Chapter Thirty-Three
My cheeks are permanently stained pink. All day I”ve been walking funny. Everyone knows what I”ve been doing with the guys, and while I realize it”s perfectly natural, it”s still embarrassing to walk by their mother bowlegged. If they”re going to keep doing anal, they need to train me. I love the pinch of pain at the moment, but the next day? Not so much.
Mikhail sits at the dining table. He looks exhausted. We all do after the last few days. He sighs as I push my hand through his hair. I cradle his head to my chest, letting him soak up whatever he needs. Kaz and Dmitri look at us. I can tell they feel helpless.
”Just talk to her,” I tell him. ”She needs her father right now.”
”She doesn”t want me around, love. I”m a stranger to her.”
”No, you”re more than that. She”s just too scared to let you in.”
He shakes his head. ”I wouldn”t know what to say.”
”You want to know what my father told me after what happened to me?”
”What?”
”He told me it wasn”t my fault. That I had nothing to feel guilty over, even if society tells us we do. I know I felt guilty when I was sixteen. Maybe Lilianna is feeling the same way.”
The look in Mikhail”s eyes as they meet mine guts me. ”Does it really feel like that?”
I nod. For months, I worried about it. Did I wear the wrong clothes? How could I have been safer that night? Even though there was nothing I could have done. The real question society should be asking is why is everyone so okay with protecting men from the consequences of their actions? Why does everyone put this on the girl?
”Jesus,” he replies. ”I”ve never thought about that.”
I shrug. ”Women are used to it.”
”To what?”
”Suffering in silence.”
He pulls me down into his lap. ”Not anymore. Not for you and not for her. I”ll talk to her.”
Cradling his face and straddling his thighs, I press my lips to his. I feel Kaz touch my shoulder. I don”t know how to tell the three of them apart by a single touch, but I can. Kaz twists my chin towards him. Taking over the kiss where his brother left off. Much like Kaz, I feel Dmitri at my side. It”s only seconds before he”s stealing me away from Kaz.
”For three brothers who want to share a girl, you guys kinda suck at sharing.”
”We do not,” Kaz says. ”We”re just impatient.”
I roll my eyes at him. He grabs hold of my face hard. His hand covers my mouth.
”Did I just see you roll your eyes at me?”
”Maybe.”
”That”s three spankings.”
”Spankings?”
Kaz nods. ”Three.”
”If you”re a good girl from now on, I”ll forgo the belt.”
”I”ll try, but I make no promises.”
He leans in and kisses me. At the same time, I hear a faint knock at the door. Dmitri”s lips suck me in. His tongue invades my mouth. The only thing that could make this better is a round two of last night. But I doubt my poor asshole can handle it.
”Vivienne?”
Ripping my lips away, I turn to look at my mother. ”Mom? What are you doing here?”
”Your brother called. He told me you are in love. I just had to come see it for myself.”
I swallow, suddenly nervous. I want my mom to like Mikhail, Dmitri, and Kaz. But what if she feels the way Declan does? My stomach hurls at the thought.
She looks each of them up and down as I introduce them to her one by one. They turn on the charm with her, making her giggle. I don”t want to say I”m jealous of my mother, but I am. These three are mine. Mine. I earned them; they earned me. That means no one else.
”You okay?” Kaz whispers.
”Stop flirting with my mother,” I hiss.
Kaz laughs so loud he disrupts Mikhail”s and my mother”s conversation. I don”t even know what they were talking about.
”Don”t laugh at me,” I say. ”I”m serious.”
”Oh, sweetheart, you got to know we”re just doing it to get into her good graces.”
”Keep it up, and you won”t be in my good graces.”
Kaz”s face sobers. He clears his throat. ”We”ll give you ladies a moment alone. Babe, we”ll just be in Mikhail”s office reviewing some things.”
”Thank you.”
”Find us when you”re done,” Dmitri says as he kisses my cheek.
The three of them say goodbye to my mother before leaving the room. My mother and I sit in awkward silence for a moment. Even the house is quiet like it”s holding its breath and waiting for one of us to speak.
”So,” I start. ”What do you think of them?”
She looks at me, her green eyes unreadable. I can”t tell if she”s about to jump for joy or read me the riot act.
”They”re nice boys,” she finally says nonchalantly.
”That”s it? They”re nice?”
”What did you expect me to say?”
”I don”t know, but something more than that.”
”Um, okay, well, they”re also handsome.”
”Mom, just spit it out already. What don”t you like about them?”
She shrugs. ”There”s nothing not to like so far. As long as you”re happy, I”m happy, kiddo.”
”You don”t care that there”s three of them?”
Sympathy colors her face as she walks closer to me. ”Vivi, I”ve never cared about what sexuality my children were. Because I knew that no matter what, they would still be my children.”
”Okay?”
”The same goes for this. I don”t care how many men you need to make you happy, as long as they make you happy. And I can tell by the sparkle in your eyes that these men do.”
Tears start to well up. Relief seeps into my skin, my racing heart calming.
”They do. They really, really do.”
She wraps me in her arms. ”Then, that”s all that matters.”
My mother”s hug is so comforting. It”s precisely what I didn”t know I needed.
”Seriously?”
I hear the grumpy growl of my brother”s voice. Consider the bubble of comfort popped. Obliterated.
”What is it, Declan?” My mother asks.
”You were supposed to talk some sense to her. Not encourage her.”
”Declan Patrick, I”m disappointed in you,” my mother says, whirling around to look at him. ”You can kill people day in and day out, you can run drugs, and even run an entire criminal organization. Yet you can”t handle the little fact of your sister needing three dicks to be happy?”
”Oh my god,” I groan. ”Mom, don”t say the word dick. It”s so wrong.”
”Dick,” she deadpans. ”Dick. Dick. Dick. Dick.”
”Okay.” I toss my hands up. ”I”ll stay out of it.”
”Thank you.” Focusing on Declan again, she continues on her rant. ”It”s not affecting your life. There should be no reason why you”re so against this.”
”Dad would be turning over in his grave if he had one.”
”Don”t you dare,” I bark. ”Don”t bring Dad into this.”
”Your dad would”ve wanted your sister to be happy. No matter what that looks like. I suggest you do the same, or you”ll keep making enemies out of your own flesh and blood.”
Declan looks at me and takes a deep breath. ”I”m sorry, Vivienne. Mom is right. What makes you happy is none of my business.”
”Thank you,” I reply, crossing my arms over my chest.
I don”t believe my brother is sincere. He”s only doing this, so our mother doesn”t get angry at him. He”s been pissing her off a lot lately.
My guys storm the dining room. Smiles on every one of their faces.
”You”re our brother, now!” Kaz shouts.
”Don”t call me that,” Declan retorts.
Mama Volkov trails in after they do. Her face is tear-streaked, but she looks less fearful today. The guys immediately calm down as they notice her, not wanting to make her any jumpier than she already is.
”Yvonne?” My mother says, looking at Kaz”s mother. ”Yvonne Dumas?”
Mama Volkov”s head snaps up at the mention of what I can only assume is her maiden name.
”Francine,” Yvonne breathes. Her eyes are wide. ”What are you doing here?”
”Vivienne is my daughter. Are you their mother?”
”In a way, yes.”
Yvonne looks nervous to be standing in front of my mother right now.
”You two know each other?” I ask.
”Yes,” my mother says. ”We”re from the same province.”
”We used to be quite close,” Yvonne continues.
My mother nods. She”s looking at Yvonne in a way I”ve never seen her look at anyone before. Not even my dad. Whoever Kaz”s mother used to be to mine... it appears that relationship left a scar. An ugly one from the rigidness of my mother”s body.
”What happened?”
”Oh, you know,” Mama Volkov says. ”We were sent away from our homes to marry. Which means you lose your friends, too.”
”Yeah,” my mother says. ”We drifted apart. Happens to everyone.”
”Okay. Well, this is exciting,” Declan says. ”You two found each other again. You can be friends again.”
”Oh, I don”t know,” my mother shrugs. ”We”ll still be a country apart.”
”Right,” Yvonne says, clearing her throat. ”Bad idea.”
My mother winces slightly before she covers it up. ”At least we can see each other over the holidays. Would you prefer to visit Vegas, or for us to come here?”
Yvonne raises an eyebrow. ”Excuse me?”
”The kids, they”ll be in Vegas full-time. So I was just curious where you would prefer to have the get-togethers.”
Mama Volkov gives me a pointed look. I tap my mother on the shoulder.
”Mom?”
”What is it, Viv?”
”I’m moving to Russia,” I announce.
My brother”s face falls. As does my mother”s.
”We can come visit all the time,” Kaz says, holding me close. ”It”ll be like there is never a twelve-hour plane ride between us.”
”You”re not the one losing a kid,” My mother spits. She gives me a look. ”You”re really going to leave us? Vegas?”
I nod. ”I want to be with them, Mom. I don”t have much of a choice.”
Tears spill from her eyes. ”Right. That”s certainly true. Look, I”m going to go lie down. The trip was really long and tiring.”
”Of course,” Dmitri says. He speaks to a guard in Russian, getting him to escort my mother away.
Yvonne watches after her as she leaves the room. I can”t see Yvonne”s eyes to know what she”s feeling. But I think there was something more than friendship between my mother and Yvonne. Let”s just hope it stays in the past. It would be weird to be with stepsiblings, right? Even though we were together first.
I shake my clear of the thoughts. I”m letting my imagination run away with me.
”I”m going to go,” Yvonne says. ”I”ll be outside in the garden if anyone needs me.”
”The garden is buried under a lot of snow, Mama.”
”And?” she snaps. ”If you need me, I”ll be out there.”
”Weird,” Kaz whispers as she exits the room. ”That was weird, right?”
”Yep,” I reply. ”Really weird.”
Declan starts to laugh. ”It”s about to get weirder.”
I knew it. I knew it was all an act. He gives me a look. My stomach sinks, and I get the distinct impression I”m going to hate whatever is going to come out of his mouth next.
”Father left some final wishes with me,” he starts. ”One of them was that any man marrying into the family must take the McBride name.”
”What?” Shock and confusion roam through my body freely. ”Are you joking?”
”Afraid not,” he replies. ”You get married, they have to take your name.”
Taking a deep breath, I square my shoulders. ”We just won”t get married then.”
”The fuck?” Mikhail, Dmitri, and Kaz say together.
”We”re getting married,” Mikhail states. ”As soon as possible.”
”Okay, well, first, you didn”t even ask me,” I say. ”Second, did you guys not hear my father”s stupid rule? I can”t ask you three to do that for me.”
Giving up one”s family name is the highest disrespect you can show. The Volkovs can”t give theirs up. It”s protected and has run a country for the better part of a hundred years.
”We”ll give it up,” Kaz says.
I whip my head around. ”I can”t let you do that for me.”
”What if we hyphenate it?” Dmitri asks. ”Does your father”s will have anything against that?”
We all look at Declan. My face is pleading with him. Just let me have this. Please.
”Hyphenated is fine,” he grumbles.
Jumping into a hug with my men, I laugh. ”I can”t believe you would do that for me.”
”Don”t you get it by now, princess? We would do anything for you.”
Once upon a time, I was an angry and broken girl. If I saw that girl today, I wouldn’t even recognize her. That”s how much the Volkovs have changed my life. Everything is better with them in it. I may still have some jagged pieces, and so do they, but ours fit together like the perfect puzzle. Maybe it looks strange to the outside world, but it”s perfect for the four of us. It”s ours.
The End
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