Page 139 of Deadly Knight
The old carpet has been swapped out for a refreshed, plushier one in the same shade of grey. At the top landing, she peeks into the bathroom that’s been outfitted with a new glass shower and sinks, while keeping the same layout. Her old room remains asempty as when she last saw it; I figured she can decide what she’d like done with it.
The master bedroom has been designed with a bed similar to mine in the mansion, simply because she seems so comfortable in it and I enjoy the look of her in it entirely too much to change. It’s a four-poster frame that fills most of the room, and given how she smiles at the sight, I’ve chosen well.
She paces forward, tracing her fingertips along the emerald green comforter
“You…”
“Katerina helped, technically.” Actually, she made ninety percent of this possible. “The interior designer. After telling her what I believed you’d want, she made it possible. If there’s anything you don’t like, change it. If you hate it all, undo everything. I don’t care.”Fuck, why is this so much harder than murdering people.“I mean?—”
“It’s perfect,” she breathes. “Homey, and nice. It’s us.”
It’s normal. Regular. Average.
Average, except the amount of security Lev installed. There’s cameras covering every inch of the outdoors, alarms on every door and window, fingerprint sensors on all exterior doors, remote monitoring software that’ll alert me to anything amiss, as well as send a secondary alarm to Lev, just in case.
All of this is what makes this place perfect. In her words: us.
Outside is the neighbourhood I once spent so much time hanging around. Having neighbours this close is different from the mansion and its chunk of land, where the closest people are far down the road. That’s the life I grew up in; all I’ve known.
It’s this one I’ll prefer. The quiet one, where after a day with the Bratva I come home to Katya after she returns from her counselling job. We cook dinner, talk, and hang out.
No more stalking. No more pain. No more revenge.
Only peace.
There’s just one more thing.
Nerves over what she’d think of the house aside,thisnearly had me turning around and undoing my every plan.
She paces the room, heading for the right side of the bed—her side. Chosen because it’s the half she most often takes at the mansion. She stops abruptly, and that’s when I know she’s noticed the addition to the night stand.
A ring box, lid opened to reveal the ring that waits for her inside. A mix of emeralds to match the ribbon representing our relationship, and surrounded by small diamonds. Nothing huge, despite what I would want for her, but knowing Katya, she wouldn’t enjoy the weight.
“Is that…?” She trails off, tearing her attention from the ring and over to me. The sight of her watery eyes nearly drops me to my knees.
“Since telling me you were coming home, I’ve driven myself crazy trying to determine when would be the right time. For you, we’ve only recently gotten back together, so you might want to wait. For me, we were never apart. We’re long overdue. The best way, I figured, would be to leave it with you. Katya…from the moment we met, you were it for me. This ring should have been on your finger years ago, but that future was robbed from us, so I’m reclaiming it. With this ring, I’m asking you to marry me without the threat of a timeline. Marry me,moya dusha, whenever you’re ready. The ring is yours to keep. You can close it up for the next few days, months, or years. Only wear it when you’re ready to be engaged, and then I’ll ask you again. Or you can slip it on today. You choose, Katya, because choice is something I’ve never truly given you. Our past is the past; today has proven that. Our future is on your terms.”
The fact I got all that out is worthy of a fucking medal.
She stares at the ring. At me. At the ring.
There’s no consideration in her expression. No concentration. Just curiosity. Shock. Words unspoken, thoughts unannounced.
She reaches forward, no doubt to flick the box shut and hide it for the next few years. It’ll break me a bit, but my words were the truth. I’ll understand and respect the time she needs.
“I wanted a bigger stone. You deserve everything, Katya. But I figured you wouldn’t enjoy wearing it if it was too heavy.”
“You’re right,” she murmurs, stroking her finger over the emerald. “Besides, a lot of my clients don’t always have much in terms of finances, and boasting a rock on my finger makes me less relatable.”
I hadn’t thought of that, but of course she did.
She takes the ring and slides it onto the fourth finger of her left hand. It hurts that I couldn't be the one to do it for her, but she really needed the choice more than I needed to satisfy my selfish desires. Besides, my turn will be at our wedding ceremony.
She turns to face me. Her eyes are watery, and my mind stops working. She smashes every defense left standing when she cups my face and brings me closer, lightly pressing her lips to mine.
And she nods.
“Da. I’ll marry you. I accept your proposal right now. You’re right; we’ve waited too long already.”
