Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 53693 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 268(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53693 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 268(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
A scream disrupts our corner of paradise, and I pull away from him with a horrified look on my face. He releases my legs so I can stand upright and at least maintain some small shred of dignity. The damage is done, though.
What’s worse, I know that scream, the high pitch that is too loud for this small space. Of course, she came looking for me. I’m not surprised in the least. If anything, I’m terrified. My oasis has been ruined, and now reality is crashing in. My mother looks at me with disdain and disgust.
She screams at me, Russian curses falling off her lips. She calls me every name in the book, a prostitute, a whore, a dirty street dog. I’ve never heard my mother use so many swear words around me, and I stand there shaking as her diatribe against me continues. This isn’t good.
She screams in Russian about how she and my father have given me everything I’ve ever asked for and I shouldn’t repay their kindness by sleeping around with dirty men. Ivan doesn’t shrink back from her words, but I feel about twelve inches tall. I’m a child again, not the woman I’ve grown into. And she’s right, of course. I shouldn’t have done this.
This isn’t who she raised me to be, even if I do resent her for that. She spent years drilling into me the importance of being the perfect woman and the perfect bride. The perfect bride does not make out with another man on her wedding day. She doesn’t have sexual fantasies about him while he kisses her senseless in her wedding dress. She doesn’t ruin everything her parents have worked so hard to build.
I think of my papa, who has been talking about nothing but this wedding for months. He’s going to be so angry with me. I don’t know what he’ll do. I love him dearly, but sometimes he scares me. He has a streak of anger I’ve seen on rare occasions, and I’m certain he’s capable of murder.
Mama turns on her heel, calling for my father in a frantic voice. My stomach drops because I know the worst is yet to come. When Papa arrives, I’m dead. Ivan is dead. And the worst part is I’ll still be forced to marry Niko, given he forgives my horrific indiscretion. After we say “I do,” it’ll be up to him to choose the best way to punish me.
I shudder to think of it.
What was I thinking? This whole situation is so unlike me. It was one thing to run to the bathroom and indulge in a private moment of panic, but I’ve never even looked at another man, knowing that it was pointless. I’ve known for three years that I would have to marry Niko one day. The person who chose to kiss this man back is not me. I’ve clearly been taken over by an alien being.
And there, next to me, stands the man who started this, all confidence and swagger. He’s smirking, actually smirking, as if all of this is some amusing joke. Of course, he has the right to laugh at my misfortune. He’s a man. He doesn’t have to suffer the consequences of the mess he’s created. My father will deal with him, but he’ll walk away mostly unscathed.
This is my life he’s messing with. Does he not understand that he’s ruining everything? Does he even care? His cold eyes tell me that he doesn’t. He’s taking glee from my misfortune.
CHAPTER FIVE
Ivan
All traces of the snarky, fiery girl I met a few moments ago have vanished. Long gone is the minx who pressed her body against mine, writhing against me in an attempt to get herself off. No, standing next to me is a small, scared girl who fears her parents’ wrath.
She looks at me in disdain, and I can’t help but chuckle.
This is such a ridiculous scenario. Here I am, a guest at a wedding I didn’t even want to attend, and now I’ve been caught red-handed feeling up the bride. Though, to be fair, I haven’t even started feeling up the bride the way I want to.
But I feel a strange sense of possession toward her. I’ve never wanted so desperately to leave my mark on someone and make her mine. Consequences be damned, this is a good plan. Now that her parents are involved, she’ll have no choice but to leave with me. They’ll be so angry, they’ll force her to leave.
I highly doubt that idiotic son of the Oligarch will come to her aide. He’ll see that he’s been bested by a superior man, and he’ll back down, deciding she’s not worth the trouble. She’ll be all mine.
“I don’t know what you’re so happy about,” she mutters glumly. “My father is going to rip you limb from limb. Even if you manage to survive, he’ll feed you your own testicles.”