Page 139 of Velvet Chains

“I hope so,” I whisper, blinking back sudden tears. “I just want her to know that she’s loved, that she’s strong, that she can face anything and come out the other side.”

“Just like her aunt,” Victor rumbles from behind me, startling me. I turn to find him watching me with warm, proud eyes, Yelisei now propped on his hip.

He draws me into his side, pressing a kiss to my temple. “You’re amazing, lyubov moya. With the bookstores, with your writing… with the way you love our family,” he says, his stare drilling right through me as if he’s laying everything bare.

I lean into him, breathless with tenderness and gratitude. “I couldn’t do any of it without you, muzh. You’re my strength, my heart.”

Yelisei chooses that moment to lunge from Victor’s arms into mine, peppering my face with sloppy kisses. “Mama, Mama!” he chirps. “I wanna write stories too!”

I laugh, snuggling him close and breathing in his sweet baby scent. “You can do anything you set your mind to, solnyshko. Anything at all.”

THE END