Page 50 of The Bratva's Hunted Bride
“I can’t wait to watch your belly swell. I can’t wait to hold my hand over your stomach and feel the little one kicking.”
I smile, pushing away those thoughts again. The knowledge that he will never get to see that. Tears sting my eyes,and I blink furiously, keeping my face turned down so he doesn’t see.
“I’m so tired. I think you should carry me to bed,” I say with a mischievous smile, changing the subject and distracting myself with my constant desire for this gorgeous man.
“Well, I’ll carry you to bed, but I assure you, you won’t be going to sleep for some time still,” he grins.
“Mm. I was hoping you’d say that.”
He pulls me onto his lap and takes my face in his hands, tugging my lips closer as he covers my mouth with his. He tastes like home. He feels like home. My heart splinters a little more, and I fight the demons raging in my thoughts.
Timofey stands, lifting me with him, and carries me upstairs to our bed.
***
It’s Friday. Two in the morning. I’ve been awake the entire time, unable to close my eyes or look away from his beautiful sleeping face.
This might be the last time I ever see him.
I’ve dragged it out to the last minute. The last moment that I can spend in his arms, but now I have to leave.
I am not brave enough to tell him to his face, because if I do, there’s no telling what he’ll do. He might attack my brothers. He might lock me up and not let me leave. He might fight against what has to happen, blindly choosing me without realizing that he would be sacrificing his family and their safety. So I can’t give him the choice or any warning.
I have to carry this moment alone. And all the moments that come after it.
With my heart heavier than it’s ever felt, I slip out from beneath his embrace, carefully sliding away from him and pulling the blankets off myself.
I packed while he was at work yesterday and hid my bags in my old room. Tonight, before the sun even starts to rise, I have to leave.
Standing next to the bed, I look down at him for ages. I study every curve of his face, the shape of his jaw, trying to etch it into my memory forever.
Hot salty tears are streaming down my cheeks when I finally turn away from him and walk out of the bedroom.
Chapter 21 - Timofey
I stretch out, early morning sunshine pulling me awake as it dapples across my closed eyelids. Immediately, a smile spreads over my face, and I reach for her beneath the covers. She must have rolled away from me in the night, but this is my favorite time of day. Waking up and pulling her close again. Burying my face against her and smelling her beautiful, warm scent.
My hand slips beneath the covers in search of her, but she’s not here.
My eyes shoot open; I sit up, tilt my head, and listen.
I don’t hear anything. She’s not in the bathroom.
Maybe she couldn’t sleep and went to make tea.
The clock on my nightstand blinks red digits. Six thirty. It’s still early. I slept later than usual, though.
It’s been an incredible week. The attacks stopped, and I’ve been able to spend so much more time with Talia. That’s all I ever want. It’s the only place in the world I ever want to be—at her side.
Taking a deep, lazy breath, I kick the blankets off myself and throw my legs off the side of the bed, stretching again as I sit up, rolling my neck left then right.
She should have woken me. I would have made the tea for her.
I would do anything for her.
I grab my sweatpants, thrown carelessly aside last night as we undressed each other in a heated rush. I slide them up over my hips and wander downstairs in nothing else.
“Darling?” I call out as I walk toward the kitchen.
