Chapter 21 - Artyom
Ninel and I stayed two days hidden away in the bunker before we returned home. I fucked her everywhere I could reach, and every time I did, it softened something in me that made my blood roar.
Outside the bedroom, she was fierce, stubborn…and fucking defiant. Yet, in the bedroom, beneath my touch…my mouth…my words…she surrendered wholly to me. That contradiction fucked with my head in a way that I'd become addicted to.
Ninel’s morning sickness had eased. Though I’d fucked her hard and unforgiving, I gave her the rest she needed, brief respites between my claiming of her. Not once was she allowed to wear clothing. Every inch of her was mine to see, taste and touch. And I made sure she knew it.
We ate together, took showers together, and fell asleep in each other’s arms like some twisted parody of a real married couple. Moments of normalcy, fleeting but fucking intoxicating.
As soon as I stepped through the front door, I received a call from Lev demanding a meeting.
Now I sat next to Yegor and Zahkar, facing Lev, Jaroslav, and Marten once more.
And I wasn’t hearing a damn word anyone said.
My lips tingled, and my fingers itched, at the memory of her under me.
My cock is so hard I wondered how the fuck I was going to walk to my car when this meeting was done.
Two uninterrupted days with Ninel wasn't enough.
I wanted more.
More days of being intimate with my wife.
More days of her falling asleep in my arms.
More days of her looking at me as though she understood me.
I wanted a real marriage.
But, what would that even look like? At age forty-two I had never had a real relationship. I'd fuck women, get my fill and never look back.
Could I be a man she could admire, or even tolerate, outside the bedroom? In the bedroom we were like a lock and a key. But, outside the bedroom? We were like fire and a fucking dry forest…disastrous.
Vera and Katya gushed over their husbands. I’d seen the longing in Nine, Kira and Mariya, the desperate hope to find husbands like Lev and Jaroslav. Somehow, they'd found a way to balance Bratva business and family life.
Could Ninel help me become something more than a manipulative, ruthless killer in a Bratva suit? Could I balance that and be a good husband and father? Could she really love me? In my entirety?
Nobody ever had.
But, I wanted her to, not because it was demanded of her because of Bratva tradition. I wanted her to willingly open up herself to me, to want me…as much as I wanted her, inside and outside the bedroom.
But, the only chance I had of getting that from her would be to settle the negotiations and stop waging war against her brothers.
Her desperate pleas to stop my revenge plan haunted me. If I stopped…would she choose to stay?
I exhaled slowly. There was only one way to find out.
“Yes,” I blurted out, ready to be done with this meeting.
“Yes? As in you'll give us total access to your information brokerage system, ten percent of your Bratva monthly drug revenues plus the pharmaceuticals we can't get access to and access to the smuggling route from New Jersey to Shanghai?” Lev asked suspiciously.
“Yes.”
“What's the catch?” Jaroslav asked icily, his grey eyes darkening.
I pressed my lips together. “There is none.”
“So, we are supposed to believe that you came into this meeting and without a fight readily agreed to our terms?” Marten asked, drumming his thick fingers on the table.
“You're getting what you want? Isn't that the point of the negotiation?” I asked flatly.
“We don't trust that it could be as easy as that,” Lev stated, venom dripping from his voice. “You don't exactly have a reliable track record.”
“And if this is some sort of twisted set up,” Jaroslav said, leaning in his face blank, tone dangerous. “I will forget that you're my wife's brother.”
“What the fuck, Jaroslav!” Yegor exploded, slamming his fist onto the desk as he jumped to his feet. “Artyom agreed to the negotiation.”
Jaroslav sprang to his feet as well, pressing his fingers down on the table.
As he leaned forward, his eyes bored into Yegor’s as he snarled, “Yes, and he also fucking agreed to the peace treaty!
Came into our fucking homes! Was around our fucking children!
Just so we'd let our guard down so he could kidnap Ninel! So, I have every fucking right to put a bullet through his skull if this negotiation in any way goes fucking south!”
“Enough!” I rose to my feet, Zahkar rising with me. “Lev, Yegor and Zahkar will stay and finalize documentation. Yegor, you will get it to the lawyer. Once he's seen it let me know and I'll sign.”
I didn't wait for Yegor to respond. I walked out of the conference room and headed to the parking lot. The only thing on my mind was getting home to my wife.
Forty minutes later, I passed Ruslan who sat in a chair outside our room. The lights were dimmed, and Ninel lay asleep under the covers. I leaned down, brushing my lips against hers. Her eyes fluttered open, and a soft smile curved her lips.
“Hi…” she whispered sleepily.
“Hey,” I murmured. “I want to take you out to dinner. Do you think you’ll be up for it?”
Her eyes brightened. “I’ll always be up for a chance to get dressed up, look super cute, and have a great time.”
A chuckle rumbled in my chest. Christ, this woman. “Can you be ready in an hour? Or do you need more time to rest?”
“I can be ready in an hour,” she said, pushing herself upright.
I kissed her again, harder this time, then pulled away before I lost myself in her. “Wait here. Let me run you a bath.”
She nodded, her lips parted like she wanted to say more, but she let me go.
In the bathroom, I filled the tub, the scent of soap rising with the steam. When I came back, I took Ninel’s hand and led her in. My fingers slid over her skin as I undressed her slowly, my gaze drinking in every line of her body.
She was slender, her waist delicate beneath my hands, her breasts full enough to curve gracefully against her frame.
The dark strip between her thighs was neatly trimmed, and a growl rumbled low in my chest before I could stop it.
She flushed beneath the intensity of my gaze, her nipples tightening into hard peaks.
I flicked one lightly with my finger, then caught her chin in my hand, tilting her face up to me.
“You’re beautiful, printsessa,” I murmured against her lips before crushing my lips to hers in a kiss that made her whimper when I finally pulled away.
I helped her into the water, watching her sink into its warmth.
“Tonight,” I said, huskily, “I’ll let you pick your own outfit…but…it must be short and you're not allowed to wear any underwear.”
She blushed.
“I’ll get ready in the guest room.”
I pressed one last kiss to her temple before walking away.
In the closet, I took what I needed and left the room.
“Ruslan, I'm taking Mrs. Rykov to dinner. Prepare security detail. We leave in an hour.”
“Yes, Boss.”
As I made my way to the guest bedroom my thoughts raced.
A meeting with my siblings was inevitable.
If I wanted a real marriage with Ninel, it only seemed fair to repair the damage I had caused between my siblings.
I kept my sisters at a distance and I broke my brothers with the whip. That was who my father made me.
For Ninel, I needed to change that part of my life.
I wouldn’t poison their memories with the truth of who our father and mother were, but I could own the man I’d become.
I owed them an apology, and more than that, I owed them change.
If I could learn to be a better brother, maybe, just maybe, I could learn how to be the kind of husband Ninel deserves.
Tonight I was going to show her all the things I could offer her and I hoped she'd want to stay forever with me by the time the night is through.
After I took a shower and got ready I waited until an hour had passed before making my way to our bedroom.
When I entered Ninel was sitting by the vanity trying to hook her necklace onto her neck. In a few strides I was behind her and quickly clasped it together. I watched as goosebumps ran along her neck under my touch and my cock lengthened.
“Thank you,” she whispered breathlessly.
The diamond on the necklace fell perfectly between her breasts.
I took her hand and gently pulled her to her feet.
The skirt she wore barely skimmed her thighs, teasing me with every inch of exposed skin.
The thin straps of her fitted top framed a neckline that plunged low, pale flesh of her breasts tempting me.
Her dark hair fell in loose waves, a stark against the porcelain of her skin, and the silver accessories at her throat and wrist drew attention to her gorgeous silver eyes.
Tonight she was wearing her wedding ring.
My hand slid under her skirt, brushing over her bare cunt, and I couldn’t help the slow smile that tugged at my lips. Her breath hitched, eyes closing as she pressed herself to me, and I teased her, savoring the shiver that ran through her.
“I didn’t think you’d obey me outside the bedroom,” I whispered against her ear. “Thank you.”
A soft moan slipped past her lips as she tried to speak.
After a few moments, I withdrew my hands, resting them on her waist, holding her steady until she met my eyes shyly.
“Do you think the dress is too skirt…given that I, um…” Her cheeks flamed.
“It's perfect,” I growled approvingly. “Now, are you done getting ready?”
She nodded, clutching her small bag. I took her hand in mine and led her to the garage. After opening the door for her and ensuring she had settled, I sank behind the wheel.
When we pulled out, two SUVs slid smoothly in front, two more falling in behind.
As I drove toward the restaurant, my hand slid onto Ninel’s thigh. She didn’t pull away. Instead, she covered my hand with hers.
“I’m getting you a car,” I said, glancing at her. “Tell me what you want. I’ll have it armored.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Why?”