Unholy Tsar: A Dark Mafia Romance (Ruthless Dynasty Book 4)

Epilogue

Five months later…

“I can’t believe I’m taking this online class with the rest of them, Uncle Maksim,” Bree complains as I round up the lesson with an assignment for my nieces. “I started months ago. I should’ve graduated already.”

“You missed a few classes because of your blind dates,” I remind her, and she pouts. The other girls—my nieces—laugh and tease her in the frame.

“I don’t know why I had to do those… Dad didn’t approve of any of them anyway.” She rolls her eyes, but I know the real reason none of those blind dates went anywhere. And it wasn’t because of her dad. It was her. She was the one who vetoed them all.

And Nolan wasn’t about to force his little girl into a loveless marriage. No one in this family would. So, the search continues.

“Alright, girls. That’s the end of it. We’ll pick up where we left off next time.”

“Give Cece my love, Uncle Maksim,” Bree says, waving as she exits the Zoom call. The rest of the girls echo the sentiment, and I end the meeting just as Cecilia stretches out beside me.

I turn to watch her slowly stir awake with a small smile on my face. When her eyes blink open and those blue pearls settle on my face, my smile widens. She blinks and then grins back.

“I can’t get over how hot you look in those glasses.” She arches her back seductively, and I laugh.

“They’re anti–blue light lenses,” I remind her, taking them off. I started using them a few weeks ago because I noticed my eyes would start aching after a long time on my phone or laptop.

When I glance back at her, she’s pouting, “You should have let me play out my hot professor–student fantasy before taking them off.”

“You’ve already played out that fantasy,” I remind her.

“And it was good enough that I want to do it again.”

My cock stirs, and for a moment, I contemplate it; then I remember we’re still in the air.

“Later. Thanks to a certain sleeping beauty, we’re already behind schedule.” I press my thumb on the intercom next to the nightstand and buzz the pilot cabin. “You can land the plane now.”

“Yes, sir.”

“We’re here already? Don’t tell me we’ve been circling around in the air because—Maksim!”

“You were sleeping so soundly. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

She melts, melts, into the bed, her eyes softening. My cock immediately swells. Damn it.

“You’re so sweet to me.” She shifts closer and drops a soft kiss on my collarbone. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Solnyshko,” I murmur, wrapping my arms around her. It’s not long before the plane touches down. After we roll to a stop, I get up and start undoing my tie.

She looks up at me, confused. “What?”

“I’m going to need to blindfold you.”

Her confusion deepens. “You’re still not going to tell me where we’re going? Even after we’ve landed?”

“A surprise is a surprise, love. No half measures.”

“As if you’d ever do anything in half measures,” she grumbles, giving me her back. I drape the tie over her eyes and carefully knot it behind her head.

When I”m done, I wave my hand in front of her face, just to make sure. “How many fingers am I holding up?”

“How am I supposed to know? I can’t see shit through this fucking tweed tie of yours.”

I chuckle at her disgruntlement. “Do you trust me?”

“You know I do.”

“Good. Then trust me to guide you. You’ll be fine.”

She mutters under her breath, but I know she’s secretly excited. Wrapping my arm around her waist, I slowly lead her out of the master bedroom and down the steps of the private jet.

Three cars wait for us below. We take the middle one, and I help her into the backseat, fastening her seatbelt and pressing a soft kiss to her temple before shutting the door.

I join her, and we start moving.

Cecilia sighs. “Can you at least give me a hint? Is it beachy? Mountain–y? Dessert–y? What clothes did you even pack for me, Maksim?”

“You’ve been so good so far—so why don’t you just wait a little longer, and you’ll find out.”

She pouts playfully, and I can tell she’s probably rolling her eyes at me under the blindfold. I laugh again. I can’t wait to see her face when she realizes where we are.

The car slows as we approach the thick outer gates. Finally, we stop in front of my old palace.

Our new home.

“We’re here?” Her voice brims with excitement, and I can hardly hold back mine as I help her out of the car. “When can I take this blindfold off, Maksim?”

“Now,” I answer, already undoing the knot.

It takes a second for her eyes to adjust, but when they do, her jaw drops. “Oh my god, it’s beautiful—wait, this–this is your palace, isn’t it? We’re in Russia.” She spins to face me with wide eyes.

“Yes, baby. We’re in Russia.”

She squeals and turns to face the palace again. “You renovated it.”

“Of course. I had to.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s ours, and that means it has to be perfect.”

She stares at the stately home in awe before a conflicted look scrunches her brows. “What-what about everything that happened here… with your family.”

I make sure to look her directly in the eyes so she knows I mean every word I say.

“Family,” I scoff. “Vera and Viktor just happened to be related to me by blood. They were never my family. Not really. You are my family. You and the Kilpatricks.”

The tension melts from her face as I grab her hand and lead her inside. The graffiti has been scraped off, the walls repainted, the windows repaired, and the electricity rewired. The moment we step inside, Cecilia is stopped dead in her tracks by the giant chandelier hanging overhead.

“It’s amazing,” she gasps.

“Fit for a princess.”

Walking deeper into the palace, you could never tell it was home to so much bloodshed.

“It’s incredible…” Cecilia keeps repeating like she can’t quite believe it. Good. I want her life to be like a fairytale from now on. A constant state of disbelief at how amazing everything is.

When we reach the first landing, I turn to the next set of stairs.

“Aren’t we going to explore each floor?” she asks, subtly tugging toward the hallway.

“Later,” I assure her. “Right now, there’s something you need to see.” Our destination is the fifth floor. When we get there, I lead her to the master bedroom—our bedroom—she inhales sharply, but I don’t wait for her to admire it; there’s no time. Instead, I walk her through the double glass doors that lead to the balcony.

“Oh my god… Maksim. I-it’s…glorious,” she can hardly get her words out against the beauty that greets her eyes. Ahead, the orange sun is setting over snow-capped mountains. Everything shimmers in a soft gold light. I didn’t want her to miss this. It is glorious.

But my gaze remains on her. She’s the most beautiful view I have ever seen.

“Quite the view, isn’t it?”

We lean against the railings and watch the sunset in satisfied silence. Only when the sun is fully hidden behind the mountains does she stand up straight and look around the balcony.

That’s when she spots the string lights, the rose petals, and the beautifully arranged dining table for two. At the center is an ice bucket filled with champagne—though, the ice is already melting.

She gasps, her hands flying to her mouth as she takes everything in. Then she looks at me with a mixture of emotions—disbelief, hope, excitement, nervousness, and the most beautiful one, love.

“M–Maksim. What is this?” Her voice trembles a little.

I take her hand in mine and slowly get down on one knee. Her jaw drops and her beautiful eyes go wide. My heart swells.

“Solnyshko, in all my life, I have never met anyone quite like you. You brought warmth to what was once cold, softened what was hard, and filled my darkness with your light. With you, my world transformed from black and white into the most beautiful tapestry of color. You make me feel alive. Truly alive. I’d burn this world down for you, Cecilia. I’d build an empire. Anything just to see you look at me the way you are right now.”

“Maksim,” she whispers, tears spilling down her cheeks.

“Ya tebya lyublyu, Solnyshko. Promise me you’ll look at me like this forever, and I swear to make you the happiest woman alive.”

I reach into my pocket and pull out a little black box.

She nods rapidly. “Yes. Yes. Yes. I promise.”

When I open the box, the string lights reflect off the diamond ring, sparkling in Cecilia’s eyes like a shooting star.

“Your hand, my dear.”

“It’s so beautiful,” she whispers, turning her hand around for me. I remove the ring and slip it onto her finger. The main diamond is a rare orange, surrounded by tiny white stones in a rose gold setting.

It fits perfectly.

“Orange for Solnyshko?” she asks while admiring the ring from all angles, her eyes full of wonder.

“That’s right.”

“I love it. I love you. Ya tebya lyublyu, Maksim.”

I stand up, and she jumps on her tiptoes to kiss me. I kiss her back, deep and tender. Nothing’s ever felt more right in my entire life.

But as Cecilia wraps herself around me, a familiar feeling takes over. How could I not hold the girl of my dreams without getting a little aroused?

Well, maybe more than a little…

“Mr. Smolov!” Cecilia teases, noticing the bulge. “What is that?”

“A gift for you, Mrs. Smolov.”

“Mrs. Smolov?” she repeats, a massive smile growing on her lips. “I like the sound of that, but don”t we have to wait until after the wedding until it’s official?”

“I guess I can wait until tomorrow night to call you that.”

She gasps. “We’re getting married tomorrow?”

“I couldn’t wait another second.”

“What about—”

“They’re all here. The whole family. Our family.”

Cecilia throws herself into my arms, happy tears flowing down her cheeks. I hug her back, feeling a surge of happiness unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. In that moment, I know I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure this happiness lasts for the rest of our lives.

We’re never going to be alone again. Because she will always be in my heart, and I will always be in hers.

That’s love.

THE END