Page 31 of The Bratva's Arranged Bride

“You’re determined in all ways then…that’s admirable,” I complimented her, noticing the almost wistful gleam in her eyes. “But tell me—why not go to your dad for help, if you needed it?”

She sighed and absently rubbed at her forearm, as if the topic was a bit touchy for her. “Because…I wouldn’t be very independent if I ran back to him crying every time something went wrong. And I just wanted to prove I could do it.”

Acknowledging the merit in her thought process, I hummed again. “I see. I could imagine he’d be proud of that.”

She scoffed. “Hardly. He wanted more than anything for me to come crawling back home. Given how easily he married me off to you to somehow benefit his business, he’d rather see me as someone’s housewife than my own person.”

At the mention of the deal, I found myself zeroing in on that. I already had the inkling that Andrey was keeping her in the dark about the true nature of his work, but that only gave me more reason to believe it.

She likely didn’t know a thing about it. And she surely didn’t know a thing about my involvement.

For some reason, that elicited a new response within me…the urge to make sure she remained unaware.

If she didn’t know about the darker side of her dad’s business, or of mine, then it was better left that way.

It seemed like the best way to protect her.

After a moment of considering it myself, I glanced over at her. “Being my wife doesn’t need to be a bad thing…especially when I want you to be more than just that.”

Tia’s eyes remained on mine for another moment, as if testing me. Analyzing me and my intentions all over again.

Finally, she spoke with the faintest edge to her words. “Then stop trying to force some sort of understanding between us…stop trying to fit me into a mold I never asked for.”

As much as her words bit to some degree, a flicker of respect moved through me.

It was the closest thing to vulnerability she’d shown since marrying me, and while it wasn’t much, it was enough.

At the very least, it was enough to instill in me the hope that we’d finally reached the start of something.

Chapter 12 - Tia

Despite all of my resistance, I couldn’t stop thinking about it…about Val.

After that damn moment in my art room, I managed to keep my distance as well as I could, even if he was trying to push things by forcing us to eat together by trying to actually get to know me to some capacity.

It wasn’t easy, especially not with him constantly trying to worm his way into my head and doing everything he could to get my attention.

But my mistake happened the moment I slipped up and gave him more of myself than I should have, when I had a severe lapse in judgment and allowed his touch and taste to consume me.

If I had been sterner with myself, maybe I could’ve fought my attraction toward him a little more, and I could’ve saved myself the slight agony of wondering what could’ve been. The insistent recounting of what happened between us.

As painful as it was to admit, everything about it felt…perfect.

The way he kissed me so fiercely, giving in completely to the obvious desire between us. The way his hands mapped my body, allowing us to be skin-to-skin if even for a moment.

Even then, I could still feel it all, and every time I closed my eyes at night, I found myself back there again.

At that moment, everything else had vanished, and it was just the two of us.

For that brief time, it felt like we were an actual couple in an actual marriage—one that meant something and was driven by pure devotion.

But that wasn’t the case, and I knew that.

Val’s teasing and usual antics were getting under my skin to the point of nearly driving me insane.

I hated how easily he could get the better of me, and how he reveled in my irritation.

Even if I surrendered myself when I shouldn’t have, there was no way I’d let it happen again. I had to be stronger than that, and I needed it to count.

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