Page 81 of Savage Pakhan

“Why?” He snaps, whipping his head in my direction. “Why aren’t you furious at him? At me? I don’t understand, Mia. He is my son. That means he is the way he is because of me. How many other women have been hurt and I don’t know?” He loses momentum, his anger losing steam as he speaks. “I don’t know how I could have missed it.” His thumb brushes across my jaw, the callouses on his fingers slightly scratch me with ever pass.

“It isn’t your fault. You are nothing like him. If you were, I wouldn’t be here, Alek. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near you.” I scoot closer, my knees hitting his thigh, and I squeeze his hands with mine. “You’ve been nothing but kind and gentle with me any and every time you see me. You were always there even when Ivan wasn’t. Even at my own bridal shower he couldn’t be bothered to show up.”

“I know about the affairs” I keep going. “The women. I knew he never really wanted me, but I had no idea there was a way out. I thought this was my life and I accepted my responsibility as the Roswell daughter. I know how arranged marriages work. I had hoped to get lucky and hope he loved me and…” I exhale with a shake of my head. “And maybe at one point he did.”

“Love doesn’t cause harm. I don’t believe Ivan is capable of love. I don’t know what happened or where it went wrong, but I know you were a good father. Sometimes, the apple is rotten, Alek, no matter how much you water the roots.”

“I just hate that his rottenness touched you. You’re too beautiful to be shadowed by such evil,” he says, defeated. “I promise to never hurt you like that, Mia. I swear on my life, you’ll always be safe with me.”

“I know.” I crawl into his lap and press my head against his shoulder. “I’m the safest I’ve ever been.”

We fall into a comfortable silence. The chains groan holding us up as Alek swings us by using his feet, pressing them against the ground.

“You know you’re mine, right?”

“I know that,” I smile, burying my smile into his chest.

I love hearing it.

“No.” He lifts my head by squeezing the back of my neck and pulling my head up for our gazes to me. “You’re mine, Mia. Mine. You belong to me just as I belong to you. I am not saving you from Ivan just to be nice or because I pity you. I don’t pity you. I am… astounded by you. You are brave. You are strong. I love you. You are mine because I need you to be mine. The thought of you with anyone else has me become murderous.”

“I love you too⁠—”

“No. You don’t understand. You can never be with anyone else again. You are mine. Forever. This isn’t a way to save you—that’s just a perk.”

“I never want to be with anyone else. Ever. Are you worried about that?” My stomach turns at the thought of another man’s touch on me.

“You are so beautiful.” His finger continues to trace the edges of my face. “You deserve to know what your options are. You’ve never dated. You’re twenty years younger than me. I’m too old for you, I know that, but I don’t want to let you go. I fear that if you did want to explore…” he growls. “Other options, I might kill them.”

I snicker, placing my arms on top of his shoulders. “I don’t want anyone else, Alek. I love you. And you aren’t too old for me. If I truly didn’t want you, I would have run away when you brought me back to life after the accident. I don’t care about exploring ‘other options.’ I don’t want to explore. The only man I want is you. No one, no other man could ever make me feel what you make me feel.” My fingers play with the ends of his hair that curls on his nape.

His eyes drop to my mouth before slowly lifting to meet my gaze again. I lick my lips, a stampede of wild horses slamming against my chest as my heart races.

Alek’s giant hand palms the back of my head and pushes us together. He captures my lips within his. The kiss isn’t soft. It’s demanding and powerful. While he keeps one hand on the back of my head, the other grabs at my waist, bunching the shirt I’m wearing in his fist.

The material lifts higher up my thigh, exposing me to the cool forest air. He groans down my throat, slipping his fingers down my back. With two hands clutching my hips, he changes my position so I’m straddling his lap. My legs drop to either side of his thighs and I settle onto the solid evidence of his want.

His hard cock bulges his sweatpants and I’m able to feel the warmth and girth of it against my panties.

I gasp at the sensation, cupping my hands on either side of his neck to touch every bit of him I can. His tongue pushes into my mouth, sliding against mine. I can taste the lingering coffee from earlier, energizing me with a quick lightning strike to my blood.

My hands become needy, grabbing his arms, his chest, inching his shirt up so I can feel his skin against mine. His fingers dig into my back, pulling me against him and my hips roll over his cock.

We moan in unison.

Alek sucks my bottom lip into his mouth, gently flicking the tip of his tongue over the plump flesh. His fingers dig into my hips, the blunt fingernails trying to break the skin.

“I’ll never get enough of you.” Alek nips at the side of my throat, the sharpness of his teeth pinching me just enough to cause me to gasp.

“I’ll never get enough of you either.” I bury my hands in his thick silver hair, twisting the soft strands between each finger.

My panties become soaked and warm, my clit throbs, begging for Alek’s attention. Needing relief, I rock my hips along his thick shaft tenting his sweatpants.

Alek rips his lips from mine, throwing his head back and releasing a groan so loud, it echoes through the shadows the forest casts. I slip my hand down his chest, stomach, then grab the waistband. I need him. I need to feel him inside me.

He grabs my wrist to stop me, shaking his head through uneven gasps of air. “Just like this.”

“Alek, but⁠—”