Page 135 of Voracious

FIFTY

Dima

Bringing my woman home to our new house is the best feeling in the world. Vanya pushes her nose to the glass as I drive up the private road and the smile on her face is full of awe as she sees all the trees lining the property. Wonder fills her voice, and she doesn’t look away from them as she asks, “Where are we?”

She dreamt of the forest, it was her happy place, and now it’s real. But I say one word that means everything.

“Home.”

She is my home, I’ll follow her to hell and find comfort as long I’m with her. The weeks she’s spent in the hospital were torture and I needed something to focus on rather than the empty house with reminders of where she’s broken down. I couldn’t even have anything more than an hour alone with her before one of her fucking family members decided to invade our time. It’s not a sexual urge, I just want to hold her without someone else trying to steal her time.

She doesn’t need to know that I haven’t told anyone else so we can finally be alone. If I see another Vartanov again, I’ll endup fucking shooting them just to get some peace. The clingy fucks.

I’m sure she’s supposed to be lethargic, but she’s light on her feet and fueled with pure joy as she pushes out of the car and skips towards the trees, entirely ignoring the house as soon as I pull up on the driveway. Closing the distance between us, I wrap my arms around her middle and walk us deeper into them. There’s a bench in the middle to create a clearing but she doesn’t go to it and turns in my arms once we’re fully embedded within nature.

Holding her chin, I keep her face tilted up to mine and finally get to tell her the truth without drugs pulling her away from me.

“I love you, ya ne mogu bez tebya zhit.”

She’s so fucking beautiful and her smile is even softer as she looks up at me. She hooks her arms around my neck and my sweet hellion jumps up to seal her lips over mine. I don’t expect her to say it back or do anything she doesn’t want but the apology is worse.

“I’m sorry for hurting you.”

It’s going to be a long conversation for her to understand that she didn’t hurt me, and I sit on the bench to take the pressure off my healing leg. My shoulder isn’t as tender with it being a clean shot, but she gently rubs her hand in circular motions against the joint. She keeps touching my chest and she pulls the collar of my t-shirt away to make sure there are no surgical scars. The fuckers made her think they held my life in their hands, and she visibly relaxes seeing my chest is the same as always.

Holding her face in both of my hands, I press our foreheads together, hoping it transfers from my brain to hers if my words aren’t enough.

“You didn’t hurt me. You know what hurt?”

She shakes her head, oblivious to how deeply she owns me.

“Seeing you holding a knife to your throat, and thinking you were dead.” My voice cracks and my arms tighten around her as though I’m tempting fate by bringing up the topic.“I watched Vlad carry you into the hospital, lisichka, and there was a fucking knife in your neck.”

Everything hardens as I beg her for the only thing that is non-negotiable, she can make every other decision in my life other than this one point.

“I will not survive you. The next time you want to kill someone, I’ll be next to you, never to stop you, we can do whatever torture or murder you need and I’ll be there to make sure you’re safe, Vanya.”

Her smile is wider hearing her own name. I flatten my palm on her chest so I can feel her heartbeat and kiss her cheek as my voice lowers with reverence.

“This controls my own heartbeat, if it ever stops so will mine.”

She hugs me and slowly says, “I think I love you.”

There’s no malice in my laugh, she’s so fucking cute, contemplating the words that I can’t help teasing her.

“Just think, huh?”

My sweet hellion nods and a small crease forms between her brows as she breaks my heart.

“Well, I’ve never been loved or loved anyone else before, but I didn’t want to be here if you weren’t, and I’ll never let you get hurt.”

With the stitches in her neck still healing, I hold her hips to pull her forward as panic hardens my tone.

“You will live, lisichka, with or without me. You never fucking sacrifice yourself again, for anyone.”

I can see her wanting to argue but nothing will work, it’s the one fucking point she can’t sway me on. Everything else is hers to do with what she wills.

“Do you think it would be worth it when I’m going to follow right after you? If you ever try to trade your life for mine, it won’t mean shit because I will follow you through the galaxies and fucking chain you to me. So, never do it again because it is fucking pointless. All you’ll be doing is dragging me with you. Do you understand?”

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