Page 26 of The Russian's Bought Bride

“Because I won’t let it happen.”

The words come out without hesitation and without thought, but I don’t take them back. I already compromised the whole thing just getting her out of there, and I’m sure as hell not letting them win after all that.

She examines me again like she’s weighing that promise and deciding if my word is trustworthy enough. Finally, her resolve is strong enough for me to feel it from across the space. “I’ll stay. For now.”

Something in my chest eases slightly, and I nod despite the small part of me that recoils at the thought.

But before it can take control of the situation, I push that thought down. “I just need some time to sort things out, but I promise you, Danielle, they will suffer.”

She watches me a moment longer, then her shoulders relax, and she exhales slowly. “Okay…and it’s Dani, by the way.”

“What?” I ask stupidly, thrown by the pivot.

She pulls in another breath and sits a little straighter, as if introducing herself for the first time. “That’s what I go by. Just Dani is fine.”

“Oh,” I murmur, forcing myself to sound more sure again. “Noted.”

As our fragile agreement fits into place, she glances toward the kitchen again and hesitates. Then, when she decides it’s time, she pushes herself up slowly and walks over.

Finally.

Still, I don’t comment, and I don’t make it a thing.

Sitting at the island, she picks at the food at first, taking small, slow bites before regaining her bearings. Either way, she’s eating, and that’s enough to settle some of my concerns.

I keep an eye on her for a moment longer than I should, all the while relief cloaks me, but I remind myself not to cling to it too much. Beneath it is something I don’t even want to touch, because in truth, this is temporary. It has to be.

Eventually, I’ll figure things out, and she’ll leave. She’ll go back to whatever life she can rebuild from this, and I’ll go back to mine. That’s the only way it can end.

But as I lean back in my seat and watch her take another small bite, I can’t ignore the quiet, unwelcome thought pressing at the edges of my mind.

I don’t want to let her go.

Chapter 8 - Dani

I don’t trust this feeling, and at this point, I don’t trust myself.

Things are far more complicated now than they had been when I first woke up. Even though Liam is keeping me here, when I look at him, I don’t see someone who wants to hurt me.

I’ve tried to find the cruelty, since that would make this easier to define and easier to reject. Something that would let me think without a doubt that he’s dangerous, and I need to get out of here regardless of what it costs.

But it’s not there, or if it is, it’s buried too deep for me to see, and that makes this worse.

Now, I’m stuck in this space where I don’t know what he is, be it a captor, protector, or a straight-up liar. He could be all of the above, but none of this sits right with me.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stare at my hands and turn them over in my mind for what feels like the hundredth time.

I want to leave, and I know I need to. That part hasn’t changed.

Every instinct I have tells me I should be out there, calling the police, tracking down real answers, and doing something other than sitting in this house like some guest who isn’t allowed to leave. That part alone is enough of an indicator that I’m not entirely safe regardless of what he says.

But then the other thought that I don’t want to admit holds weight and comes creeping in again.

What if he’s right?

What if going out there means stepping right back into something I don’t understand, and what if those people aren’t done? They’ve already taken my dad from me; I don’t need to be their next victim.

My stomach twists as I struggle to understand where any of this might take me. I don’t know how big this is, who’s involved, or what happens to people who get in their way.