Page 48 of Claim

“Soul mates don’t exist. It’s a fantasy. People are scared of me for good reason. You should be, too.”

I can’t help but laugh and shake my head. I am not scared of him. Quite the opposite. He’s the first person to ever make me feel truly safe.

“If it’s bullshit, then explain why your heart races when you see me.”

I place my hand on his chest.

“Why, even when we’re in the same room, your eyes are constantly searching for me? Tell me why you are letting me speak to you like this? And tell me why you are about to gooutside in the pouring rain and dance with me, it’s because you know it will make me smile, isnt it? And finally, tell me you didn’t feel it the first time you grabbed my hand. You are many things, Mikhail, but you aren’t a liar. Tell me I’m wrong, I dare you. Deny it all you like, it doesnt change the truth.”

I’m almost out of breath letting that all out.

“Are you always trying to romanticise your life? Is that what this is? You found a monster and you want to fix him? I am beyond fixing, iskorka.”

I roll my eyes and he grips my chin.

“Are you always so damn negative? Oh, so broken, so unworthy. I’ve told you before, I’m not anyone’s princess and you certainly aren’t the prince either. That isn’t what a soul mate is. I’ve seen your demons and I wanna play with them.”

I duck under his arm, muttering under my breath. I wish he would just listen, and see what I see. And stop treating me like I’m delicate.

“I’ll dance with you, pretty girl,” he says, almost as a whisper as I go to step out the door.

I stop and turn to face him, not hiding the smile lighting up my face.

“Careful, big man. You might fall in love with me.” I hold out my hand to him.

His eyes go wide as he looks at my open palm. Oh fuck. I shouldn’t have dropped the ‘L’ word.

“Vozmozhno ya uzhe.Perhaps I already am,” he says under his breath.

A wave of emotion washed over me, causing my eyes to fill with tears. Validation that he feels whatever the hell this is between us.

He entwines his fingers with mine and I lead him outside.

The rain batters down on us, a deluge of icy water, and he spins me to face him, placing his hands on my waist, his touchwarm through my soaked clothes, as I lay my palms on him. And we sway in silence, his body keeping me warm. I don’t know how long we stay in this perfect little bubble.

“It’s dark out, iskorka. The rain has stopped. Let’s get you inside to dry off.”

“But look…” I point up at the sky, “you can see the stars in the dark.”

“That is usually how it works.” He chuckles and I bat his chest.

“They’re always there, you know? No matter how dark it is, no matter what the weather, they are there whether you can see them or not,” I say, almost in awe as I look at the beautiful sparkles in the sky.

“Hmm.” I can feel his gaze burning into me, so I look back at him.

“Sometimes you don’t have to look up at the dark skies to see the bright light in your life. Not when it’s right in front of your eyes.”

CHAPTER 24

MIKHAIL

Song- Give Sleep token

As she snuggles against me,all I can think about is how I fucked up.

I took her virginity against a damn tree and then carried her ass back to a truck.

I had no idea. But I should have done better. That wasn’t the way I should have taken my wife for the first time. She just riles me up something special, that woman.

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