And I stand beside him as an equal. Not his possession, not his captive, but his partner in every sense of the word.
“Remember when you thought you could escape me?” Mikhail murmurs in my ear during a lull in conversation.
I turn to him, letting my lips curve into a smile. “Remember when you thought you could break me?”
His eyes darken with heat and something deeper. “You broke me instead,moya lyubov.”
“No.” I touch his face, feeling the slight stubble beneath my palm. “We broke each other. Then we rebuilt something stronger.”
He captures my hand, pressing a kiss to my wedding ring. The diamond catches the light, a physical symbol of vows we made not in a church but in blood and fire.
As dessert is served, Elena’s famous tiramisu, Tony catches my eye across the table. There’s a question there, one we’ve danced around for months.
“Soph,” he says carefully. “Have you thought about what we discussed?”
Everyone falls quiet. They know what he’s asking.
Mikhail’s hand tightens on mine, but he says nothing. This is my choice to make.
I take a breath. “I have. And the answer is yes.”
Tony’s face breaks into a grin. Melinda squeals. Even Marco looks pleased.
“What’s this?” Elena asks, looking between us.
“Sophia’s going to take a more active role in operations,” Tony explains. “She’s been my partner in enforcement for a while now, but we’re making it official. She’ll be running the East Coast territories.”
It’s true.
Over the past three years, I’ve discovered that I have a talent for strategy, for reading people, for knowing exactly when to show mercy and when to strike without hesitation.
The girl who was kidnapped would be horrified.
The woman I’ve become understands that sometimes love means being willing to do terrible things to protect what matters.
“To Sophia,” Mikhail says, raising his glass again. His eyes hold mine, filled with pride and something that looks like awe. “My queen. My equal. My everything.”
“My mommy!” Nicole yells and everyone chuckles.
“To Sophia,” the others echo.
Later, after everyone has left and the house is quiet with Nicole sleeping peacefully in her room, Mikhail and I stand at the window again.
The city glitters beneath us, full of secrets and shadows, all of them ours to command.
“No regrets?” he asks again, pulling me close.
I think about the girl I was, the woman I’ve become.
I think about the empire we’ve built, the family we’ve created, the future stretching before us like an unwritten book.
“Not a single one,” I whisper against his lips. “We’re going to rule this world together.”
“Forever,” he promises.
And as he kisses me, I know it’s true.
We’ve created not just a criminal organization, but a dynasty.
