Page 69 of Beautiful Cruelty

My one chance to back down while I still can.

Instead, a reckless heat floods through me.

I don't beg.

So, against my better judgment, I give Aria a quick, curt nod. She blinks rapidly and wrings her hand nervously. For a moment, I want her to say something—anything. But she doesn't. Instead, she walks to the door, opens it, and looks back one final time.

"Very well, then. Thank you, Mr. Stravinsky. And congratulations to you both.”

The door closes with a soft click behind her.

And just like that, we're alone.

Vadim rises to his feet and extends his hand out to me.

Against my better judgement, I take it, and he helps me up with an effortless pull of his arm. My breath catches as I rise to meet him.

With an unnerving gentleness, he guides me to the full-length mirror, positioning me directly in front of it. The reflection shows every detail of what he's done to me already—my flushed cheeks, my parted lips, the way my altered dress clings to my curves.

And the unmistakable embers of lust smoldering in my eyes.

"Stand still,zvyozdochka." His lips feather against my ear as he circles behind me. Heat radiates from his body, making me hyper-aware of the ever-shrinking space between us.

"What does that word mean?Zvyozdochka?" I manage to whisper, watching his reflection move closer to mine. "You've been calling me that since the moment you saw me."

"It means 'little star.'" His hands settle on my hips, thumbs pressing into the silk of my dress. "And by the time I'm done with you, you're going to shine like one."

My pulse races at his words. This is insane. I should be terrified of what he's about to do: letting a mafia boss—no, a bratva pakhan, I correct myself—pierce my most intimate places with jewelry worth more than all the money I've ever made in my life.

It's dangerous, reckless, and irreversible.

So why the hell does every cell in my body ache for it?

His fingers trace up my sides, and I can't stop the small gasp that escapes my lips. The mirror shows everything—the way his eyes darken as they roam over my body, how my chest rises and falls with each shallow breath.

I should stop this. I should tell him no. But the thought of his hands on me, reshaping me forever with those beautiful, dangerous pieces of jewelry. To make me shine and glitter like a star in the sky.

Hisstar.

My thighs press together involuntarily, trying to ease the warm wet ache building between them.

This isn't just about the piercings anymore. It's about possession. About belonging. About letting him claim parts of me that no one else has ever claimed in a way that only he can.

And God help me, I want it all.

I close my eyes as a whimper escapes my lips.

I hear a metallic jingle behind me and my breath catches.This is it.My heart thunders against my ribs as I imagine the piercing gun's needle, cold and sharp.

But instead, something heavy and cold drapes across my throat. The weight of it makes me gasp.

"Open your eyes,zvyozdochka," Vadim whispers, his breath hot against my ear.

I do, and my mouth falls open at the sight in the mirror. The necklace lies against my skin like captured stars. The massive center diamond takes in every whisper of light in the room, throwing rainbow-kissed shadows across my collarbone. Two gleaming rows of white gold drape like liquid moonlight across my throat, supporting a cascade of diamonds that make me look as if I'm wearing the night sky itself.

His hands slide to my shoulders, fingers slipping under the thin straps of my dress. My nipples start hardening in anticipation of what is coming next.

"Do you see how the diamonds glimmer?" His lips brush my ear, the heat of his voice pouring down my neck. "Like stars scattered across your skin. But they're nothing compared to howyou'llshine soon. A whole constellation to be mapped by my hands."

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