Page 131 of Gilded in Blood

His expression doesn’t change. “You’re sure?”

I smile. “I’ve never been surer of anything.”

He stays quiet, waiting. I know he wants more than a one-word answer.

So I give it to him. “He makes me happy. I love him more deeply than I ever thought I could love another person. I⁠—”

“Okay.” Artyom lifts a hand. “That’s enough.” He pinches the bridge of his nose, and exhales dramatically. “The more you talk, the more reasons I find to go put a bullet in his head.”

I smack his arm. “You are not shooting my boyfriend.”

He cracks a smile. “I’m kidding. Mostly.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “If you shoot him, I’ll never forgive you.”

He sighs toward the sky. “See? This is exactly what I mean.”

He shakes his head before growing serious again. “I know you love him, but listen to me, if there ever comes a day when he hurts you…”

His eyes lock onto mine.

“If you ever decide you don’t want to be with him anymore, you come to me. If that man ever gives you a reason to leave him…”

His jaw flexes. “Just say the word, and I’ll put a bullet in the motherfucker’s head.”

I groan and swat his arm again. “Will you stop threatening to shoot my boyfriend?”

“Just saying.”

My smile softens. “I’m glad I’ve always had you. You’ve always had my back. You and Mikhail.” My voice grows quieter. “I don’t think I’ve ever thanked you enough for that.”

His expression shifts almost imperceptibly.

“But…” I continue, “…maybe it’s time you carry a little less.”

“You have your own family now. Kira needs you. Your baby needs you. You don’t have to keep carrying Calina and me on your shoulders.”

He frowns. “Neither of you has been a burden.” He shakes his head. “I don’t care if you’re both married. You and Calina will always be my responsibility, and I’ll always look out for the two of you.”

The words hit me harder than I expect, and before I can stop myself, I throw my arms around Artyom.

He stiffens immediately. I smile against his chest. There it is, the awkwardness.

Calina and I have spent years tormenting him with hugs because we know he never knows what to do with them.

After a second, one of his hands comes up and gives my back an awkward pat.

I hug him a little tighter. “Thank you. For everything.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Milana

The moment I step out onto the wooden deck, my breath catches.

“Oh my God, this place is beautiful.”

The private island feels like something out of a dream. Turquoise water stretching as far as the eye can see, palm trees swaying in the breeze, and the beach house perched elegantly on the shore.