Page 96 of Arranged Marriage to the Brutal Bratva King
See why leaving him would destroy something that’s already been broken too many times.
“Friday night,” he says quietly. “I have a meeting with the Volkovs. I’ll be gone for several hours.”
My heart stops. The window the phone promised. The opportunity to take the drive.
“Okay,” I manage.
“Felix will be here. Security will be doubled.” His hand strokes down my spine. “You’ll be safe.”
Safe. The word tastes like ash.
He thinks he’s protecting me. Doesn’t know he’s giving me the rope to hang us both.
“Dimitri?”
“Yes?”
“If I ever hurt you…” I stop, throat tight. “If I made a mistake that damaged something between us, would you forgive me?”
He’s quiet for a long moment. “That depends on the mistake.”
“What if it was big?”
“Janice.” He tilts my face up, forcing eye contact. “Whatever you’re planning, whatever you’re afraid of—talk to me. Now. Before it’s too late.”
The moment stretches. This is my chance. Confess about the phone, the contact, the plan to steal his files. Throw myself on his mercy and hope understanding wins over fury.
“I’m not planning anything,” I whisper. “I’m just scared.”
“Of what?”
Of losing this. Of choosing wrong. Of the moment tomorrow when I have to decide who I am.
“Of how much I care,” I say instead. “It’s easier when I hate you.”
His expression softens fractionally. “I know.”
He pulls me closer, and I let him. Let myself have this moment of safety before tomorrow destroys it. Let myself pretend that understanding is the same as absolution.
Misha returns eventually, jumping onto the bed with her characteristic limp. She settles between us with offended dignity, as if we’ve personally inconvenienced her with our absence.
“She’s judging us,” I observe.
“She’s jealous. I was supposed to feed her an hour ago.”
“You should feed her.”
“Felix will have handled it. He has keys.” Dimitri strokes the kitten’s head, and she purrs despite her attitude. “She’s spoiled.”
“You spoil her.”
“I spoil everything I care about.” His eyes find mine. “It’s a weakness.”
We lie there in comfortable silence, Misha between us, the city glittering past curtains we forgot to close. This is domesticity I never expected—the killer and the woman he caged, finding peace in a moment stolen from violence.
Tomorrow comes anyway.
Chapter Twenty-Four - Dimitri
