Page 65 of Kissed By Shadows

The barb hits and I flinch, although a part of me knows that my dad wouldn’t have called me stupid, because he always told me I was his clever little flower. Then again, he did sell me to this monster, so what the fuck do I know?

Sergi pulls back, his devil’s smile in place as he continues to hold me, his eyes tracing my face. I bite my lip to stop the tremors threatening to overwhelm me, tasing copper as my teeth sink in hard.

“I will leave you to your celebration,” Sergi says, squeezing my arms hard enough that I wince. He smiles wider as matching growls sound either side of me, then his grip releases and I haveto fight not to sag in relief. “We shall be seeing you very soon, I’m sure,Kukolka.”

He steps away and walks off, but I look ahead, catching Nik’s pained gaze as he follows after his father, another massive guy at their backs. Hunt is up and out of his seat as soon as they’ve left, his warm palms cradling my face as tears sting my eyes.

“What did he say, Peaches?” he asks, his green eyes soft and yet with a murderous glint in them that reminds me of a fire about to burst its confines, ready to burn the world to ashes.

A shudder runs through me, and suddenly I’m so cold I can’t stop the shakes that begin to wrack my body.

“He’s not going to stop, Hunt,” I whisper, the tears threatening to fall, making his image waver. “Can we go home now? Please?”

His jaw clenches, his brows furrowed as he gives a slow nod, then pulls me into his chest, the twins closing in so that I’m surrounded by them.

“We won’t let him get to you, I swear it, Iris,” Hunter vows, and I bury my face against his chest, inhaling him like he’s the oxygen I need to breathe. I want to believe him, I desperately want to, but although I’ve led a pretty sheltered life up until this point, I’m not stupid, regardless of what Sergi said.

I know that it’s only a matter of time before I’m in his clutches, because how can my Shadows defeat the might that is the Russian mafia? The answer is that they can’t. Not and live to tell the tale afterwards.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

“THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND” BY BAD OMENS

HUNTER

Iris is subdued, shivering the whole way home even though she has that little fluffy coat on that my sister used to love. I know the twins are worried about her, they’ve sandwiched her between them, clasping her hands tightly as she looks sightlessly ahead. I fucking hate that I’m not back there with them, her on my lap, holding her so no fucker can steal her away.

Before Rowan brought her and Roman back to the table, Sergi congratulated me on my recent nuptials, although he said that he was surprised there was nothing registered officially. The fucker clearly has people looking, so as soon as we got in the car, I sent a message to someone who I know will be able to make our fake wedding official.

Of course I knew Sergi was there, thanks to Nik and my men at the front who told me as soon as he turned up. I can’t exactly turn him away, he’s a mob boss after all, though to sayI was displeased to have him anywhere near Iris is a fucking understatement. Nikolai was with his father, but the slight widening of his eyes and shake of his head told me that he hadn’t known of the plan to approach us.

The fact that I had a hard-on because I’d been watching Iris with Roman, knowing by what I could see, even in the darkness, that she was getting him off, almost made me want to laugh in the Russian’s face. You know, if he wasn’t threatening the woman who now belongs to me and is a part of me.

The thought that my dick is bigger than his meant that I greeted him with a smirk on my face that he didn’t like one bit. Tension thrummed across his muscles as he congratulated me on my marriage, and like the arsehole that I am, I revelled in getting under his skin, in knowing that, for the moment, I’m winning.

That was all dashed though when the fucker got up and dared to lay his filthy fucking hands on my wife, and it took more effort than I thought I possessed not to rip his fucking throat out when he laid those slimy lips on her soft cheek. But I knew that he wasn’t here with just Nik and his one guard, his men were throughout my club, infecting it like a fucking plague of locusts. Yet I couldn’t do a damn thing to stop him, just grit my teeth and watch as he terrified my girl. Our girl.

My phone buzzes, and glancing down, I see it’s from Kai Matthews, one of the Black Knights who’s helping Willow and who is a genius with tech if his reputation is anything to go by. He was who I first thought of to help make our marriage official, plus there was no time to mess around and I needed the best to get the job done quickly.

Kai Matthews

It’s official. Congratulations, Hunter, you are now married to Iris in the eyes of the law. All the paperwork is done, a copy of the marriage certificate is in your inbox. Your wedding date is New Year’s Day, so she belonged to you before her father gave her away. You may want to call your sister. Lilly says she’s pissed that you didn’t tell her about any of this.

I snort, rubbing my palm over my face at that shitshow of a conversation. Not to mention I’ll have to break it to Iris that she’s now officially my wife. I wonder if she’ll regret her impulsive decision, telling Jessica that we were married. Jealousy looked good on her though, and now I have a wife, so I’m not complaining. My cock twitches in my jeans at the thought of owning her for real. I’m not going to deny that the idea that she’s now lawfully mine doesn’t appeal to me in a big way.

Hunter

Thanks, Kai. I’ll deal with Willow. Consider a debt owed. I’ll call Willow in the morning.

The message shows as read straight away, and then three dots appear as he types a reply. I look up at the mirror to check on my wife, my jaw clenching when I see that she’s still trembling, eyes unblinking and a little glassy. My phone buzzes, so I tear my gaze away and glance down at the screen.

Kai Matthews

If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask, Hunter. No favours needed. If we can help with anything, let us know. We will do everything we can to help, no questions asked.

Warmth suffuses my chest, a lump forming in my throat at the offer. For so long it’s just been the twins and I, our crew always there to help but more of a responsibility than anything else. To have the Knights as allies, as friends, is more than just a blessing. They’re rich bastards, set to inherit a fortune five hundred company, and also not afraid to get their hands dirty.

Hunter

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