Page 10 of The Bratva's Virgin Bride

“I'm not marrying you,” she says, standing up. She walks toward the door and I stop pacing.

“Where are you going?” I ask.

“To make coffee. I told you earlier.” She flips the lights on as she makes her way downstairs. I notice she has let her hair cover her beautiful face. She's hiding. She's delaying. I don't have time for this. My cousin is waiting with the necessary paperwork to marry us. He still needs to get it to a Justice of the Peace to sign off on.

“Riley, you can't have coffee. We need to go,” I say, following her.

She ignores me and takes out a mug, then pops in a pod for the coffee machine. She puts water into it and turns it on. She hugs herself as she stands there, her body half turned toward me as though to keep an eye on me. I notice that when she reaches for things, her hand shakes slightly. She's terrified, and I feel terrible for being the cause of that. I'm not a monster. I understand that this life is not for everyone.

When the coffee machine finishes, she adds a generous amount of creamer and stirs before she sips it. “Did you want it?” she asks.

“Yeah, okay,” I say, sitting down at the kitchen island. There's no point in fighting her on this. As scared as she is, there is a fire in her, a fire I like, and I need to convince her to come with me willingly or this isn't going to work.

She pops in another pod and takes out another mug. “Your plan is ridiculous. You have to see that.”

“This guy isn't going to stop,” I insist. I look around the kitchen. Roman's just had it redone to Gwen's taste and I have to admit it's quite nice. Not as nice as my house, but nice still the same. “He's not going to stop until he takes you.”

“Then assign me a bodyguard.”

“It's not that simple. Assigning you a guard would just draw more attention to you and the fact that we're on to him. He could try a different method to get you, a more dangerous method. I don't want people to get hurt.” I take the coffee and creamer from her and pour some in. I hold my hand out for a spoon and stir in the creamer before I take a big sip. “That's why you need to marry me.”

“I don't understand how marrying you is going to deter him,” she says quietly, leaning against the counter behind her.

I sigh and play with the cup of coffee in my hands. “You don't quite understand our world. My cousin is the head of the most powerful family in Las Vegas. His name is Kervyn Milov.” I pause, ensuring she's listening to me. “He has three brothers: Luka, Arseny, and Asher. Together, they run all major operations in Las Vegas, and they're not people to be trifled with.” I take a sip of my coffee. “We came over from Russia to help Kervyn manage his empire. My brother, Rigor, leads ourpart of the family and has built quite a name for himself, opening clubs in our honor. He holds power, and that power trickles down to us. I've done things, Riley. Things I'm not entirely proud of, but things that were necessary. My reputation precedes me.”

I finish off my coffee and look into her eyes. She has the most beautiful, sparkling eyes made brighter by the tears that constantly threaten to overflow. “I'm a menace to my enemies. An enforcer of sorts and that's why I was one of the people to come and save you. I'm handy with weapons, I'm not known for my patience or mercy and if you were to marry me, you would be tying yourself to the biggest family in Las Vegas, which would give you some power, and make you slightly less desirable to our enemies. Gwen would never be kidnapped because she's married to Roman. None of the wives of my cousins, or brothers, are ever threatened because a threat to them is a threat to our family and that's basically a death sentence.”

Riley goes absolutely quiet and I could curse myself. I think I've lost her on this one. She doesn't want to be tied to a criminal family. I've just convinced her not to follow my plan and if I can't get her to sign the papers, then it's all moot. She finishes her coffee and sets the mug down. “Okay.”

“What?” I look at her, surprised.

“Okay, I'll marry you. Your plan makes more sense now. I just don't want to be expected to do anything criminal,” she says. “I don't want to be part of the family business in any way.”

“You don't have to be. You're just going to be my wife. We don't even have to share a bed.” I smile broadly. Although the thought of sharing a bed with her is appealing, my main priority right now is keeping her safe. Marrying her will offer her a level of protection that she would otherwise not have access to.

“I'm going to put sneakers on. I hope you don't expect me to go full bridal.”

“No, the plan is to sign the papers at my cousin's office, where he will have them sorted out with a Justice of the Peace. We will then stay at my manor, where you will be safe with my guards.” I stand up. “No wedding dress is necessary. You could go in your pajamas.”

“I need to pack,” she starts to say.

“No, we've delayed too long already. We need to go now.”

“I'll go put on my shoes,” she says.

I follow her upstairs, and she pulls on her sneakers and grabs her phone. “Can I try to call Gwen at least?”

“You can try, but I couldn't reach her or Roman.”

I watch her dial her best friend's number, which she knows by heart. She stands there holding the phone to her ear. I hear the voicemail message, and she hangs up. “Maybe Roman.”

She searches for his number and dials it, standing there looking uneasy. I hear the voicemail message and gesture with open hands. “See what I mean? I can't reach them either. They're either asleep or haven't landed at their destination yet.”

Riley's hand shakes slightly as she puts her phone in her pocket. She ties her hair in a ponytail and nods. “Okay, let's go.”

As we leave, she hugs herself, and I lead her downstairs. I stop at the guardroom. “Riley is going to be staying with me for the foreseeable future. Make sure no one breaks into the property here, and alert me if you see anyone skulking around.”

“Yes, Sir,” the guard in charge says.

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