Page 62 of The Bratva's Auctioned Bride
“Go on,” Jaroslav says, dangerously.
“At the club, I saw an attractive man.Thatattractive man. I didn’t actually know who he was at the time. He was just a stranger. I’ve never done anything like it before, but I was feeling trapped. I know it’s not an excuse, okay, I know that now. I put myself and my family in danger. But I saw a really attractive man, andI was the one who flirted with him.I seduced him. I went home with him. I didn’t know who he was, and I had no intention of seeing him again.“
“Jaroslav glances at Diomid. “Is this true? She came on to you?”
“Look, man, I wasn’t innocent in this either…”
“Did she meet you at a fucking bar, yes or no?”
“Yes,” Diomid says, pulling his mouth tight.
Jaroslav glares at me. “What happened after that?” he snarls.
“I was leaving Diomid’s penthouse in the early hours of the next morning, and that’s when I was kidnapped,” I sigh, hanging my head. But then I realize, there’s so much more to the story.
“He saved my life, you know. He’s the one who found me at the auction, and he didn’t hesitate to take on that entire place to rescue me. He could have died. But he didn’t stop to think about that. He literally saved my life. And then afterward, he took care of me. He was respectful, patient, genuine, and kind. What happened between us was consensual. I chose it. Not once did he ever put me in a situation that I wasn’t one hundred percent ok with. It was my choice, Jaroslav.”
The entire room is heavy with silence. Everyone is watching Jaroslav, except for two people. My eyes are on Diomid, and his eyes are on me.
Matvei walks close to my brother, speaking quietly, “Jaro, we can’t end an alliance over a consensual… uh… relationship.”
Jaroslav grinds his teeth together. He turns to Diomid. “Are you two in a relationship?” he demands.
“We… Um, we…” Diomid stammers, looking to me to answer.
“No,” I say. “No, we aren’t really in a relationship.” There’s no point in lying to cover a mess as big as this. It might have been less offensive to my brother if Diomid and I were dating in secret. But I’m done hiding the truth.
Jaroslav’s face twists with anger.
Matvei tries again to calm the tension. “Let’s call it a day, without making any big decisions. Tomorrow, or the next day, we can have a meeting to sort this out when everyone is calmer,” he says, his brows raised.
“If you want this alliance to stay intact, Diomid will marry my sister.”
“What?” I blurt out. “No, I won’t!”
He spins to glare at me. “Yes, Angelika, you will. Because you lied to me, you lied to your whole family, so you will marry the man you’ve been fucking behind our backs.”
Anger surges like wildfire in me. “You can’t force two people to get married when they’re not even in l…”
“I’ll do it.”
Diomid’s voice comes clear and calm over the panicked bubble of other voices in the room. It silences everyone.
My mouth hangs open in disbelief, my brows knotted, trying to figure out why he would so easily agree to marry me.
“Diomid, you don’t have to do this,” I stammer, almost whispering.
“I’ll do it,” he says again.
I shake my head, suddenly realizing what’s going on. He’s making the right choice to protect his family. To protect the businesses and the alliance. He’s not thinking for himself. But I can’t allow that. I won’t let my brother trap him in a marriage with me when he doesn’t have feelings for me. I don’t want that for him. Or for me. I want my husband to love me. I want something real. And sure… I would choose that with Diomid. But the feeling isn’t mutual, and I’ll forever be second-guessing his happiness, wondering if he’s drowning in regret.
“No,” I say, shaking my head. My voice quivers, shaking, as I try to swallow away my emotion and block off the tears stinging my eyes. I could easily imagine a life with him. Adventurous, full of laughter. A spontaneous, happy, sexy, wild, beautiful life. I find it so easily to feel things for him. I find it so easy to fall for him.
But the pain of knowing those feelings aren’t reciprocated would destroy me over time.
No.
I won’t let this happen.
