Page 103 of Paved in Fire

“I can’t say I blame her.” I fix my shirt and watch them, my family, my whole world.

Matvey smiles at me, and wraps his other arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer. “I have everything I could ever want or need right here. As long as I have you two, I have everything.”

I bring my head closer to his and kiss him before resting against him. I put my hand on top of his so we’re both touching our daughter. He’s right. As long as I have the two of them, I have everything.

My body is exhausted from the labor and delivery, and when my eyes start to drift shut, Matvey kisses my head and strokes my hair.

“Get some sleep,malishka. You’re going to need it. Everyone will be in later to meet Yelena. Roman’s already texted me a million times to see how you’re doing, and they all think she’s absolutely gorgeous. He also said Finn is doing great and anxious to meet her.”

I smile at the thought of our huge family crowding into the room to meet our daughter. He’s right, I’m going to need all the sleep I can get.

“I love you, Matvey,” I whisper, my eyes too heavy to keep them open.

“I love you too, baby.” I can hear the smile in his voice when he says, “I’ll watch over my girls and make sure everything is taken care of.”

And I know he will. No matter what, Yelena and I will always be loved and protected. Nothing can hurt us as long as we’re together. With my heart full and my mind at peace, I fall asleep in my husband’s arms.

Matvey

I watch Alina fall into a deep sleep while Yelena breathes softly against my neck, and I can’t stop smiling. There were so many days, so manysleepless nights, were I convinced myself that this moment would never come, but it’s here. It’s finally fucking here.

Turning my head, I kiss our daughter, breathing in her sweet scent and feeling the silky, dark strands of her hair against my face. She’s perfect, absolutely perfect in every way. When she starts to wiggle around, I very carefully move my arm from around Alina so I can lay Yelena down in front of me. She’s nestled between my thighs, snug in her pink sleeper, and when she opens her eyes, the first thing she sees is her daddy grinning like an idiot.

“Hi, sweetie,” I say in Russian, wanting her to know the native language of her parents. It’s important to both of us that she speaks both English and Russian.

I run my finger over her soft cheek, amazed at every inch of her. When I first held her, I’d been afraid my scarred hands and rough voice would upset her, but she doesn’t seem to mind them at all, and when she grabs onto my finger, I can’t help but give a soft laugh. Her dark eyes study me, and even though we share the same eyes, I see so much of Alina in her. She’s the perfect mix of the two of us.

“Daddy loves you so much,” I whisper.

She kicks her feet and keeps a tight grip on my finger and smiles up at me. When I think about how dangerous the world is, it makes me want to wrap her in my arms and never let go, but I know I can’t do that. It wouldn’t be fair to her. I want her to live her life and enjoy it. I want her to be as happy as her mom and I are. I want everything for her, but the truth is that we’ve brought a baby into a Bratva family, and danger will always be a part of her life. My brothers and I will do everything to keep our family safe, but we all know how quickly things can change. We lost one of our own once, and we’ll be damned if it happens again. Never again will anyone in our family be taken. She may be a part of a dangerous family, but that also means she has me, four uncles, and several cousins who will be watching over her and keeping her safe, not to mention an entire goddamn Bratva. No one is going to get their hands on my precious daughter. I’ll kill any motherfucker who dares to try.

When Yelena flares her arms and legs out again, I smile and caress the soft hair on her head.

“No one will ever hurt you, sweetheart. Daddy will kill anyone who tries.”

She smiles at my whispered baby talk, and the look in her eyes is one of absolute trust and love, and I know I’ll do everything I can to make sure she always looks at me like that.

My family is everything, and I’ll do anything to protect them.

Picking my daughter back up, I nestle her against my chest and put my other arm back around my wife, because I want to hold them both while they sleep. My whole world is in my arms right now, and I never want to let them go, so I’ll happily hold them for as long as I can. I kiss my wife’s head and then my daughter’s, and I feel completely at peace.

Extended Epilogue

Five Years Later

Matvey

Evgeny runs over to me with a big smile on his cute face, and when I open my arms, my three-year-old son comes barreling into them with a laugh. He wraps his arms and legs around me, laughing when I spin him around.

“Daddy! Daddy!”

I look over and smile at Yelena. I can’t believe my little girl is already five. She’s growing too damn fast. Leaning down, I scoop them both into my arms while she clutches at my neck and kisses my cheek. She’s wearing her favorite red hoodie because she loves to dress like her daddy.

“Have you two been good for Mommy?”

Her dark eyes sparkle when she smiles and nods her head. “Evgeny and I helped bake cookies.”

“You made cookies?”

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