Page 91 of Paved in Venom

Standing, he picks me up and kisses me like he’ll never be able to get enough. One hand cups my bare ass, and the other is wrapped around the nape of my neck so he can feel my pulse.

“You’re the only thing that’s ever made my brain feel calm,” he murmurs against my lips. “Usually it never shuts up, and it drives me fucking crazy—all this noise that never goes away. But when I’m with you, it quiets down. It feels peaceful.”

I cup his face and kiss him again. “I love you so much, and I know it’s a fucked-up thing to say, but I’m so glad I went to Romania. I’d go through hell if it meant I’d end up right where I’m at. I’d do anything and go through anything to be with you.”

“I’m just glad I found you when I did. I swear I’ll keep you safe. I won’t ever let any of them hurt you ever again.”

“I know you won’t.”

I smile when he starts to carry me to the bathroom, but instead of taking me into the shower like I’m expecting, he pulls something out from one of the drawers.

“It’s time, baby.”

“Time for what?” I ask.

He kisses me and holds up a box, letting me see what it is. It’s a pregnancy test, and the excited look on his face makes me laugh. I rest my hands on his stubbled cheeks, admiring how beautiful the ring looks on my finger before meeting his grey eyes.

“You want it to be positive?”

“More than anything in the world.”

I think about a baby, our baby, and I can’t help but smile at the image of a grey-eyed, dark-haired baby in Danil’s arms. God, he’s going to look sexy as hell holding our baby.

“Me too,” I whisper against his lips, giving him one more kiss before he sets me down and leaves to give me some privacy.

“Don’t read it without me,” he says, and I promise him that I won’t.

As soon as I’ve peed on the stick, I open the door and we wait together. He keeps his arms wrapped around me, stroking the bare skin of my back and ass, and as soon as two pink lines appear, he laughs and picks me up, kissing me until we’re both breathless.

“I’m so happy, baby.”

“I am too, Danil, happier than I ever thought possible.”

He sets me on the counter so he can lean down and kiss my stomach. His grey eyes are dark with lust when he looks up at me.

“God, you’re going to look sexy pregnant.”

I laugh and run my hands through his hair while he kisses all over my stomach, whispering in Russian to our baby. I look down at my fiancé, knowing how unbelievably lucky I am. Our baby is going to be surrounded in love, and I can’t wait to tell everyone our news. Danil and his brothers will keep fighting to bring Alina home, and I’ll do everything I can to help. This family won’t be complete until she’s back again. We all know this, but I’ve been through enough to know that nothing is guaranteed in life, and if you find happiness, you need to embrace it with everything you have and never let it go. And that’s exactly what I’m going to do.

Danil kisses me again before picking me up and carrying me to the shower. He holds me like he’ll never let me go, and I clutch him just as tightly, because there’s nowhere else I’d rather be. We may have had a painful beginning, but when I look at Danil’s beautiful face and the grey eyes that are filled with so much love, I know that every second of it was worth it, and I’d go through it all again in a heartbeat. I’d do anything for this man.

“I love you, sladkaya,” he whispers against my lips.

I smile and kiss my fiancé as he presses me against the tiled wall and slides into me again.

Epilogue

One Month Later

Simona

When Danil and I step off the elevator, the first thing that greets us is the wall of family photos, and every time I see them I grin like an idiot. Photos from our wedding mingle with Emily and Roman’s, and seeing all of our smiling faces makes me so damn happy.

“You looked so beautiful,” Danil says, looking at our favorite photo, the one where he’s holding me bridal style while everyone smiles at the camera—everyone but me. My face is glued to my husband’s, and I’m looking at him like he’s my entire world. He’d looked so damn handsome in that black tux. Why would I ever want to look away?

There are other photos of me dancing with his brothers, of me and Emily with our arms wrapped around one another and huge smiles on our faces. She’d helped me pick out my wedding dress and had made sure the rooftop terrace looked amazing. We’d decided to get married in the same place she and Roman had. It just seemed right, and I’m so glad we did. Every time I walk outside, I remember that day and how happy we’d been and how happy we still are.

Turning to Danil, I cup his face and pull him closer. “Do you have any idea how much I love you?” I whisper against his lips.

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