Page 10 of The Russian Pakhan's Forced Bride
Still, I glance at him with hope lingering in my chest.
“That’s it then, right?” I ask quietly, hoping for the chance to be set free as soon as possible. “You can get the marriage annulled and move past this mistake?”
Part of me expects him to give in right away and agree—maybe even to reassure me that he’ll get on it right away to make the process as painless as possible.
But his serious expression doesn’t waver.
“No…you’re staying.”
My stomach drops, and I freeze. “What?”
“You’re staying here until further notice,” Roman echoes, lacking any warmth in his voice. Regardless, he keeps his gaze resting on nothing in particular.
Another streak of fear moves through me, and it takes everything in my power not to break down then and there.
“…You can’t force me to stay here…not when you know I’m not the woman you were looking for.”
Everything in me wants to run and escape, but I have every reason to believe he’d catch me before I even had the chance to leave the living room.
His eyes harden further. “I can do as I please…I never intended to endanger someone innocent of my world, but now that you’re involved, I need to figure out how to handle this without getting you or my family hurt.”
As that panic spikes in my chest again, I shake my head in pure refusal. Everything about that idea makes my blood run cold. “I’m not part of this, Roman…I had nothing to do with it. As you said, I’m innocent.”
“And that’s exactly where my problem lies,” he utters, looking somewhat irritated with me, but more so with himself.“If you weren’t, then I’d already know what to do with you. But it’s too late now.”
I blink back at him, trying my hardest to understand what he’s talking about and how this situation could unfold for me.
“You’re acting like this is some kind of war strategy…”
“That’s because it is,” Roman counters, stormy eyes glaring back at me while he takes several steps forward. “I had a plan, and it backfired, and because of it, I need to tread lightly. You’re in my house, you know my name, and now you legally share it with me. You know more about this than you ever should have, which is why I can’t let you leave.”
My heart feels like it’s about to burst as I stare back at him in absolute disbelief.
It feels like such an easy fix…such a quick solution. But to him, I’m a liability now.
When I don’t say anything, he takes up another step, getting closer than I’d like him to be.
“Do you realize what that means for you? Having my name next to yours?”
Averting my gaze, I shake my head.
“No…of course you don’t,” Roman murmurs, vaguely softer than before. He sighs, almost like part of him might actually care about my safety.
I do everything in my power to try and meet his gaze, but it’s so intense…and as a newfound understanding trickles in, I find it harder to do so knowing what his intentions are. Knowing who he is.
“It doesn’t matter what it means,” I manage despite how tight my throat feels. “You made this mistake. You dragged meinto this all for your supposed plan, but it’s your mistake. So fix it.”
Seemingly caught by surprise from my subtle demand, his brow cocks, and he scoffs to himself.
“This is me trying,” Roman murmurs with a surprisingly gentle edge to his words. “You need to give me time.”
The way he speaks to me makes me feel like I’m some kind of wild animal prepared to bolt…which, in all fairness, isn’t far off. That’s exactly how I feel.
With the pressure of his intentions weighing on me, I can feel my thoughts splintering. That fear in me comes to life all over again.
Looking at him, I try to search for the right words—ones that will get my urgency across, or help him see that I can’t just be holed up somewhere because he says so.
But all of it chokes me up, and I swallow hard before forcing the words out. “You can’t keep me here…I have a life.”
