Our eyes meet over the table, and I see the challenge in hers.
“Excuse me?”
“That wedding ring means something. Don’t take it off.”
“It’s not a ring, Nikolai. It’s a shackle.”
“It declares you as my wife. It stays.”
She starts to slide it off immediately, just to see what I’ll do. "Make me keep it on."
I stand.
She stands.
“Don’t challenge me.”
But I can see the contempt and fire in her eyes.
It’s exactly what she is going to do.
Because this is the only battle she can win in the war.
But only momentarily.
"I'm not yours." She drops the ring on the table.
"Aren't you? You wear my name. You sleep under my roof."
“Because I’m forced to.”
I smile. “But I don’t force you to want me. And there is no mistake you want me.”
"Fuck you, Nikolai."
"Eventually." I start to move. "But not until you ask."
She backs away as I round the table. "I'll never ask."
"We'll see." I drag my fingertips along the tabletop as I move toward her and pick up her ring.
"God, you're arrogant. You really think I'll just fall into bed with you?"
"I think you already want to."
"You are the most delusional human being I’ve ever met."
"Am I?" I move closer. She retreats until her back hits the wall. "Your body doesn't lie,solnyshko. Every time I get close, your pupils dilate. Your breathing changes."
"That's fear."
"Liar." I brace one hand on the wall beside her head. "That's desire."
"You're insane."
"Maybe." I reach between us and slide the ring back on her finger, watching her face. “This doesn’t leave your finger again.”
She swallows thickly. “And if it does?”
