“Where are you going?” I ask.
“Why? Do you want to spend time with me?”
“No,” I say without even thinking.
He doesn’t comment on that. “I have things to get in order. I need to check in with Sam. Make sure everything is going well in New York. But I’ll see you later tonight. Tomorrow, we have plans to go out. Enjoy our honeymoon.”
“Plans? To… go outside?”
“Yes. To the Paris Opera House. It’s time you start entering the world again.”
“Why do you care?” I don’t ask it in a mean way. Just a genuine curious way.
“Because you are mine, so therefore, I care. I am going to make you into the woman you want to be.”
Chapter Nine
Katya
Alek shows me the dress he wants me to wear to the Paris opera house. It’s a dark green flowy dress that looks like something a European princess would wear.
“It’s beautiful,” I say, gently touching it like I’m almost afraid I might ruin the dress somehow. After my wedding dress, anything is possible.
“Try it on. Undress for me.”
To his word, Alek did let me rest yesterday. For the most part, he left me alone and focused on business. It was a nice reprieve but now he’s back to demanding a lot from me. The difference today is that I’m prepared for it.
For some reason, I want Alek to look at my body again. I remember how he did the first time and it made me feel… sexy, which is something I never thought I would feel.
I swallow hard as I push my pants down but I keep my underwear in place. I need something to protect me, even if it is just a flimsy piece of fabric.
Alek’s eyes darken when I take my top off, revealing my bra underneath. “Take if off,” he says in a gruff voice. “You don’t wear a bra with this kind of dress.” He’s not wrong. The dress is strapless.
Slowly, I slip my bra down my arms and focus on my breathing so I don’t pass out from the way Alek is looking at me. Like he could eat me right up.
“Beautiful,” he murmurs when I hold my arms at my sides, my bare chest on display. I can’t look him in the eye. It’s too much. I can feel his presence. Sense the danger in him. The desire in him.
It’s intoxicating.
He walks around me, eyeing me over from every side. It’s a little dehumanizing but it’s also thrilling. Exciting in a way I never thought I would feel.
“Here.” He motions for me to raise my arms over my head and he slips the dress onto me. Once it’s in place, he turns me to the full length mirror in the bedroom so I can look at myself. And I can’t deny that the dress is a thing of beauty. That I look like a thing of beauty.
The dress is feminine and flowy but still womanly. Alek gives me a pair of black heels to wear and it only completes the ensemble.
“Did you ever think you’d wear something like this?” he asks, standing behind me and settling his hands on my arms.
“No,” I whisper. “I never needed to wear evening gowns in my room. I’ve never worn something like this before.”
“You look beautiful in it. As your husband, I promise to buy you more dresses like this so you can show off how beautiful you are.”
My heart skips a beat. “Does that mean we’re going out to occasions like this all the time?” I’m not sure if I’m ready for that.
“No. I’ll have you wear beautiful gowns like this even when we’re at home. You deserve to look beautiful every moment of the day.”
“For my kidnapper, you’re awfully nice sometimes.”
He chuckles darkly as he presses his lips to my ear. “I’m not nice. This is purely for selfish reasons. I just don’t have the desire to make you afraid of me. Nothing is sweeter than making you fall in love with me and crushing Dimitri to dust.”
