Page 68 of The Bratva's Prisoner Bride

Despite curling myself up as best as I could, regardless of the ropes around me, I caught glimpses of those men dressed in fatigues while they pressed towards the open door, picking his security off one by one.

Then, with a mix of rage and resigned fear in his eyes, Rurik glanced at me, and, in a split second, raised his pistol in my direction.

My heart was in my throat, threatening to choke me before he'd even get the chance to shoot me. With the feeling of pure ice in my veins, I could only look at him, wide-eyed and wondering where it all went wrong. How he became the person that he was. How he could see me as nothing but a tool to be discarded when he felt like it.

The breath caught in my throat at the sound of that shot—the bullet meant for me.

But the conviction in Rurik's eyes gave way to a glassy emptiness that made my stomach turn while blood seeped into the front of his shirt, and more bubbled up from his mouth.

Everything seemed to go still for a moment, and it was just me and him. My brother's vacant stare while the light slowly dimmed, and he gradually lost his footing. With a final sway, Rurik fell forward until he hit the hard floor in a heap.

I felt entirely numb while I stared at his lifeless body, unable to look away despite how much I wanted to.

Then, everything moved around me in a blur. The shouting grew more distant while I tried to process everythingthat happened, along with the footfalls as the building was cleared.

He was dead.

After everything, Rurik was gone, and he couldn't control me anymore.

A rush of heavy footsteps registered in my mind before my vision was shadowed by him. His hand gently held my chin, tilting my face up to get a better look at me.

I still couldn't manage the words when Ivan's face came into focus, but a flicker of relief moved through me. Both at seeing him again and at the way his frame blocked out my view of Rurik on the floor.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" Ivan asked, words rushed while he looked me over, carefully feeling for any injuries.

When I weakly shook my head, unsure if that was the truth, I eventually felt the tension in the rope against my skin go slack, and his arms were under me while he scooped me up like I weighed nothing.

Most of it was a blur, but when I eventually felt the breeze on my skin and the trunk of the SUV beneath me, I blinked back at Ivan, and he seemed to come into focus again.

The concern written on his face said it all. At first, he seemed to struggle with the words while he gently gripped my arms, stopping and starting to speak before articulating himself.

"Daria...I'm so sorry," he said just above a whisper, tone dripping with regret. His hands gently stroked the bare skin of my arms. "I never should've given him the chance...this never should've happened."

Swallowing hard, I couldn't shake the emotions that pricked the corners of my eyes at his remorse. "You didn't know..."

"I should've. I should've been ahead of him," he murmured, letting go of a shaky breath before placing a hand against my cheek while he looked me over. "But it's not just that...I doubted you...doubted your loyalty to me when I saw you were gone. I thought you deceived me...I thought I fell for another trick."

"A trick?" I echoed, brows pinched together slightly at the words before I shook my head. "I wouldn't...not after everything."

Ivan let go of another breath to try and stabilize himself again. "I know...I should've known that earlier. I'm sorry. I should've trusted you."

Hating how the agony in his eyes made my stomach churn, I leaned forward in search of any semblance of comfort. "Please...don't apologize."

I could tell that he wanted to protest for the sake of his pride, but Ivan exhaled softly and leaned against me with his eyes closed.

Carefully, his hands dropped to my waist while he held me and took a moment to compose himself.

"From now on, I'm putting my faith in you...and in us. I won't doubt you moving forward," Ivan murmured, giving weight to every word. "You're my wife...the mother of my unborn child. You're the one I want to trust through everything."

Letting his words sink in, I gently nuzzled against him and felt the squeeze of my heart. "And I won't give you any reasons to doubt me. I don't want to be anywhere else but with you...I don't want anyone but you."

With another shaky breath, Ivan gave up on the words entirely and instead pressed his lips against mine, letting me feel every ounce of his true, unfettered emotions.

Without resistance, I relaxed into it, savoring every moment our lips remained locked. Feeling how his fingers slowly moved to my hair, gripping the back of my head lightly to keep me close.

I knew then and there that nobody else could make me feel the way Ivan did. Even after everything, he was the one person I needed, like air itself.

He wasn't perfect, but neither was I.

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