Page 17 of The Bratva King's Kidnapped Bride

Another sigh, longer than the first. “I’m not getting the treatment this time. You know how much I suffered through every second of it before.”

“Yeah, but it made you better,” I argued.

“Did it?” she sniffed. “I’m back in the same spot.”

“Two years later,” I snapped. “Two great years you might not have had. Listen—”

“No, you listen, Katie,” she interrupted. “I’ve made up my mind. My two beautiful and strong nieces are settled, and I’m surrounded by my lifelong friends that I love. I’d rather have my house go to you and Jenna than take out a mortgage to pay those damn medical bills.”

I knew it and leaned against the wall, barely seeing what was going on a dozen feet away as my team scrambled to get the next course out. I’d been so happy to get this unexpected windfall, and it was already earmarked for Jenna’s trip, as good as spent already.

It always came down to money, and not having enough of it.

“Absolutely not,” I said, brimming with rage but nothing to aim it at. My aunt’s disease didn’t give a damn how pissed off I was.

“I’ve made up my mind. This is what I want.” Her voice broke, and she tried to cover it with a cough.

“Don’t bullshit me,” I said, not letting her interrupt me again with more lies about how she was so thrilled about giving up and dying. “And don’t try to say it isn’t about money. I’ll burn that house to the ground if you dare to leave us without putting up a fight first. You have an amazing life, and I know you love living it, so stop pretending you’re ready to go because you think you’re burdening us or some garbage.”

“But it is a burden,” she whispered.

“It’s not,” I said. “I’m actually doing a catering job right now. And I’ve got the next two months fully booked. You'd know if you’d answered my calls at all this past week.”

“Really?” she asked, sounding thrilled for me. “That’s wonderful.”

“Really,” I lied. “So promise me you’ll make the first appointment. We still need you, Aunt Marjorie. It may seem like it, but we’re not settled at all. And I’m only strong because I know you’re there for me.” My own voice cracked, and I heard a stifled sob at the other end of the line.

“I’ll think about it,” she said.

I ended the call in a fog, and barely got through the rest of the courses. My aunt’s news even made me forget Aleks’s kisses. I completely forgot he said he was going to get my answer after the party, until I took a bag of trash out back to the dumpster, and he was quietly waiting for me.

I yelped and dropped the bag in my shock. Thankfully, it didn’t split open. He leaned against the wall just outside the door, his arms crossed over his broad chest and a smirk on his face. With a tutting noise, he leaned over and grabbed the bag I dropped, chucking it into the dumpster for me.

“Thanks,” I said, turning to flee back into the kitchen.

“Not so fast,” he said, resting a big hand on my shoulder. The streetlamps outside kept the back of the restaurant well-lit, and his shadow loomed over me. I turned to face him, but he was so close I had to tilt my head back to get a good view at the somewhat amused look on his face.

“I can’t do this right now,” I said. “There’s too much on my mind.”

Exhaustion was catching up with me, and there was still a ton to do to get the kitchen back in spotless order for when Chef Dannello would inspect it tomorrow, his keen eyes scouring for the slightest stain we might have left behind. Still, for some reason, I didn’t bolt back inside. I stood there, watching his eyes for his next move.

“Then let me help you clear your head,” he said, pulling me into his arms.

The comforting feeling of his hands on my lower back didn’t let me immediately pull away. It just felt too good. And then he was pulling me in even tighter, so that I was crushed against his hard chest. His lips met mine, and like he had promised, all other thoughts flew away like startled birds. His tongue gently probed my mouth, and my hands rose to hold onto his strong shoulders. Shoulders that could weather any storm, and I was so desperate for a bit of calm.

The feelings his kiss inspired in me were anything but calm, but as long as he was touching me, my problems and worries were erased. He was like a drug.

Very, very bad for me. And he’d ultimately only make my life more convoluted.

I pulled away, trying not to moan, when his hands slipped from my waist to hang at his sides. Trying not to waver on my feet so that I collapsed against him. He pushed a strand of hair behind my ear and leaned close again.

“Marry me,” he said. “Give me your answer now, Katie. The answer I want to hear.”

It was so ridiculous I couldn’t even laugh. “No,” I said simply, turning away from that mesmerizing face once and for all.

He made me wild, but I couldn’t be wild right now. Once again, life crumbled around me, and I had to find the strength to keep it from crushing me. And Jenna, and Aunt Marjorie. My family, the ones I loved.

I made it to the door without Aleks saying another word, and I ignored the stab of disappointment that the game was really over. Then, to my utter shock, he picked me up and flung me over his shoulder.

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