Page 81 of The Bratva's Auctioned Bride
“Princess, remember a few nights ago at the bar, before we were interrupted, we spoke, very briefly, about the marriage thing?”
“Yes,” I nod slowly, trying to be patient instead of interrupting him and blurting out how it’s all fine, and we don’t have to talk about it, and I’ll just leave, and it’s all ok, and there aren’t any heart feelings.
Breathe, Angelika. Let him talk. He needs to talk.
Diomid clears his throat and lifts his chin higher. “We never spoke about it again, but I’ve been thinking about it constantly. I think about you constantly. When I lie in bed at night, the first thing when I wake up in the morning. You’re always on my mind.”
My heart flickers, confused. This isn’t how I expected the conversation to start.
He smiles and takes a slow breath. “Angelika, when your brother suggested we get married, I was literally over the moon with excitement. I thought,fuck, imagine thatJaroslav is trying to punish me, but he doesn’t realize he’s giving me exactly what I want…” he chuckles. “Is this coming out right?” he mutters to himself.
I shift a little closer to him, fidgeting, scared to jump to conclusions, but this is the opposite of what I expected to hear.
“What are you saying, Diomid?” I ask, getting agitated and impatient.
“Sorry, like I said, I’ve never done this before. Maybe if I start at the beginning, it will make more sense.”
“Ok, start at the beginning…” I huff, knotting my brows.
He ignores my snappy response and carries on.
“I’ve wanted you since the night we met. I pretended it was meaningless, because I didn’t understand what I was feeling. But I volunteered to look for you when you were kidnapped becauseIwanted to be the one to save you—and I wanted to see you again… and I wanted toprotectyou.” He shifts, rubbing his hands over his legs. “Then, when I had you in the safe house, I could have let you go home that same day. I didn’t have a real reason to keep you with me, but I made one up and convinced your brother it was better for you to stay with me, safer. And in Barbados… I never wanted that escape to end. Every time I have to walk away from you, it feels like a piece of me is being ripped out of my chest. Ifucking love you, Angelika.”
He looks up at me, the last few words blurted out of his mouth, and he looks stunned that he said it with such force. “Sorry,” he murmurs, smiling, shaking his head again. “I’m so bad at this.” He starts laughing, and while he squirms in discomfort, I realize I’m just staring at him, trying to process what he’s said.
“You made excuses to keep me around?” I say, summarizing. “You made excuses to spend more time with me because… because you love me?” When I say it, I sound skeptical. In disbelief.
He closes his eyes and moves closer to me, taking my hand and tracing his thumb over the back of my hand. His smile widens. “It’s crazy. It’s stupid. Maybe it’s meant to be, maybe it’s not. But I could never live with myself if I didn’t tell you this. With all my heart, with all my soul, with every piece of me—I love you, Angelika. And I want to spend my life with you.”
Suddenly, his words sink in and become real. I’m not dreaming. I’m not fantasizing about impossible things like I’ve done so many nights since I met him.
“You love me,” I giggle, sounding like a little girl, my cheeks turning pink, my throat catching tight around my words.
“Yes, and… I want to marry you.”
I swallow hard. “Diomid, I left here today because I didn’t want to get hurt…”
“I’ll never hurt you!” he interrupts, horrified I’d think that of him.
“Stop talking and just listen,” I laugh, squeezing his hand.
He nods, pressing his lips together.
“This morning, I mean, a while ago already, but this morning it really hit me—how I feel about you, and I didn’t know I had achoice. I thought we justcouldn’tbe together. So I left because it was easier than facing you turning me down or having to say an awkward goodbye to the man I am so madly, utterly, recklessly in love with.”
“Recklessly?” he laughs, his eyes glowing.
I nod. “Dangerously,” I add, grinning.
“Uncontrollably?” he reaches out and lifts me onto his lap, grabbing my hips and dragging me close with my legs straddling him.
“Wildly,” I say as he wraps his hand behind my head and pulls my lips onto his.
His kiss is more intense than I’ve ever felt, and I realize it’s because this time, I’m not afraid to actually feel it. To let the emotions surge instead of just the pleasure. I’m not holding back. I’m not trying to protect my heart.
Diomid groans and wraps his hands around my hips, grabbing at me with desperation, the kiss deepening, our bodies spiking with need.
His cock grows hard between my legs, and he pushes his tongue into my mouth as he tugs my t-shirt over my head.
