Page 23 of Mafia Christmas Vows

“That’s right,” I spin, snarling at her. “You don’t know.”

Magdalena freezes.

I come up on her. “You don’t know, Magdalena! You have no idea! You don’t know who I am! You don’t know me! You have no idea what you’ve done! Those decorations, that room, this room…” I heave a breath in, the words disappearing on my tongue.

I’m yelling. I know I am.

But Magdalena stands strong in front of me.

“You have no idea what you’ve done,” I finish.

She studies me. I can tell she’s afraid; the paleness of her face reflects in the moonlight.

But she does not relent. And she does not back down.

Instead, she tips her chin and folds her arms and looks at me.

“You’re right. Of course I don’t know. Because you haven’t told me, Alexei. I don’t know what this room is. I don’t know what the decorations mean to you. I don’t know what the hell you want from me, other than to be the ticket to just have this empty, old house. You know, why do you even want this house if you’re just going to let it rot?”

I seethe. “I will not let Orlov House rot.”

“Oh yeah? Because the way you’re going, if you keep it up, you’re not going to fill it with a family.”

I freeze.

She huffs. “I might be your wife but I’m not a broodmare. If you want to have children, you have to talk to me. Let me know why you hate the decorations. You have to be sweet. You have to seduce me,” she says.

My mind hangs on that word.

“You think I could not seduce you?” I growl.

She rolls her eyes. “No, I don’t?—”

I do not let her finish that sentence.

My hands grip her face, and with a rough tug, I bring her face to mine.

The moment that my lips descend on hers, I know that my world is about to change.

And, that I have made a colossal mistake.

MAGGIE

Alexei’s lips on mine are…

Everything.

Somehow, in the span of seconds, my whole world is reduced to this.

His lips.

His mouth.

His hands on my face.

His tongue, slipping into my mouth, tangling with mine in a deep, consuming kiss.

I’ve never been kissed like this.

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