Page 55 of The Bratva's Forced Bride

He pointed at the target and smiled, even if I never fully hit the center ring. “Look at this—you’ve done better than a lot of our rookies during their initial training. Well done.”

“Thanks,” I said, mirroring his joy. “I have a great teacher.”

“It’s a great start, but there are a few adjustments you could make,” Yaro began, taking the gun to show me examples.

After getting some pointers from him, I kept practicing my aim until my arms got sore. Before long, I was better than I had been to start, and I had Yaro to thank for the confidence boost.

When we decided to call it a day, we left the warehouse and headed for the car.

“Thanks for taking the time to teach me,” I said, walking next to him as he slung an arm around my shoulder. The contact nearly made me melt in place. “And for letting me better understand your world. I never expected to be a part of something like this, but I want to do whatever I can to help.”

Yaro chuckled. “Soon enough, I might even bring you along for trades and hits.”

Even if his tone was teasing, that pride swelled in my chest. “I’ll do whatever it takes to be a true Levov.”

Seemingly caught off-guard by the statement, Yaro paused just outside the car and glanced down at me. “What do you mean by that?”

I let go of a deep breath. “I just want to be an asset to the family. To prove myself.”

His brows furrowed as he dropped his arm to snake it around my waist and placed a gentle hand against my jaw. His thumb caressed my cheek, impossibly tender for a man in his profession.

“Grace, you’re exactly that by simply being my wife and by supporting me. The moment we signed that marriage license, you became a Levov,” he reassured me, tone kinder than I had expected.

I swallowed hard, somewhat embarrassed by the sense of duty I felt. “I just…I’ve never felt like I had a true family. Certainly, nothing like you have with Vik and your cousins. My mother walked out on me when I was little, and my dad was hardly even that. For the first time ever, I feel like I’ve been accepted into a cohesive family. Even if there are ups and downs, I’ve seen how you all support each other, and I guess I just don’t want to feel like a burden. I want to do my part and help where I can.”

Yaro listened intently to me as if I had better understood where I was coming from. After a moment, that smile returned to his face, and his thumb continued to stroke my cheek. “I admire your tenacity, and that you haven’t shied away from this life. But there’s still time for you to decide where you want yourself to fit in all of this. I don’t want you to feel obligated to jump into the throes of it, especially not the more dangerous parts. You’ve already done more than enough to help us. Regardless of what you are currently doing or not doing, you are a Levov.”

His words of encouragement helped ease the pressure I had on myself somewhat, and I let myself relax knowing he didn’t just see me as the woman he married because of a trade. He cared about us and about me, and it was more than I could ask for.

“While I appreciate you tagging along and learning the job, it would give me peace of mind to know you were at home focusing on your studies for a bit,” Yaro said, looking more tired than he had before. “Slowing down would be…nice for once.”

“Do you ever get to slow down?” I asked, finding his more laid-back demeanor endearing.

He snickered, then swooped down to press a quick kiss to my lips. “Never.”

Startled by the affection, I watched as Yaro popped the door open for me.

“Speaking of home, going there sounds nice right about now.”

Something in me didn’t want that bonding time to end, and seeing how stressed he had been lately, I couldn’t help but feel bad for him. I wanted to help ease more of that tension for him.

“We should do something fun after all that practice,” I suggested, climbing inside as he took up the other side, closing the door behind him.

“What do you have in mind?”

I gave him a small smile. “It’s a surprise. But we’ll need to visit a craft store.”

Confusion stitched into Yaro’s features at that, but he started the car regardless. “A visit to the craft store it is.”

More than happy he had no objections to it, I let myself get completely immersed in the trip to one of the bigger craft stores in the city, more than happy to be there with Yaro.

***

I never thought I’d ever see someone like Yaro in a hobby store, but it ended up being more fun than I anticipated. We returned home with bags full of paint tubes and supplies and spread them out on the island counter.

“Are you sure about this?” Yaro asked, looking at the paints like they were foreign objects to him.

“Come on, it’ll be fun,” I reassured him, pulling out one of the canvases.

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