Page 52 of Forbidden Vows

I offer a slight shrug. “The fact that we skipped some prettyimportantsteps. We were supposed to get to know each other first, to figure out if we are compatible, if we can actually make it work—”

“How could we have gotten to know each other if I married your stepsister, like Ronan and I had originally planned?”

I stare at him for a hot second. “Fair enough.”

“Eileen, I need you to have faith in me, in us. I will do everything in my power to make sure that you and the kiddos are happy and safe,” he says, the gravity of his tone having me gobbling up every word. “I will burn the whole Bratva to the ground if I have to. I won’t stop until every single one of our enemies is in the ground.”

“I wish violence wasn’t necessary.”

“Recent events argue against you, I’m afraid.”

Lowering my gaze, I let a heavy sigh leave my chest. “A girl can only dream.”

“It’s a rough world that we grew up in,” Anton says. “It’s harsh and bloody. There are backstabbers at every corner. Traitors. Greedy bastards who will do anything for power, money, and influence. I don’t need any of it. If someday you tell me you want to get out of the city, to leave it all behind, I will. Without hesitation.”

I give him a startled look. “Are you serious?”

“Very.”

It does sound enticing. Dropping everything and simply running away. But running away is exactly what we’d be doing. It wouldn’t resolve the problem, and our enemies would still find a way to track us down and finish what they started. I know enough about the Russians to understand that our troubles wouldn’t end with us simply leaving the city.

“I don’t want to end up telling our children stories about how cowardly we were,” I exhale sharply. “As much as I dislike the situation, I dislike the idea of turning tail even more. I’d cease to be a Donovan, and I certainly wouldn’t make myself worthy of the Karpov name, now, would I?”

Anton’s lips stretch into a delicious grin. “That’s my girl.”

“I still can’t believe we’re having twins.”

“Twice as much love,” he says, then laughs and kisses me deeply, cupping my face in his hands. “I will be with you every step of the way, baby. You’re not alone in this.”

“I’d better not be.”

He gives me a hurt look. “Who would I be, if the woman I call my wife doesn’t have faith in me?”

I’ve yet to hear what I want to hear, but I won’t beg for it. Maybe I’ll never hear him say it. I could convince myself that he feels it, that actions speak louder than words. That’s what matters, and as far as actions go, Anton has been by my side from the moment I became his wife.

I’m married to a powerful man who makes my body sing and my heart soften whenever he’s around. It’s his children I’m carrying in my womb, his protection that has kept me alive and safe.

“Eileen, look at me,” Anton says.

I do, losing myself in those hazel pools of his, my soul expanding like a young, growing sun.

“We’ve got this,” he says.

I don’t get the chance to reply or to express any more doubts—of which I have plenty—before he kisses me again. This time, however, it’s hungrier, needier. I have no qualms about completely and shamelessly surrendering.

“We’ve got this,” he says again as he peels my clothes off, one layer at a time.

I give in to this growing hunger, my body aching for him.

Soon enough, I’m bare and soft against his lips as he devours my pussy, one hand kneading my tender breast, while the other trails a path down my belly and nestles between my legs, just under his stubbly chin.

A moan escapes my throat as his fingers slide in. “Oh, Anton!” I cry out as his lips close around my swollen clit.

The tension builds in my core as he finger-fucks me into the next world, teasing my nerve endings until I explode and he drinks me whole.

“I’ll never get tired of this,” I say as he comes up and spears me with his full length.

I’m still in the throes of ecstasy, still rippling like a stone in the water as he penetrates me, his gigantic cock filling and stretching me until I melt into him altogether. He holds me tightly, arms wrapped around my body, my breasts squished against his hard chest as he goes deeper and harder.

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