Adrik
When I claimed her, that was it. I made her mine and betrayed her. She longed for a story that wasn't mine to narrate, so I did the only thing a man like me would-I sent her back. Little did I know the secret she was keeping. The worst of all...
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I foolishly wanted him to lay in bed with me after his hot breath on my skin and his hands on my body. I should have known he would deny it because this week, I've gone to bed without knowing he laid next to me and woken up to an empty bed.
He did come to bed because his side looked slept in, and there was a lingering smell of his aftershave. I've been giving him the cold shoulder because I knew he wouldn't sit and listen to me.
For fuck's sake, he was the man who demanded I would marry him, and if I wanted to speak to someone, it would be about this marriage I had no choice in. He was out of the house early in the morning and returned late, leaving me alone with one maid and a bodyguard I could call for anything.
I was lying to him about what I wanted from him. I wanted him to be home with me and talk about baby things—the babies' room, shopping, and where we go.
I'd have said yes if he asked me on one knee to be his wife and if he'd give me time to think, but I knew Adrik Mikhailov was far from a gentleman on one knee and a polite speech.
I'd have said yes, regardless of thinking it through. Think what through exactly? I carried the boss's children—I had to marry him. There was no other way to go about this. My father would have called him to get me the minute he knew of this pregnancy.
Despite the hate, I've told them how good a man Adrik was for not hurting me, and even that, too, meant nothing compared to the rules in these organisations. They were similar in their practices, and keeping an heir from the boss would cause mass destruction. In the same way, you don't get involved in a married couple's business despite what it was. I made my bed, and I would lie in it.
That acknowledgement made me want him all the more—to try to get under his skin and change him. I could laugh now if I weren't crying because he had to work at ten tonight. Nothing could change that man even if they wanted to. Not even death could do him justice.
I should have kept my mouth shut when we returned to the bedroom. Adrik didn't remove his suit. Of course, he wouldn't join me in bed. I showed him a sliver of vulnerability tonight that I shouldn't have. He would twist it like a wet towel—that's how my heart feels now.
I could still feel the effects of his words between my thighs—the hot, sultry tone of his voice when he whispered it in my ear and the lust in his eyes as he didn't take his eyes off mine. "I'll take it." That's not what I'm scared about.
My nos would be futile because he would see the lie on my face. I've never stopped wanting him, but if we joined bodies, I feared he'd steal my heart again.
I don't think I'm ready for it, and I've withheld sex from this man for seven days. Does he get it elsewhere? My throat clogged, and I opened my mouth to let the harsh breaths out.
His words months ago could be invalid now because of our distance. Would he cheat on me after we said our vows? I'd kill him. I've killed two men before, so what's a third?
