18. Luka
Chapter 18
Luka
“ Y ou ready for tomorrow?”
I look over at my dad, taking the glass of vodka he offers and giving a soft laugh. He knows I’m more than ready to marry Lara, and when he sees the look on my face, he raises his own glass and says, “Yeah, that’s what I thought. I felt the same way right before I married your mom.” He laughs and leans against the deck railing. “I’d just asked her to marry me the night before.” He gives another laugh and shrugs his shoulders. “When you know you know.”
“Like father, like son, I guess,” I tell him.
“Maybe Damien will show more restraint.” My dad looks over to where my younger brother is speeding out of the woods on a dirt bike, followed closely by Evgeny, and we both laugh and shake our heads.
“Not a chance in hell,” I say. “He’s doomed to share the Melnikov fate of falling hard and fast.”
“True enough,” my dad says, watching his youngest son race back into the woods after doing a quick turn that would’ve landed most guys on their ass. Damien took quickly to riding dirt bikes, and anytime we’re at the farmhouse, his ass is on the bike.
“Uh-oh,” my dad says, “prepare yourself. ”
I look up and see my four uncles headed over, each with a drink in hand. My Uncle Lev is holding an extra bottle in case we need refills. They sit in the deck chairs while I drop into the lounge chair closest to me and my dad takes the other. My Uncle Vitaly sighs and points his glass at me.
“Now would be the time where I give you the impressive and informative speech on how to please a woman,” he says while I groan and take a long drink, “but,” he adds, shaking his head at me in mock disappointment, “it’s obvious you’ve been an absolute heathen and have already gotten your fiancée pregnant. I’m going to assume you know what you’re doing and that you’re not shaming our family name with lackluster thrusting and poor stamina.”
“Jesus,” I groan and let out a whistle that gets Max’s attention. He pokes his head out the French doors, and when he sees me wave him over, he laughs and nods his head, letting me know he’ll be right out. A couple minutes later, he and Val come out with trays of food and more bottles of vodka.
“What is my dad doing now?” Val asks, taking the seat next to me and reaching for one of the loaded sub sandwiches that my Aunt Simona left for us. We had steak earlier, but that doesn’t stop everyone from reaching for more food.
“He’s giving me a sex talk,” I say, making Val and Max laugh.
“Little late for that,” Max says.
My Uncle Vitaly looks at my cousins. “You remember this. The Melnikov men are blessed with potent dicks. Fucking use protection unless you really want to be a daddy.”
“Noted,” Max says before taking a big bite, no doubt hoping that a mouthful of food will dissuade my uncle from asking him questions. As close as my cousins and I are, we’ve always respected each other’s privacy as far as sex goes. Maybe it’s because from an early age we’ve been taught to put our focus on the Bratva and getting us prepared to one day run it, or maybe it’s because we saw what was developing between Val and Yelena but knew instinctively that we needed to keep our mouths shut about it. Either way, I don’t butt into their business, and they’ve never butted into mine. I’ve never seen Max show any interest in anyone, though. Even in high school, he ignored the girls just like I did. We both recognized that they were fickle and untrustworthy. Neither one of us ever let our guard down long enough to get to know anyone, and Val has always only had eyes for the forbidden cousin he’s not supposed to want. Lara changed everything for me, though, and I have no doubt someone will come along and do the same to Max.
“Here he is,” my Uncle Vitaly says, waving Dominic over when he walks outside to join us. “Is that a bottle of wine?”
“It is,” Dominic says, holding a bottle in one hand and a wine glass in the other.
My Uncle Vitaly laughs. “You are such a fancy pants.”
Completely unfazed by the shit that my family constantly gives him, he takes one of the empty seats and pours himself a glass. Reaching into his pocket, he brings out a slip of paper and hands it to my Uncle Lev, who opens it and gives a big smile.
“Well, that’s just fucking cute,” my Uncle Lev says, holding up the piece of paper with Isabella’s hand traced onto it. Natalya’s written I love my grandpa in Russian with pink crayon. “I can’t believe she’s almost one.”
“Tell me about it,” Dominic says, taking another drink. “About time for another.”
My Uncle Lev laughs and clinks his glass against Dominic’s. “Finally, something we can agree on.”
My Uncle Danil raises his glass. “To the next generation of Melnikovs,” he says with a big grin when Dominic raises his brow even as he raises his glass.
“I’m assuming this is a toast to Luka’s baby since my daughter is an Alessi,” he says.
My uncles just laugh as Lev mutters a “Whatever you say,” before tossing back his drink.
“You should really know better by now,” my Uncle Matvey tells Dominic .
“It’s kind of cute that he keeps trying to fight it,” my Uncle Vitaly says.
“Fuckers,” Dominic mutters before taking another drink, most likely to keep his hand busy so he doesn’t reach over and punch one of them.
Sasha comes walking over to grab a sub before crashing down on the closest lounger. He looks around and says, “Aren’t there supposed to be strippers at a bachelor party? Shouldn’t you all be at Pink?”
“Fuck that,” I say, not having the slightest desire to see any other woman naked. “If I wanted to spend the night before getting married surrounded by a bunch of other naked women, then I’m guessing maybe I shouldn’t be getting married.”
“You make a good point,” he says and then laughs. “I’m never getting married, so I won’t have to worry about it.”
His dad laughs. “Yeah, we all said that, too.”
“I don’t see the point,” Sasha says, shrugging his shoulders.
Lev looks at his son. “The point is you fall in love, and the idea of her not having your name and your ring on her finger isn’t even a fucking option.”
Sasha thinks for a second while he chews and then shakes his head and meets his dad’s stare. “I think we both know that’s not going to be an issue for me.”
Everyone is quiet for a second before my Uncle Vitaly says, “Yeah, well just try not to kill any of the girls who catch your eye.”
We all know Sasha doesn’t think like the rest of us do, so even though the joke is just Vitaly’s way of lightening the mood, there’s no denying it’s a legitimate concern.
“None of them catch my eye,” he says, and for just a second he drops his guard and I see the dead look in his eyes, the detached look he gets when he’s trying like hell to understand an emotion that he knows nothing about.
“Goddamn, kid,” Vitaly groans, “just don’t kill any of them.”
Sasha grins, mask slipping back into place as he takes another bite while his dad groans and takes a long drink .
“Well on that cheery note,” my Uncle Matvey says, filling his glass and then handing off the bottle of vodka so we can all do the same before raising them in a toast. “To Luka and Lara and the amazing fucking future you’re stepping into.”
“Yeah, to my niece and nephew,” my Uncle Vitaly adds with a laugh as we all drink to my future.
“We’re not cousins,” I remind him.
“They’re not related by blood,” my Uncle Matvey agrees, “and it’s not like they grew up together as cousins.”
“Yeah, that’d be fucked up,” my Uncle Vitaly says with a laugh.
I chance a quick look at Val, but he’s not looking at anyone. He’s too focused on emptying his glass of vodka. When I look over at Max, he just lifts a brow and gives me a do something look.
Looking over at my dad, I ask, “Did you really marry Mom the day after you proposed?”
Just like I knew they would, my dad and uncles launch into a story about the day my parents got married, and pretty soon no one is thinking about cousins getting together. We sit around drinking and laughing until Evgeny, Niki, and Damien come in from riding and we’ve all had more alcohol than we probably should have. We’re sleeping at the farmhouse, and everyone else will be coming out tomorrow afternoon. Lara and I decided to have our wedding here, and my mom and aunts have been working tirelessly to get it all set up and ready to go. We hired a caterer, but my mom asked if she could do the flowers, and then my aunts and cousins joined in and they all decided they could handle the decorations as well. I have no doubt it’ll be beautiful, but all I care about is marrying Lara.
When we finally drag our asses inside, Dominic goes up to the room he and Natalya always use while my dad and uncles crash on the large sectional sofa in the living room, not even bothering to use the many bedrooms available.
“Don’t you dare try and spoon me,” I hear my Uncle Matvey growl right before the unmistakeable sound of my Uncle Vitaly’s laugh fills the room .
“That was one fucking time,” he says, “and I thought you were Katya.”
“I don’t give a fuck who you thought it was. Don’t grope me in my sleep.”
Vitaly laughs again. “No promises.”
“Jesus,” Max groans, “I should be filming this so I can laugh at them tomorrow about it.” He laughs and smacks my shoulder, walking past me and down the hall. “See you in the morning,” he calls out before disappearing into the closest bedroom.
I find Val in the kitchen, pouring himself another drink. When he raises the bottle and lifts a brow, I shake my head. I’ve got a good buzz going, but I have no desire to be hungover for my wedding. Lara deserves better than that.
Resting against the counter next to him, I stay quiet while he finishes his drink and then immediately pours another. Instead of downing this one, he sips it while staring out the window. After a few minutes, he says in a voice that’s so quiet I have to strain to hear him, “I envy you, man. You get to be with the woman you love.”
It’s the first time he’s ever spoken about his feelings for Yelena, but it’s obvious it’s been weighing on him for quite a while. Dragging a hand over the back of my neck, I watch him take another drink before he turns around, bracing his hands on the counter behind him, crossing one leg over the other, the movement just sluggish enough to hint at the alcohol he’s had.
“You will too, Val,” I tell him, but he just shakes his head at me.
“You heard my dad and Uncle Matvey out there. It’s fucked up. We were raised as cousins.”
“But you’re not related by blood.”
“It won’t matter to them,” he argues.
“It will.” I walk over to him and take the drink from his hand, tossing the vodka into the sink before he can finish it. He’s going to have a bad enough headache tomorrow. I grab him a bottle of water and a couple of aspirin. I shove both of them into his hand before leaning against the counter next to him .
I wait until he’s swallowing the aspirin before I say, “Whenever you decide you’re ready to say something, I’ll have your back when you do it.” I nudge his shoulder with mine. “And so will Max.”
“Fuck,” he groans, and then lets out a disbelieving laugh. “I never meant to fall for her.” He turns his head, meeting my eyes and giving a heavy sigh. “It wasn’t a choice I made. I never had a fucking choice. It’s just always been her. For as far back as I can remember, it’s always been her.”
“I’ll do everything I can to help you. Just say the word, man, you know that.”
He nods, knowing I mean every word of what I’m saying. Val is like a brother to me, and I’d do anything for him—take a bullet or run interference as he sneaks off with our cousin, whatever he needs, I’ll do it.
“I can’t believe you’re going to be a dad,” he says, giving another soft laugh, and I know he’s changing the subject, but I don’t care. He and Yelena will come out when the time is right. It’s not my decision to make, so I just smile and think about my baby, already so damn excited to meet the little guy or girl.
“I know. It’s crazy,” I agree because it is, but it’s also so fucking perfect.
“I’m happy for you. Lara’s perfect for you.” He smiles and nudges my shoulder with his. “Better be good to my cousin.”
“I will.” I laugh and scrub a hand over my face. “I still can’t believe she’s your cousin.”
“Same, and I also can’t believe my mom went through all that shit and I had no idea about it. There’s too many fucking secrets in this family.”
“Not anymore,” I say, and then add, “well, not as many,” because we both know his relationship with Yelena is a pretty big one.
“Progress,” he says, giving a soft laugh. “Old habits die hard. Maybe by the time your kids are grown, everything will be out in the open.”
I nudge his shoulder again. “By the time our kids are grown,” I tell him. “My kids are going to need cousins to play with.”
He nods but doesn’t say anything, and when Sasha and Damien come walking in, asking if anyone is up for a game of pool. Val and I take them up on it. It may not be the bachelor party that most men envision, but strippers were never my thing. I’d much rather hang out with my brother and cousins on my last night as an unmarried man. I’m more than ready to step into the role as Lara’s husband, and I’m already wishing we’d done away with this stupid tradition of spending the night apart, because the truth is I fucking miss her like crazy. She’d wanted to spend the night with her mom, though, and if I’ve learned anything, it’s that I can’t deny Lara a damn thing. That woman owns me, body and soul, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
The next afternoon, I’m buttoning up my dress shirt when my mom knocks on the door. She takes one look at me before her eyes start to water and she lets out a shaky breath, crossing the distance so she can give me a hug.
Lifting her head, she cups my face and says, “I can’t believe you’re getting married.” When she sees me struggle with the buttons at my wrist, she smiles and takes over.
“Have you seen Lara? Everyone’s been making damn sure I don’t get a peek of her before the wedding.”
My mom laughs and starts on my other wrist. “I have, and she looks so beautiful, Luka. She’s beaming, honey, just like you.”
I smile even bigger as she grabs my tux jacket and helps me into it, smoothing it out as she walks around me, making sure everything looks perfect.
“Thanks, Mom,” I tell her, and when she looks like she’s going to start crying again, I laugh and give her another hug. “Don’t start crying yet. We haven’t even started the wedding.”
“I know. I’ve been crying all morning,” she admits. “I’m just so happy for you.” She takes a deep breath to try and get herself under control and then pins a red rose to my jacket. “Perfect,” she whispers right before Damien and my dad walk in. Seeing all three of us in tuxes has her reaching for her phone as more tears start to fall. “I need a picture, lots of them.”
My dad stands in the middle, an arm around each son as we smile at my mom and she takes photos until my dad finally laughs and says, “Get your sweet ass over here, solnishka . It’s not a family photo without you.”
My mom laughs and steps into his arms. We squeeze in, taking selfies until we’re all laughing. We hired a professional photographer, but these are the kinds of photos we all prefer, the silly, candid ones, the same exact type of picture that I can’t wait to fill our apartment with.
“Okay, Son,” my dad says, wrapping an arm around my shoulders again, “let’s go get you married.”
My mom wraps my brother and me in a big hug before taking a few more quick photos of us. “Okay, I’m done,” she says, giving a soft laugh as she wipes away a few tears.
“No, you’re not,” my dad teases while wrapping his arms around her. “We haven’t even started the wedding ceremony, solnishka . No way are you done with photos or tears.”
“Yeah, who am I kidding,” my mom says, smiling up at my dad. “I’m going to be a mess all day.”
“A beautiful, perfect mess,” my dad corrects before kissing her. He cups her face and brushes away her tears. “Let’s go watch our son get married.”
She smiles even bigger and nods her head before my dad turns back to me and Damien. “I’ll see you out there.” He cups the back of my neck and pulls me in for a hug.
“Thanks for agreeing to walk Lara down the aisle, Dad. It means a lot to her, to both of us.”
“I’m happy to do it.” He pats my cheek, and if I didn’t know any better, I’d swear he’s getting teary-eyed like my mom. Before he gives into it, he shakes his head and smiles. “I used to be a pretty tough bastard,” he says with a laugh, “but then I met your mom and the next thing I know there’s a tiny baby in my arms and then your brother comes along and now I’m the kind of guy who cries at weddings. Jesus,” he groans while my mom laughs and wraps her arms around him.
“You’re still a tough bastard,” she tells him, and she’s not wrong. My dad is one brutal fucker when he needs to be, but like the rest of us, he turns soft when he’s with his family. I’m grateful that I haven’t been raised to see that as a weakness. It’s a strength. It’s what helps us do the things we need to do to keep our families safe, and it ensures that we always will. Family comes first. Always. Because without them, we’re nothing.
“We’re going to be late,” my brother warns us. He holds up his phone to show the string of clock emojis Val just sent him.
“Okay, best man,” I tell him, smacking him on the back. “Let’s do this.”
I walk out with them, and when my dad veers off to find Lara, I head out with my mom and brother. The yard has been completely transformed. I’d been worried about Lara getting too hot, so an enormous white tent is set up to shield us from the sun. Everywhere I look are flowers and fairy lights. My aunts and uncles take up the first few rows, along with Dominic and his two cousins, and the rest of the seats are filled with Bratva members. Evgeny escorts my mom to her seat in the very front right before Niki leads Chloe down the aisle. We didn’t divide the seating up, so Chloe takes the seat next to my Aunt Katya, giving her a big smile as she does so. Lara’s mom still has a long way to go, but she’s going to therapy and is determined to get better. Lara briefly thought about asking her mom to walk her down the aisle, but she was afraid that might trigger something and set her progress back, which is the last thing any of us wants, so she’d asked my dad instead, and he’d been more than happy to step into that role.
I go to take my place next to the officiant while my brother hangs back so he can walk down with Sveta. She’d been more than happy to say yes when Lara asked her to be her maid of honor. Yelena, Natalya, and Mia are her bridesmaids. I’d asked Val, Max, and Sasha to be my groomsmen, and when I see Damien and Sveta standing near the entrance to the tent, soft music starts to play as my heart races in my chest.
Damien takes his place right beside me while Val and Yelena walk down the aisle together. She grips the arm he holds out for her, and the smile on her face could light this whole tent up. I’d put them together on purpose. It’s my way of telling him that it’s going to happen, and that when it does, I’ll have his back throughout all of it.
I watch as Max and Natalya make their way down, smiling when Isabella sees her mom and gives a loud squeal in Dominic’s lap, and then Sasha and Mia are finishing out the line until there’s only one person missing.
My breath hitches and my heart skips a beat when I see my dad step out with Lara. She’s so beautiful. Her dress is strapless, showing off just enough skin to make my damn mouth water. After getting her tattoos, she’s become a lot more confident, no longer feeling the need to always cover up, and I’m so goddamn proud of her. She keeps her arm linked through my dad’s as he leads her down the aisle while keeping her eyes locked on mine.
Stopping before me, he turns to give her a hug and then kisses her cheek before taking her hand and putting it in mine. Our eyes meet, and I can see how proud my dad is and how much it means to him to be sharing this moment with us, and if I’m not careful, I’m going to end up crying like a damn baby.
Before I can break down, he takes his seat, and I put my focus on the woman in front of me. My love, my best friend, the woman carrying my baby—my whole fucking world is standing right in from of me, and I’ll be damned if I can remember a single word the officiant says.
My brother has to nudge me to give me the rings, and when I’m finally allowed to kiss my wife, I swear time fucking stands still as soon as my lips touch hers. Nothing else exists in this moment except us. The warmth of her body pressed against mine, the soft lips that drive me fucking crazy, and the soft little whimper she gives when I cup her face and deepen the kiss are all I care about. This woman is my entire world, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.