Page 26 of The Mobster's Flower

I round the corner and pass a row of dandelions before I spot my wife, and just like I thought, she’s wearing a pair of bright yellow rubber boots and crouching next to a rose bush. She is gorgeous dressed in a white tank top and a bohemian skirt. Her flaming red hair is tied in a loose bun, and I stop to stare at her, mesmerized by her beauty like I was the day I first saw her. Rue Andreyev simply sucks the air out of my lungs the way she did on our wedding day exactly a year ago and every day since.

Christ, has it been a year already? Time seems to fly by when you are happy, and Rue has given me that and then some. She made me happy the day she agreed to marry me, but nothing could have prepared me for when she took my last name. With my name comes the protection it offers her, but also the notoriety of being undeniably linked to me.

Me.She wanted me.

And I wanted to make her just as happy, so I bought this land and built her a massive greenhouse as my wedding gift to her. Seeing her wide smile and teary eyes was worth every penny I spent on the place. Here, she can plant all the flowers—and weeds—she wants and build her fantasy world. Her childhood dream was to become a fairy, and I didn’t want to restrict her to a small flower stand or a shop. Here, she can plant, tend, and do whatever the hell she wants with them.

Seeing her happy and so radiant proves to me that it is all worth it.

“Do you think Vlad has noticed?” Rue asks, snapping my thoughts back to the present, and I realize she’s on the phone.

“I can assure you that nothing escapes my brother’s attention,” Arya’s cheerful voice breaks through the speaker, and I can hear that she is also doing something in the background.

“Hmm, I don’t know how to ask him if he knows.”

“Do you want me to help you practice?”

I step forward, careful not to tread on the canna lilies with their large leaves lining the walkway. “Ask me what?”

Rue whips her head around, and her mouth falls into a pretty O. Her olive-green eyes widen, and she hurries to get up, tripping and nearly falling into the rose bush, but I grab her arm and pull her flush against me. She wraps her arms around my shoulders and looks up. Her pretty eyes blink up at me before that beautiful smile that I love graces her lips.

“You’re here,” she whispers, her cheeks flushing a beautiful pink hue.

“I just got here,” I tell my wife, leaning in to kiss her. My sister must hear it because she makes some kind of gagging noise like the child she is and hangs up. “What were you and Arya talking about?”

“Oh, that.”

Her flush deepens, and she breaks eye contact to look away. She withdraws from the embrace to strip off her muddy gloves, and I realize that she looks nervous. I seek to alleviate her anxiety by wrapping my hand around her waist and yanking her back against me, my lips crashing down on hers in a needy kiss. She whimpers under my lips, wrapping her arms once more around my shoulders and offering herself so beautifully to me.

A year of spending every possible moment together, making love every day to this woman, and I still want her almost as if no time has passed. The feel of her body against mine, I crave it. My longing for Rue still surprises me. After all this time, she’s who I want, and I know that will never change. Not for anything in the world.

She tunnels her fingers into my hair and deepens the kiss, her lips seeking and demanding. “Want you,” she whimpers, rubbing her tits needily against my chest and nearly climbing me like a tree, which pushes me back with a chuckle.

I brush the dirt off her cheeks and look into those perfect eyes I fell for in that hospital room the day I first saw her. “What’s the hurry? Let me love you.”

“I…”

There is that blush again. Rue pushes away from me and shakes her head, causing her red hair to fall down her back, but she doesn’t even notice it.

“Are you going to finally tell me what is making you nervous?”

Her eyes find mine, and she sighs. “Have you noticed something different about me?”

“You look as pretty as ever, baby.”

“Vlad,” she whines, slapping my chest playfully, but I can tell she likes the sound of that. “I’m not talking about that. Look,” she says, pointing at her breasts where her nipples poke against her tank top.

“I am looking.” And I want to do more than look. My hard cock pulses in my pants in agreement.

“Ugh, Vlad. Have you noticed how big they’ve become? I am not wearing a bra!” I chuckle at her obvious frustration, taking her back into my arms and running a soothing hand down her back.

“You’re pregnant,” I tell her, my mouth stretching into a wide grin when her jaw drops.

“You know?” she gasps. “When, how? I just found out today when Annie pointed out I was getting a little chubby, and I mentioned cutting back on her blueberry muffins. She told me to get a pregnancy test, and I thought she was pranking me!”

“Well, it’s like I said. I’ve noticed the changes and my wife’s growing libido,” I say with a chuckle. “I was waiting for you to tell me.”

“I can’t believe you realized before I did,” she huffs.

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