"It's good to be king," I say.
I wink at her. Because I like the way she looks at me like she hates me.When I know her body is throbbing from our kiss.
She looks away. Her cheeks are pink and it’s not from the wine. It’s because the kiss warmed her blood as much as it warmed mine.
She clears her throat, clearly rattled. “Let’s move this along, shall we?”
A scribble of signatures later and we’re official.
Holly is my wife.Much to her disgust.
Father Dominic accepts the envelope of cash Dmitri hands him with a slight nod. "May God bless you both," he says.
And when he leaves, escorted out by Alexei and Dmitri, the room falls silent and we are alone.
"Mrs. Morozov," I say to Holly, testing the name.
Her eyes blaze. "Don't."
"It's your name now. You should get used to hearing it."
"I will never get used to this." She yanks at the ring, but it doesn't budge. "This isn't real. This doesn't mean anything. I'm not yours."
"The paperwork says differently." I smile. "You should get some sleep. Tomorrow we'll discuss the terms of our arrangement."
"What terms? You've made it clear I have no say in anything."
"You always have a say." I move toward her slowly, watching her tense. "You just might not like your options."
We stand there, husband and wife, staring at each other across a chasm wider than any blizzard. She hates me. I can see it written in every line of her body and hear it in every breath she takes.
Frustrated and angry, she turns and walks toward the stairs.
"Goodnight, Mrs. Morozov," I say.
But she doesn't respond and disappears down the hallway to her room.
13
HOLLY
I’m married.
To a dangerous Bratva boss.
Fuck my life.
The sooner I can get an annulment the better.
And don’t even get me started on that kiss.
I pull the comforter over my head and bury my head in my pillow.
And hope I’ll wake up tomorrow to find this was all a dream.
14
NIKOLAI
