Page 66 of The Bratva King's Claimed Bride

“How many children do you all have?” I ask, looking around.

Penny smiles. “Kervyn and I have a son and a daughter. Asher and Danil have two daughters. Luka and Hannah have twin boys, and Arseny and Elena have a daughter.”

I raise my eyebrows. “That’s a lot of kids.”

“We like big families,” Kervyn chuckles. “Which is why we’re so happy to find out we have a sister. We’ve never had a sister before. It should be interesting.”

“We go to these lunches every week,” Asher says. “Just us girls, and we catch up on the family news.”

“Sundays, we eat at Mama Milov,” Hannah interjects. “She cooks everything from scratch, and it’s delicious.”

I swallow and put a hand on my stomach. “Maybe I will lie down. I’m sorry, you’re all being very nice, but I feel a little overwhelmed right now.”

“Of course,” Penny stands up. “You all talk amongst yourselves while I show Arina to her bedroom.”

My bedroom. Not a guest room. My bedroom.

I follow Penny and look around. “You and Kervyn seem…”

“An unlikely pair?” She grins. “It was a rocky start, and to be honest, I wasn’t entirely convinced he loved me, but our love blossomed. Much like all the relationships do in this family.”

We go upstairs, and she opens a set of doors into a beautiful Victorian-looking room. “Forgive me, I’ve been reading historical romance, so I’m remodeling the house to a more antiquated look.”

“It’s beautiful. I love four-poster beds,” I smile at her. Thank you for being so nice.”

“Not at all. If you wake up and you’re hungry, just head to the kitchen. We have a night chef who will whip you up anything you want, and if you need anything at all, please just knock on the doors at the end of the hallway. That’s my room.”

I nod. “Thank you, Penny.”

She leaves, and I sit on the bed.

This is all too surreal.

I don’t know what else to do, so I kick off my shoes, climb under the covers, and curl up. The bed feels empty without Igor in it, and I toss and turn most of the night, going over everything in my mind.

By the time Penny knocks on my door, I’m in tears and wound up. I sniff and call out in a shaky voice, “I’ll be up in a second.”

“Arina?” Penny calls. “Are you all right?”

“Yeah,” I call quickly, my voice cracking.

She opens the door and stands there. “I’m a mom. I know when someone isn’t alright. Did you have trouble sleeping?”

“Yeah, I’m exhausted.” I sit up and look at her. She has clothes in her hand. She walks over and puts them on the bed. “Come have breakfast with us, then I’ll give you something to ease the anxiety, and you can sleep.”

I nod. “I’ll be down in five.”

She gives me a reassuring smile and leaves the room. I get up and pick up the clothes, going to the bathroom. I have a hot shower, and when I climb out, I open the cabinets to look for a hair dryer.

There, in the back, is a stack of pregnancy tests.

I shakily grab one. They must be Penny’s. I read the instructions quickly and then will myself to pee on the stick.

There’s a knock at the door. “Arina?” Penny calls.

Dammit, she is so mothering.

I set the pregnancy test on the counter and call out. “Just drying off. Be there now.”

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