Page 43 of Captive Union
“None of this would be happening if you never kidnapped me in the first place,” I remind him.
“We would never be together in the first place if I didn’t take you to begin with,” he reminds me.
“Of course my brother is still looking for me. Why wouldn’t he be?”
“Is that what you want, huh?” He grips my arm gently. “Kira, if Maxim finds you, you’ll end up back in your same, boring life with a mother who’s too critical and controls your every move. Do you really want that?”
“No.” I lean in closer to him. “Of course not. In fact, I’m glad to have space from my mom. But I don’t have the choice to spend time with my other family members.”
“Because the only way you’ll get to spend time with them is if I’m dead. You do know that?”
“I thought you didn’t care if you lived or died. Why else take me in the first place unless you had a death wish?”
“Because I don’t want to die now!”
“Why not?”
Erik pauses, looking down at me with those dark eyes that peer into my very existence. “Because I have something to live for now,” he says softly, squeezing my arm.
I go quiet, taking in his statement. I’ve known since I got here that Erik desired me for me. He made that very clear. But hearing him speak like this, with so much vulnerability, makes me realize I could so easily fall in love with him. But I’m still conflicted.
“Erik,” I finally say, “You’re my husband now, which means I’m on your side. But I still miss my family, and I have the right to see them again. Let me talk to Maxim and convince him to stop hunting you. He’ll leave us alone, and we can be together, problem solved.”
A sad expression crosses his face. “You really believe Maxim will give up that easily just because you talk to him? His pride won’t let him stop until I’m dead.”
He’s right, and I hate that fact. “Still, there has to be a solution.”
“There is. I kill your brother.”
I gasp, moving away from him.
Erik nods like he expected my reaction. “And you’ll hate me for it, which will ruin our marriage. The only other solution is I die, and you get to be with your family again. There’s no way we make it out together, happy, with your family happy, too. There’s too much baggage.”
“Let me at least try,” I beg. “It won’t hurt if I try talking to Maxim. Please.”
“Fine. You can discuss it with him, and when he eventually says he’s still going to come after me, you can blame your disappointment on him. Not on me.”
A flash of hot anger flows through me. “Don’t talk down to me. If you want to make it a point that you’re so different from my family, then don’t treat me like I’m a little kid who needs to be taught what the world is like. Trust me; I understand how dangerous and disappointing it is.”
“You can use this burner phone to call him.” He tosses me a simple black phone, not even bothering to comment on my words. “Oh, and I got you this.” He leans into the car and comes out with a sketch pad in his hands. I grab it as he hands it over. “I thought you’d like it. I wanted you to feel more at home here.”
I stare at the sketch pad in my hands, fighting the urge to cry.
“I’m going inside to put some ice on my face,” he mutters. “You can stay out here if you want to.” As he walks past, he pauses, gripping my elbow. “And I do trust you, Kira. I just want you to be mine completely.” He lets go of my elbow and continues walking into the house.
I stand there, stunned. Erik can be such an enigma at times it makes my brain hurt.
I don’t waste time calling Maxim’s number. When I hear his voice on the other line, some of the tears I’ve been holding back come streaking down my face.
“Surprised you’d use the same cell,” he says. “Erik, I thought you’d be better than that.”
“It’s not Erik,” I whisper, sniffling.
A beat before Maxim asks, “Kira? Are you all right? You sound like you’re crying? Did he hurt you?”
“No.”Only my feelings.“Maxim, did you get into a fight with him?”
“It was his idea.”
