Page 149 of Claim

I take Ana’s soft hands, feeling the warmth of her skin, and place the cool, smooth knife in them.

“Have you lost your damn mind?” She blinks rapidly at me.

I dare not look at Lara and Nikolai.

“I hate my scars. They fuel my hatred. They make me cold. Who I need to be to survive. But this scar. This one will be my reminder that not everything in this world is evil. That not every mark I have is a punishment. This one represents my devotion to you. This one I will look at on my finger every day and smile. I won’t hide it, I’ll show it off to the world because it represents that I’m yours, for life.”

Tears well in her eyes as she looks down at the blade and then into my eyes. I know she can read how serious I am about this.

“Aww, Miki. That’s so cute. What do you want me to do?”

The sweat on my palms feels clammy as I pat down my suit jacket.

“Your initial, please, baby.”

She nods, looking at my hand as I hold it out flat in front of her.

“What if I do it really shit? I’ve never done this before?”

I shrug, my fingers brushing lightly against her skin as I stroke her arm.

“I don’t care what it looks like. It’s about you marking me as yours. That’s all I want, iskorka. Claim me.”

Her hand trembles slightly, the blade glinting dangerously close to my ring finger, and then the metallic scent of blood fills the air.

She looks up at me for reassurance.

“Green, baby,” I whisper.

I don’t really feel it, it’s a clean cut. She gets it done quickly. The minister clears his throat next to us. Pulling out the bandage from my pocket, Ana helps me wrap it up, laughing to herself as she does.

“You are something else, Mr. Volkov,” she mutters.

“Well, I’m all yours, pretty girl. Even got the mark to prove it.” I wink at her, making her blush.

Damn, I can’t wait to get my hands on her later.

The rest passes in a blur. We wanted this short and simple. No long vow exchanges. That isn’t for anyone else. We have written vows to read to each other at home later.

“You may now kiss the?—”

I don’t let him finish. I grab ahold of her, my hand encircling her throat as I pour all my love into the kiss.

“I love you, wife.”

I slam one last kiss on her lips.

With a gentle swipe of her thumb, she removes the lipstick stain on my mouth, the touch lingering for a moment.

“I love you, big man. More than you could ever know.”

She places her dainty hand in mine, and I lead us out of the church. I’m lucky I didn’t go up in flames.

We all somehow survived that one. Maybe we aren’t so bad after all.

The next room is cozy, with worn couches and the faint smell of old books. Alexei has arranged an entire wedding reception in his backyard for us. We just have to wait for whatever extravagant transport to arrive.

Bursting through the door, Lara immediately engulfs Ana in a hug, murmuring a hushed reassurance in her ear before her gaze finds me, a mixture of anxiety and determination in her eyes.

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