Chapter 34
CHAPTER 34
KOSTYA
T hey could handle the war plans. I had something more important to take care of.
Marina.
She was still sleeping upstairs, soft and warm in my bed, and I couldn’t let her wake up alone. She was going to wake up in a strange house, in a strange bed, wearing nothing but her sweater and those delicate lace panties that had already tested every shred of my restraint.
And she would have no idea where she was. No idea who had carried her here.
She had been through too much. Survived too much.
I refused to let fear be the first thing she felt when her eyes opened.
No, she was going to wake up to me.
To my touch, my voice—she was going to know she was safe before any doubt could creep in.
I told the others I was getting some rest, that I needed to be ready for when it was time to go on the offensive. They nodded, barely sparing me a glance. Let them believe whatever they wanted.
My fight wasn’t down here.
It was upstairs, in the shape of a woman who had already branded herself into my bones.
And I wasn’t letting her go.
Pavel gave me a hard look for a moment, like he could see through my excuse, but nodded.
Artem and Gregor didn’t even look up from their current standoff.
At least this time, they were working toward the same outcome.
I snuck back upstairs to Marina.
She was exactly as I left her, fast asleep under a thick down comforter.
The only light in the room was from a single beam of moonlight that shone across her sleeping form. Illuminating her already beautiful face, seeming to glow like an angel. Her silky hair spread out in a halo on the goose down pillow.
She looked so calm, peaceful even.
I’d sent a prayer of thanks to a God I rarely acknowledged, when the doctor had looked her over and confirmed she had not suffered any harm from the accident. It was a damn miracle. My girl had been smart and made sure she was seat belted.
Marina deserved to sleep like this every single night. The deep, uninterrupted sleep of a woman who was well-loved and safe.
The temptation to crawl in next to her was too much, and I was done fighting it .
With a quick tug, I pulled off my cashmere sweater and undid my leather belt, kicking my jeans off with my shoes and leaving all the clothes crumpled in a heap on the floor.
Downstairs, my brothers and cousins were working out the specifics of the hit, putting the pieces together and learning about Oleg’s true target. They had a few days’ head start, but it was still only a matter of time before Solovyov learned of his hitman’s blunder and demise.
Solovyov would want someone to answer for Oleg’s death, and more than that he would simply hire a new man to take his place.
The death of a hitman did not cancel the hit.
If anything, Solovyov would take a more aggressive stance and start arranging countermoves. He would increase the payment for the hit and then expand it from a single target to others, eliminating them to prevent collateral damage to his organization. Solovyov was smart enough to realize he needed a show of strength and to tie off any possible loose ends. That included Marina.
That meant not only was she still a target, but it was also only a matter of time before the price on her head increased exponentially.
There was no fucking way I was ever going to let anyone near her again.
I made a promise to Veronika on her deathbed to protect her sister, but more than that, Marina was important to me. Not just because of the promises I made Veronika, but because Marina was what I wanted. She was the future that I would die for.
I loved her. It was that simple. I’d always loved her .
My path was clear.
I had to do anything in my power to keep her safe, and that meant giving her my name.
In my world, no man would dare kill a mafia rival’s wife.
That wasn’t just a declaration of war, it was a very complicated suicide mission. If someone went after Marina and she carried my name, not only would I have every right to kill them, but so would my brothers, my cousins, and every other man who carried our name or worked for someone who did.
More than that, with Gregor, Damien, and Mikhail also married, we would make an example of that man. His death would be so gruesome, so painful, it would strike fear into the hearts of any man who dared stand against the Ivanov clan.
Veronika was the sole exception to that rule, and only because of her own actions.
Had she been faithful, had she treated our arrangement like a marriage, she would have been safe.
But by openly violating the sanctity of our marriage, she made herself fair game.
She was no longer considered my wife or under my protection.
If anything, she was under Solovyov’s protection.
Veronika had made her choice, and she had died from the consequences.
Marina would not have those same choices.
I would not allow her to sleep in another man’s bed.
I would not allow her to live separately from me.
No, Marina would be my wife in all ways .
It would keep her safe, and in my bed where she belonged.
I sat on the edge of the bed and she rolled to her side, like she was unconsciously making room for me. I slid in next to her under the blankets and held her close to me.
Her lips parted with a soft moan, and she pressed back into my body.
My heart raced, but I felt calm, at peace.
When Veronika died, frustration hit hard. This failure gutted me more than anything that ever went wrong in my marriage.
It was nothing like the fear and fury that tore through me when Marina was dragged out of my hotel room. It couldn’t even graze the raw terror that gripped my chest as I watched the car flip, sparks flying, with her still trapped inside.
And it certainly didn’t compare to the guilt that hardened in my gut at knowing she went through all of this because I hadn’t protected her .
That would never happen again.
She was going to be safe and warm in my arms like this every single night.
The way her body melted into mine told me she needed this as much as I did.
She knew at least instinctively that the best way to keep herself safe was to stay in my arms. That was why even in a deep sleep she searched for me, moved to me.
My breath burned in my chest as her delicate, plump lips remained parted and her breathing picked up. Her chest was rising in quick, shallow pants and a blush of pink glowed across the tops of her cheeks then down her delicate neck, disappearing under her soft sweater.
I moved my hand to the flat of her stomach, slipping under her sweater to the warmth of her soft skin. As my palm rose and fell with her breathing, it settled something inside of me that hadn’t released since she was taken from me.
Feeling the life within her—her soft breaths fluttering over me, the subtle beating of her heart—calmed me.
I pushed deeper under the covers, surrounded her body with my own, and let her push her back against my chest.
My fingers stayed light on her skin as I slid them up her body to cup her generous breasts, my middle and ring fingers pressing between them just to feel her heart continue to beat strong and steady.
I would never tire of feeling that steady beat against my fingers.
As my thumb ghosted across her nipple, the bud tightened; her breath shuddered, and her heartbeat jumped.
Even in sleep, her body responded to mine.
I buried my face in her hair and inhaled deeply, my cold soul taking comfort from the warmth of her skin. This woman was heaven.
I didn’t deserve her, but she was mine, nonetheless.
She let out another soft sigh as her thighs rubbed together, and I knew what she needed.
Just like I knew I would be the only man to ever meet those needs again, which I intended to do every single night.
My hand slipped down her body, caressing lightly over her soft skin to the delicate lace covering her core. Still deep in sleep, her thighs parted for me, and I let two fingers slide under her panties to her wet, needy slit.
She arched her back into me and even though her eyes stayed closed, her lips parted even more, seeming to beg for a kiss.
I would give her that.
I would give her so much more soon.
But first, I wanted to know how much pleasure I could give moy zaichonok before she woke up.
With my touch as light as possible, I parted her delicate lips with two fingers and circled her clit with my middle finger. Holding the rest of my hand perfectly still, just moving a single finger over the tight bundle of nerves.
Her eyes scrunched as she turned to lie on her back and her thighs spread even wider for me, begging me for more.
Her hips lifted in invitation, and I couldn’t ignore their siren call any longer.
After all, I had already decided. She was going to be mine in every way.
The easiest way to get her to agree was to show her what her life as my bride was going to entail.
As gently as I could, I moved over her, lowering my body under the covers until my chest was resting on the bed between her thighs. The warmth radiating from her pussy was so intense I could feel it through her panties, the damp heat calling to me.
I placed my lips on her stomach and kissed the delicate skin just above her belly button, then moved up her body, lifting her sweater as I went. When I pulled it up, exposing the matching lace bra, I couldn’t help the low growl that sounded from my lips.
Her head turned from side to side and her legs pressed to the sides of my hips, but still her eyes didn’t open.
It wasn’t until I pulled down the cup of her bra, exposing her cute pink nipple and then covering it with my lips while I slid my fingers into her cunt, that her eyes opened with my name on her lips.
“Kostya,” she moaned, and I almost came apart for her right there.