Page 122 of Viparious

I pull up outside of the restaurant and turn to face her as she asks for specific details to prove me wrong.

“What other things?”

Holding the headrest behind her, I cup Inessa’s knee as my thumb finds the inch of skin between her dress and boots.

“Showing her how a queen deserves to be treated. She won’t just be spoilt by her own experiences. It starts with you, so shut up and stop arguing with me.”

“How romantic,” she mutters while rolling her eyes, “be sure to let her see that too.”

“Have I ever said that to you publicly? Even in front of my brothers?” She shakes her head. “Exactly, because only I can tell you to shut your mouth. I have never, and will never, disrespect you openly or with actual malice. You know why our daughter will be a spoilt brat? Because she’s going to take after her mother, but it won’t be as a way to protect herself. It will be who she truly is.”

The smile on her face doesn’t convey the intense emotion in her dark eyes as she squeezes my hand. She looks around, seeing where we’ve stopped, and her smile dips once she notices.

“Don’t go here,” she says softly.

There’s nervousness and pain on her features. I’m definitely killing someone. My jaw is already pulsing, and it makes my voice rougher.

“Is this to do with your ‘secret’ that Dima knows?”

The fucker said I should ask her, but she’s been ignoring me and that took precedence over whatever secret she could have with someone else.

She squeezes my hand and slowly shakes her head. “There isn’t one, he was just being an ass.”

It’s an uptight, snobby restaurant, the type of place that I thought she’d like considering they’ll kiss her ass as soon as she walks through the door.

“Stay in the fucking car.”

I turn and open the door when she grabs my arm, pulling me back in panic, “Where are you going?!”

The door slams as I turn back to her, still nervous and fearful.

“Someone in there hurt you. I can see it in your eyes, you’re not fazed by anything but you’re nervous about going inside. So, I’m going to kill everyone and burn the place to the ground. Happy?”

She doesn’t let go of my arm and, instead, holds it with both to keep me in the car. Her voice is lower, almost shy with her admittance. “It’s not that you psycho, the place always smells like sugar because of their desserts. You don’t like the smell and you always move your head away from it. You won’t be comfortable.”

Even if she is crazy, she’s got a beautiful soul to match her features. Lifting her hand off my arm, I bring it to my lips and kiss the back of her fingers. “Stay here, meelaya.”

“You won’t kill anyone, right?”

“Right.”

Inessa keeps her eyes pinned on me as I get out of the car and go inside. She was right about the smell. It hits me as soon as I open the door and my stomach churns. I manage to hide my grimace as I tell the maître d’ what I need. He looks at my hands as I speak, and I already know it will be done to exact specifications before I go back to my bratty wife.

Despite being able to see me through the glass frontage, she inspects my knuckles as I open her door. My hand automatically goes to her hip, and I keep her on the side furthest away from the road as I lead her through the cut at the side of the restaurant. The door is open with a waiter ready to guide us, and she looks up at me full of innocence and sweetness. Fuck me, if this is all she needed, she could have just said, and I’d have bought her the restaurant.

Her brows go up as we’re led up a dimly lit stairwell. She turns to me and mouthsfancy,being a sarcastic shit. I only asked for a table outside, but they’ve got other staff lighting candles and it works in my favor as Inessa leans into me. The small table is covered with linen and the bench has cushions to hide how old it is. But she acts like it’s a five-star service as we take our seats and we’re left with the menu. Everyone leaves in a rush, and I pick her up, so she’s sat on my thigh once we’re alone. It’s cold under the dark night sky and I keep her in place with my knees trapping her legs as I shrug out of my suit jacket and drape it over her shoulders.

She doesn’t look at anything around us, not the generator for the building or the pipes. Her head is tipped back, watching the sky as she breathes out in awe, “I can see some of the stars.”

They’re most likely satellites or planes flying overhead but she looks so happy about it I don’t tell her.

“It’s like what Dani made.”

Is it fuck.

I can’t keep the insult out of my tone as I look up at the boring ass sky. “That’s the exact constellation that was above us when Verena was born, not two blinking lights.”

I’m certain they’re orange, so they’re definitely not stars. She shakes her head before laying it on my shoulder and wrapping her arm around my waist.

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