Page 37 of The Bratva's Auctioned Bride

My brows furrowed together at that, struggling to understand how that possibly would’ve felt for him to go through. “How did you manage to stay together despite that?”

“It was difficult and took a lot of work on my end. At first, we were fostered together, before it became too much and they decided to split us up. Some of us went to foster families, while others went to care homes. Fortunately, the twins were sent to the same place, and so were Damien and Daniil due to them being a similar age. Since I was older, I went to a home for teens until I was old enough to go off on my own. I was able to keep tabs on where my brothers were, and after getting into the business and making money however I could, I built alife for them to come back to,” Alex explained, expression both somewhat troubled and wistful as he recalled it all. “It took a while and a lot of convincing, but they were all eventually handed over to me. Every day since then, I never stopped working my ass off to keep them with me. To make sure they were never taken away again.”

Emotion from listening to his story pulsed in my chest, and while I was grateful that I could say I never had to experience the same thing, a sense of guilt accompanied that thought. I let go of a gentle breath. “I can’t even imagine what that must’ve been like…it sounds like you grew up far too fast. You never really got to be a kid.”

“No, I didn’t. But I guess in a way, my upbringing helped prepare me for not only stepping up to help my siblings but also for the path I’m currently on. I always knew the real world could be cruel and harsh, which is why I’m able to stomach the unappealing aspects of this business so well.”

After a moment of silence, as I tried to digest all the information he gave me, I let my curiosity get the best of me and continued to pry. “And your parents…did you ever see them again?”

Alex cleared his throat. “Apparently, when we were taken away, they tried to appeal it and wanted to get us back, but they were too far gone. Their case was too weak, and they were deemed unfit. I never saw them again after that, and I can only imagine they only fell further into addiction since we weren’t in the equation anymore.”

“That’s awful,” I murmured, unsure of what else to say. It was a grisly part of his life, and there was no way for me to completely understand what that was like for him. “You certainly have me beat in the rough upbringing department.”

Despite the serious topic, Alex snickered at that. “I suppose I do. That’s not to discredit your experience, of course.”

I nodded, aware that we both had our fair share of unsavory moments to shoulder from our time growing up. “I guess it does help to put things into perspective, at least. Looking back on where we both came from.”

“I suppose we aren’t all that different, after all.”

Even if the conversation wasn’t the lightest, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of connection with him, like we learned a piece of each other’s identity by sharing our childhood experiences. I smiled faintly at the idea. “I suppose so.”

While Alex never shared what had been bothering him when he came home from work, it seemed he had long forgotten it anyway, and his shoulders were lighter than they had been.

We sat in that gentle peace between us for a time while I gently carded my fingers through his hair, allowing my nails to scratch against his scalp occasionally. I didn’t miss the gentle smile that formed on his lips as I did so, and the scene was enough to make my heart squeeze with affection.

After a moment, Alex opened his eyes again and peered up at me. “I almost forgot…the chef is out sick, so we’ll have to take care of dinner tonight. Instead of ordering in, we could make something together, if you want.”

It had been a while since I cooked much of anything, but the suggestion alone was enough to make me grin and look forward to it immediately.

“I’d like that.”

Chapter 19 - Alexander

While it wasn’t a revelation to know that Lara’s presence tended to make any moment feel a bit more special, I never expected myself to enjoy something as mundane as cooking dinner.

Yet as we stood in the kitchen together while she chopped up vegetables and I prepared the meat, I found myself feeling more and more satisfied with the opportunity that presented itself to us. I was more than happy to have that time to spend with her and to think about something other than work.

Gentle music filtered through the space as we sipped on wine and chatted, glancing at one another despite trying to focus on our tasks.

“Do you have much experience cooking?” Lara asked as she poured olive oil over the bowl full of chopped vegetables and added seasonings before laying them out on a pan.

While I trimmed the excess fat off the chicken and made sure it was well seasoned, I pulled out a pan to start frying it, humming gently. “Nothing special, but enough to get me by. I started with instant ramen, eggs, and whatever else I could get my hands on to keep myself fed as a kid, then eventually worked my way up as my siblings started growing. When I was off on my own once I was of age, I made more of an effort to make something of value to sustain myself.”

Lara nodded to herself, moving with considerable elegance in the kitchen despite her next words. “I didn’t have any at all. For the longest time, Ari cooked. Then, when he was old enough, Lukyan took over that task. Honestly, he’s a pretty solid chef when he can be bothered to do it.”

“You seem to manage yourself well enough with it,” I said, noting how she worked carefully with a diligent hand.

She shrugged and popped the pan in the oven to roast the vegetables. “I eventually taught myself some basics. Even if we got used to having others cook for us, I didn’t want to be completely lost if that luxury was ever gone.”

“That’s a smart decision,” I praised gently as I glanced at her.

She gave me a soft smile and checked on the pot of near-boiling water on the stove. “I’m glad you think so. It came in handy once I moved to my own place.”

“Was that a difficult transition for you? Living on your own after being surrounded by your family for so long?” I asked, throwing the chicken on to get it started.

“It was a little at first, but honestly, the break from my brothers was a welcome one,” she said with a grin and a small, huffed laugh. “I went away to school, decided it wasn’t for me, so then I did some traveling and saw a bit more of the world before we all moved to New York. Then, I guess I got pretty used to seeing my brothers constantly again, and since I can hold my own a little more, I look forward to my visits with them.”

I found everything Lara said about her upbringing completely intriguing. It was interesting to see where our experiences overlapped, and where they differed. I couldn’t help but want to hear more.

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