Page 85 of Obsession of the Bratva

“You have never looked more beautiful,” he whispered, the praise he felt shining in his eyes.

“Really?” I asked, suddenly beaming. One compliment from him made me feel like life was worth living again.

“Oh yes. The dress is made for you.”

“Well, you or whoever you had pick out clothes for me clearly has good taste.”

“Thank you, my love. I will keep that in mind,” he winked. “Are you ready to go now?”

“No.”

“Good. Let’s go.”

I laughed and he squeezed my hand in his, tucking it in his side. The simple gesture did something stupid to my chest, as if it was his way of telling me that I belonged there. I belonged beside him. He squeezed my fingers once and then led me downstairs and right outside, where a car was already waiting for us. We drove in silence for most of the way. The strange normalcy of the night surprised me. My arm had fully healed and things were still mad and chaotic, but Kliment had insisted on a family dinner. Everyone had to come so I could be formally introduced to the family.

I loved the gesture, but it only made me exceedingly nervous.

The dinner was being held at Kliment’s house, and we reached there in about thirty minutes. As Nico rounded the driveway, I realized that the house turned out to be less of a house and more of a luxury fortress. The moment we arrived, I understood where Nico got it from. Romanov men apparently viewed subtlety as a personal insult.

The front doors opened before we even reached them and a familiar face appeared.

It was Ilana and I was so glad to see her. I at least needed someone I knew around me, except for Nico.

“There she is.” I barely had time to smile before she wrapped her arms around me. The affection surprised me, but I took it happily, already feeling like a part of the family. She pulled back and looked me over. Then narrowed her eyes at Nico. “Are you feeding her?”

Nico blinked. “What?”

“She looks thinner.” She said to Nico and then turned to me. “You look thinner. Are you okay? Is it because of the gunshot wound?”

“I literally made her dinner last night; she is eating fine.” Nico slid his arm around my waist and pulled me to his side as if claiming ownership.

Ilana gasped dramatically. “You cooked?”

“I can cook.”

“That is deeply concerning.”

I started laughing, and Nico looked personally offended. Avgust Chernykh appeared behind his wife, looking fine as ever in yet another custom-made suit. Did all these mafia men wear custom cuts only? I was genuinely intrigued.

“Ignore my wife, Nico. She has a habit of making sure everyone suffers.”

“I am trying to ignore her, Avgust, but it is rather impossible. You really need to fix these bad habits of hers.”

“I am standing right here?” Ilana croaked out, horror written all over her face. Despite that, I knew it was all fake.

“I did try to fix it, but she only kept getting worse, so now I have just learned to live with it,” Avgust shrugged, trying to appear sad.

“Such a drama queen.” Ilana rolled her eyes. I could see these two were in love because it was exactly the way Nico and I fought as well.

“Oh, you’re still here,” Avgust said, sharing a look with Nico and me. “Didn’t notice you.”

“You married me.”

“One of my biggest mistakes.”

“Lie.”

“Probably.”