And when he does… God help me.
His mouth crashes into mine like he’s been starving for a hundred days, and I’m the only thing left in the world that tastes like salvation.
He claims me.
And I let him.
Hell, Iwanthim to. Even if it ruins me.
His hand grips my waist, hard. The other tangles in my hair, tilting my head back like heownsme.
Somewhere behind us, Jasper lets out a strangled noise. “Oh my God, she’s gonna die happy. Grandma, look away.”
I barely hear him.
Because when Anton kisses me—God, when he kisses me—it’s not out of pity. It’s not polite. It’s a claim.
His mouth crashes into mine like he’s branding me from the inside out. It’s heat, hunger, devastation. His lips drag across mine, coaxing, then demanding. He bites—softly,thennot so softly—until I gasp, and he takes that too.
He kisses me like he’s starving. Like I’m the only thing that’s ever shut off the noise in his head.
My fingers clutch his jacket for balance, knees weak, lungs useless. He presses me closer, and I feel all of him—hard muscle, sharper intent. There’s nothing gentle here. Nothing safe. Just fire and skin and the certainty that if this man ever lets me go, it won’t be because he forgot.
It’ll be because he’s finished.
There’s no space. No air.
Only us.
And when he finally pulls back, his eyes don’t soften.
They darken.
“This is Day One, MaryMalikov.”
He says it like it’s already written in stone.
And God help me, I love how it sounds.
Like a vow. Like the end of everything Iusedto be.
I nod. Or maybe I blink. I’m not sure.
All I know is… TheoldMary—Mary Catherine Sullivan—died a hundred days ago. And this version? She just kissed her husband like she wasn’t terrified of what comes next.
And maybe that’s the scariest part of all.
All I know is this: A hundred days ago, I was invisible.
I was the “before” girl. The joke. The stepping stone to prettier sisters.
The one who covered for coworkers who left early and smiled while doing it.
The one who said "no problem" every time her boss dumped another last-minute report on her desk.
The one who got talked over in meetings and laughed at awkwardly, like she wasn’t part of the conversation.
The “you're so cool for a fat girl” compliments. The backup plans.
