Page 38 of Forced Bratva Wife

The thin fabric of the dress I wore felt like nothing with all the men around, and I knew that more of me than normal was exposed thanks to the slit and low necklines. I felt vulnerable, small in the sea of muscular bodies clad in imposing black and leather.

They’re also armed to the teeth.

“Of course, Mr. Vadim.” The judge pulled a slip of paper from a folder on his desk.

You’re really doing this.

And then my mind wandered.

As I’d studied my experience with Lev falling asleep last night, I realized that something about him had been calling to me from the start. I felt like I’d known him for years the very second our eyes met. I could feel his soul, sense its presence and all that it emanated.

Anger, power, violence, pain, and lust—raw, demanding, possessive lust that wanted to consume me in every sense of the word.

And I felt it, too.

“Mr. Vadim,” the judge’s words interrupted my thoughts, “I present to you a legal document stating that you and Ms. Kozlovsky will be—”

“Mrs., isn’t it?” Lev cocked a brow at the judge, and the man swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

“Of course, Mr. Vadim.” His Honor cleared his throat. “You and the Missus will be joined in matrimony as soon as it is signed by all the attending parties. You, your bride, and the two witnesses for the fact.”

The judge’s eyes flicked to mine.

“Do you enter this agreement willingly, dear?”

I could tell he was attempting to give me an out or perhaps just covering his ass if this “ceremony” got back to anyone higher up the chain than him.

There was no saying I wasn’t, of course. Lev wouldn’t have that, and still…

I was doing this willingly. I didn’t want to be taken somewhere by my father or just killed by Lev’s men, so this was a damn smart choice. But beyond that, and although I was still going to try to get back to my patients somehow, I wanted to be at Lev’s side.

Falling into that abyss of his dark eyes, that’s where I felt like I belonged. The second my eyes landed on him, a deep instinct warned me that this man - this criminal - was meant for me.

And I was his—rules, laws, and plans be damned.

“Yes. I do.”

The words felt strange. I never imagined my wedding would be like this. It was so not a ceremony. It was a contract. But I’d also be lying if I said that I didn’t feel more beautiful than I ever had in my life. And I’d also never felt such raw hunger focused in my direction. Knowing Lev could barely keep his hands off me filled my spirit with sinful pride, a need for more.

“Very well. I’ll have you all proceed with your signatures.”

His Honor slid forward the marriage license for us to sign. Lev went first, I followed, and then Pietor. As I watched the man who had held onto me when I first met Lev, I noticed the clear resemblance. He was obviously another Vadim. But he also looked so different from Lev.

The most striking thing was his eyes. He had heterochromia, a genetic mutation that cause each of his eyes to be a different color—in this case, one blue and one green.

I’d learned about genetic conditions and mutations like this at med school, and while rare, they tended to be hereditary. Pietor likely had an ancestor with it as well.

Beyond that, Pietor was just as tall as Lev, hulking and powerful. But he carried himself far less stiffly. He seemed to be perpetually bored, even now. He was also covered in an array of piercings and likely tattoos that I couldn’t see.

Lev was tatted, yes, but it was paired with his constant buttoned-up exterior. Pietor was chaos and lighthearted sarcasm through and through.

I counted the few rings scattered over Pietor’s face—an eyebrow ring, either of his lobed, which were slightly gauged, and a nose ring. Something told me he probably had a tongue ring, too.

“John Hancock.” He slid the license up to Lev. “We’ll need a Benji next.”

I wanted to laugh, but it died in my throat as the tension in the room continued to tick on.

Another of Lev’s men reached for the thing on the desk and quickly scribbled across the paper. He wasn’t unfamiliar, but Lev’s circle appeared to change between the handful of men I usually saw. Aside from Pietor, it looked like he was equally trusting of the rest of his men.

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