
I leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
“I’m not going to die, malishka,” I murmured. “Thank you…for saving me.”
Chapter 8 - Vera
Slowly, my body started to wake.
Why was I so tired?
My back and neck ached.
Did I run a damn triathlon and forget?
My eyelids felt heavy as I forced them open. That wasn't my ceiling. Where was I?
Then I remembered.
I wasn't at home, I was at Jaroslav's.
I didn't run a triathlon; I was in a shootout, and Jaroslav came in like the badass Bratva mafia man that he was, saving me from getting kidnapped and raped.
I sighed, closing my eyes.
He had gotten shot, and Tomas and I brought him back here.
The last thing I remembered was giving Jaroslav a sponge bath to keep his temperature down.
After Tomas and I brought him inside, the doctor arrived. He’d stitched Jaroslav up and assured us he’d be fine. He’d been given antibiotics, painkillers, and a prescription, which Tomas filled. Tomas stayed with me the entire two days Jaroslav was unconscious. He was still somewhere in this house.
