Chapter 33
Chapter Thirty-Three
Rayna
It’s been two days since Apollo fucked me, and I swear I can still feel him. The soreness isn’t painful, but it’s a constant reminder of what we did. Every step I take, a sensitive little jolt of awareness hits me between my thighs. I can’t decide if I love it or hate it.
It was good sex—great sex, even. Thinking about it makes me all kinds of worked up, so much so that I don’t even recognize myself. I’ve considered texting him to come over four different times. Me. Considering a booty call to a man who I claim I can’t stand.
Denial has never been more difficult.
And it’s all coming to an end tonight. In less than an hour, we’re telling Yordan. Apollo and I both agreed that he should be the first to know, especially since his father is already under the impression that we’ve been engaged for weeks now.
But now it’s real. So real that we have an agreement to sign.
The specifics of our contract have been playing on my mind since we hashed them out. The finalized stack of papers I’ll officially sign tonight represent a playbook for how my life will go from now on.
Orgasms, heirs, adoption…moving in together.
Rayna Todorov becoming Rayna Moretti.
Yordan becoming Yordan Moretti.
It’s all a lot to process, but I can’t find myself regretting or resenting it.
For the first time in a really long time, I feel like everything is going to be okay.
I’m not scared of living in the Moretti mansion.
I’m not scared of Apollo becoming my husband, and I’m certainly not scared of becoming a mom.
I might just be most excited about that.
“You need any more help before I go shower?” Yordan asks, leaning over the kitchen counter to snag a strawberry while I wash and prep them.
“Any more help?” I echo with a snicker. “You unloaded the dishwasher and took out the garbage. Doing your regular chores doesn’t really count as helping me out, brother of mine.”
He gasps, pretending to be offended. “Well, it’s not my fault I’m not allowed to help you cook. You hit me with towels when I get in your way.”
Rolling my eyes, I point my knife toward the strawberry in his hand. “That’s because you eat everything you touch. You’re no help at all.”
“I can’t help it that I’m a growing boy,” he protests, sporting a grin.
“Go shower.” I huff half-heartedly. “He’ll be here soon.”
“I’ll be quick,” he says, chomping into his berry. “Wouldn’t want to leave you two alone for too long. You might kill each other before I get my prime rib and potatoes.”
“I can still hit you with a towel,” I warn, watching his hands shoot up innocently. He backs away, watching me closely with a boyish smile, like I might run after him if he turns away.
Once he makes it to the stairs, he turns and rushes up them, leaving me to chuckle at his dramatics. After a few minutes of prepping strawberries for dessert, my phone buzzes on the counter.
Apollo
Let me in without alerting Yordan.
I frown at the message, confused. Wiping my hands on my waist apron, I head to the front door. My breath catches as I swing it open, struck by how handsome he looks. He’s always in a nice suit, but something about him seems different—more magnetic, even.
Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve seen him without the suit. I know what he looks like naked, and what he feels like inside me. Something tells me it’s going to be harder to ignore his good looks from now on.
“He’s in the shower,” I say by way of greeting. “You can come in without him seeing you, but why—”
I can’t get the rest of my question out before he’s inside, shutting and locking the door behind him. He takes my hand and tugs me back into the kitchen without a word, and I’m too bewildered to question him.
“I have something for you,” he tells me once we’ve stopped walking.
“Something Yordan can’t see?” I ask, eyebrows drawing in. “If this is a sex thing, now is definitely not the time.”
His eyes flash and his head tilts ever-so slightly. “My, my. Sex still on the brain days later, micina?”
“No,” I lie stubbornly. “I figured it was for you. I’m difficult to forget.”
“Yes, you are.”
Gulp.
“But this isn’t a sex gift, love,” he continues, reaching into his pants pocket. “It’s something much more wholesome, I promise.”
At the sight of a small black box, I hold my breath. Once he opens it, I nearly pass out. My knees go weak and my head swims.
Sat in a plush satin pillow is a giant round diamond, halo setting with what must be eight or more carats in mass. It’s crystal clear, polished, and fucking flawless. The kind of engagement ring you’d see on the ring of a literal princess or a billionaire’s wife.
Holy shit.
Eyes scanning my face, he doesn’t need to hear me react to see what he needs to know. “You like it, then?”
“Apollo, this ring…” I trail off, tongue feeling heavy. “This must have cost a fortune. It’s too much.” It’s too perfect. Huge, round, sparkly, and gorgeous—exactly what I would want in a fairytale dream.
“Sienna picked it out,” he says calmly. My whole chest feels like I’ve just been hit with a warm shock. He consulted her? “She said you would like it.”
“I love it,” I confess in a rasp, watching with wide eyes as he lifts my left hand and slides the ring into place. It fits perfectly. “I can’t believe you asked her. It’s beautiful, I just didn’t expect—”
“I told you that our marriage wouldn’t be cold,” he interrupts softly.
“We’ll come to care for each other, Rayna, no matter how we feel now.
We’ll share a child. We’ll share years and years together.
We’ll share a bed. I won’t look down at your hand ten years from now and feel ashamed that I didn’t put a ring deserving of you on it. ”
“O-okay.” I swallow hard, processing his declaration. “That makes sense, I guess. Thank you. It’s lovely. I’m kind of sad that I have to take it off until we tell him.”
Apollo smiles like I’ve just complimented him in some way, and I don’t know how to react to that. “Well,” he says, offering an amused look. “You could simply keep it on and break the news that way.”
“Tempting,” I drawl, reluctantly pulling off my ring and putting it in my pocket. “But we’ll tell him after he’s gotten half way into dinner. He’s excited about the prime rib, and I don’t know how he’ll react. If he’s mad, I want him to have had some before he storms off.”
“He won’t be mad.”
I bite my lip, hearing the certainty in his tone. “You think so?”
“He loves us both very much, Rayna. He won’t be mad. Confused, possibly wary and cautious, but not angry.”
“I hope so.” I wrap my arms around myself, contemplating. “He’ll probably be thrilled to move into your place. He spends most of his time there as it is.”
“You’ll get used to it too,” he replies like he’s read my mind.
“It’ll be crowded,” I counter softly. “The kitchen won’t be mine.”
Chuckling, Apollo reaches forward, resting a hand on the side of my neck. “We can build our own place on the property, if you’d like. We’ll have unexpected visitors barge in at all hours, and we’ll be a short walk from the main house…but the kitchen would be yours. And the space would be ours.”
“We can do that?” I ask, surprised. “You would do that?”
“Sure.” He lifts a shoulder like it’s no big deal. “Jade plans to do the same. There are plenty of acres to work with, and privacy would be desirable. I prefer peace and quiet, and that’s difficult with a house full of chaos.”
“Yeah,” I agree, feeling a smile tug at my lips. “Our own place would be nice. But we didn’t put it in the contract—”
“Consider it a wedding present,” he cuts in. “It doesn’t need to be a contractual condition. We’ll work on plans for it after the wedding.”
Noise coming from the stairs has his hand falling away and me taking a step back. There must be a nervous look on my face because Apollo discreetly squeezes my hand behind the counter. “It’ll be okay, micina. Just breathe.”
“Oh good, you’re here,” Yordan calls out, coming into the kitchen with still-damp hair. “Please tell me it’s time to eat now.”
“Yes, Yordan,” I reply with a huff. “It’s time to eat.”
Dinner starts as a quiet affair. My brother has been eating huge portions lately and devouring them like they’re an appetizer. He’s always been a food lover, but since starting to work out and training nearly everyday, he’s practically clearing out the fridge faster than I can stock it.
It seems I did a good job with the meat, both Apollo and Yordan tell me so.
I have to agree, it came out tender and flavorful, but I’ve only managed to take a few bites.
My appetite is suffering under the anticipation of what’s to come.
I’m not particularly afraid, but I’m nervous and the waiting only adds to my impatient anxiety.
After a while, I’ve had enough.
“Apollo and I are going to get married.”
Yordan chokes on his drink, coughing it down. I wince, wishing I would have paused for him to swallow before dropping the news so abruptly.
“What the fuck?” he rasps, eyes wide.
“Smooth, love,” Apollo comments, looking amused.
“You try to break that news casually,” I huff, crossing my arms. “I’ve been trying to say it for the past five minutes.”
“You two?” Yordan asks, gaping as he swings his gaze between us. “Since when are you two a thing? All you do is bicker! Have you been seeing each other behind my back? When?”
I hesitate. “That was so many questions at once.”
“We have not been dating behind your back,” Apollo replies diplomatically, choosing one question to answer at a time. “We share mutual life goals and have decided to enter into a marriage agreement.”
He makes it sound like a business deal.
Probably best to describe it to Yordan in that way, I admit silently.
My brother blinks. “Is this a prank?”
“When have I ever pulled a prank on you?” I ask incredulously. Pulling my ring out of my pocket, I slide it back into place and hold up my hand. “We’re not making a joke, Yordan.”