Page 57 of The Bratva's Forced Kidnapped Bride
“I’d like to meet this sister of yours,” he said.
I nodded, concentrating on the road, trying not to wonder if I’d get to see her at Christmas or if I’d still be considered a traitor by then.
I just drove away from Aleks’s house with no destination in mind, and we discussed where to go. The place in the desert was out since it was decimated after the Collective’s attack. Anatoli’s face needed mending, and I imagined he might be more injured than he was letting on, so as soon as we were a little bit south of LA, I pulled into the first anonymous motel off the highway.
Thankfully, I had some cash on me, and there was some more in the center console, so I was able to check in without handing over a credit card that could be tracked. The place wasn’t quite as seedy as the room in Mexico, and the room was cheerfully decorated, as if someone around twenty or thirty years ago had tried to fix it up.
I hurried around to help Anatoli out of the car and into the room, and he scoffed at me, waving away my outstretched arm. Then he gave me a long look and seemed to rethink his stance, all of a sudden acting like a giant baby and letting me heave his arm over my shoulder.
The motel office let me borrow their first aid kit, which was well stocked, and once I had Anatoli in the room, I pointed toward the bed and told him to get his shirt off. The lascivious look he gave me told me he couldn’t be too hurt.
The fresh bruise blooming under one eye pissed me off, and when I began feeling around in his hair, I found a welt thatwas crusty with old blood on the back of his head. His back was a mess of bruises where Dan and Aleks’s guys had been kneeling on him. I hissed angrily as I poured a generous amount of alcohol on a cloth to start cleaning him up.
“Now do you believe I’m on your side?” I asked. It had cut like a knife when he thought I’d come into the shed to torture him again.
He grimaced. “I admit I have trust issues where you’re concerned. It doesn’t change anything, though.”
“I always believed you’d find me,” I said, then realized he had a lot more reasons not to trust me. All these cuts and bruises I was now tending were nothing compared to what I’d done to him. I sucked in a breath and had to sit down hard on the bed beside him.
“I wanted to believe in you over your cousin,” he said. “I wanted it more than I ever wanted anything. But…”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, fighting tears. Remorse sucked; it sucked so much. It felt like I might not survive if he didn’t forgive me.
He turned, gripping my arms and waiting for me to look up at him. “I’m sorry, too,” he said.
“For what?” I asked, stunned at his clear gray eyes that wouldn’t let me look away.
“Kidnapping you, forcing you to marry me, threatening to torture you… I could probably go on.”
“Nothing I didn’t deserve,” I said.
He shook his head. “Don’t let me hear you say that again. I could say I deserved what I got for attacking your family.”
Now it was my turn to twist my head back and forth, with such force my hair slapped my cheeks. “No. Don’t you say it, either.” I leaned forward to rest my forehead on his shoulder. “I don’t think I can get past what I did.”
“You did your job, and damn well.” He tipped my chin up and smiled ruefully at me. “But I admit I’m happier with you on my side.”
“I am on your side,” I said, my heart starting to feel like it might burst. Would he really be able to let it all go?
“Why?’ he asked, his smile taking on a teasing tilt. “Why are you on my side?” When I grumbled, he leaned close, our noses brushing. “Go on and say it.”
“Because I’m yours,” I said.
“Damn straight. You’re all I need, too.”
“I guess that’s good since I’m all you’ve got.”
He shook his head, still smiling, but not as hard as I was. I felt a thousand pounds lighter. “We’ve still got Yury,” he said, reminding me of his pilot. “In fact, I should have him come pick up your sister’s car and leave it somewhere to throw off the trail.”
“It can wait,” I said, pulling myself close and sliding my hands over his shoulders. “Don’t you think? For a few minutes?”
His lips brushed against mine, his warm breath tickling my cheek. His fingers tightened on my arms. “How about a bit longer than a few minutes.”
I opened my mouth to his kiss, not just eager but ravenous. He’d been teasing me for a week, bringing me to the highest heights, but still believing I needed more recovery time from my injuries before he’d give me what I really craved. Our tongues tangled together, my blood racing and hands roaming,and when I pressed hard against his chest to feel his heart thudding as wildly as mine, I stopped and pulled back.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” I asked. “You should probably rest.”
The concern was real, but the mischief was stronger. He saw right through me and yanked me onto his lap. “What do you think?” he growled.
