Page 57 of Forced Marriage Vows

I know what he’s about to say before he even says it.

“Who’d you make them for, then? Your husband?” he questions with a teasing smirk.

I groan softly, “No, I made them for myself to enjoy. Mikhail can have some if he wants.”

That’s a total lie. Before he left the house, I specifically told him I’d be making brownies and he asked me to set some aside for him. After which he gave me a heart-pounding kiss goodbye. Safe to say, our dynamic has completely changed since last night.

I’m more open toward him now, which is scary.

“Yeah, right,” Anthony says sarcastically. “So how’s it going with him? I’m guessing not well if you’re stress baking.”

I peer at him. “Are you sure you want to know?”

“Obviously I don’t care about the disgusting bits. I just want to know if you’ve managed to stop hating him.”

I sigh. “I don’t hate him anymore. I don’t think I actually ever did.”

“I distinctly remember a few hate speeches calling him a jerk and an asshole. Especially considering he forced you into this marriage. No one would blame you for hating him.”

“I never hated him. It’s just… he scared me,” I say tentatively.

“Why? I know he’s got this big bad wolf thing going, but it’s mostly an act. I promise he’s not that bad.”

I scoff. “Need I remind you I watched him kill someone?”

Anthony pauses, the expression on his face thoughtful. “Do you want to know how many people Mikhail’s killed?” he asks after a couple of moments.

“Hundreds?” I mutter.

“Ten.”

“Bullshit,” I immediately counter. “There’s no way in hell he’s only killed ten people. And how would you know that?”

“I asked him. You think he’s some kind of monster, little sister, but he would never kill anyone unless there was a good reason for it. He’s not the cold-blooded murderer you think he is.”

“But I saw?—”

“Ask him about what you saw if it’ll put your mind at ease, Anastasia. He’ll tell you whatever you need to know. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying the man’s a saint. He might have only killed ten people, but he’s very well versed in torture. What I’m trying to say is that Mikhail is exactly what our world made him.You and I were lucky enough to grow up with our humanity intact. He wasn’t.”

I let out a soft breath. It’s not like I don’t already know everything my brother is telling me. I guess a part of me is still trying to find that last shred I can hold on to. Before I let myself fall irretrievably.

“You like him, Ana. And that’s okay. I promise he’ll take care of you. You know I wouldn’t say that lightly. And I’m sure you already know this, but he likes you, too. If you’d asked me a couple weeks ago how he felt about you, I’d have said he didn’t give a fuck. And now he’s married to you and looking at you in this sappy, disgusting way. It came out of nowhere, but the two of you make sense in an opposites-attract kind of way.”

That makes me smile. We do mirror each other in some ways. Mikhail somehow manages to balance me out.

“I never thought I’d see you psychoanalyzing my relationship.”

“Yeah, it’s weird as hell. But you know me, I can’t help being wise,” he says seriously.

My lips twitch. “You’re a dumbass.”

When he looks at me, I know he’s about to say the real reason he came here. And I can already guess what it is.

“If it were up to me, I’d get you the hell out of this city without hesitation,” Anthony starts. “But I can’t do that. And I hate having to leave you behind.”

My chest tightens. “You’re leaving?”

I don’t know why I’m surprised. He works in L.A.; his entire life is there, and Anthony has never liked staying in Chicago for too long. Still, this isn’t over. My feelings for Mikhail aside, everything is still such a huge mess.

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