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“What?” Chris says, and his tone makes it clear he is not happy.
I meet his eyes. “I married your daughter. She’s my wife now.”
He doesn’t return my smile. “Can I speak to you in private?”
I look down at Emily, making sure she’s okay. When she gives me a nod, I lean down and kiss her, and then whisper in her ear, “Holler if you need me, baby.”
“I will.”
She pats my hand to reassure me, and when I turn to Chris, I see him staring at Emily’s hand. He’s not admiring her diamond ring, though, he’s looking at her wrist, trying to see if there’s a tattoo there. Chris is trying to connect some dots. I wait until he meets my eyes and then grab Emily’s other wrist so I can kiss it, making sure he gets a clear view of both her unmarked wrists. Emily pretends she has no idea what I’m doing, and Chris relaxes the tension in his shoulders. The last thing I want is for my wife to be involved in this any more than she already is. With her tattoo covered up, he’s convinced himself that my pet is not his daughter.
I squeeze her hand once more before following her dad into his office, as soon as the door is shut, he turns to me, pointing his finger at my chest.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he hisses at me.
“Careful, Chris,” I warn, eyeing his finger until he takes the hint and pulls his fucking hand back. When he takes a step back, I shrug and say, “I love your daughter. I asked her to marry me, and she said yes.”
“You have a pet plaything, Roman, and you killed five fucking men for touching her!”
“And one woman.” I smile, but when he doesn’t return it, I sigh and say, “I don’t see how any of that is connected to this. You have playthings, and you have a wife and daughter. Why can’t I do the same?”
“Because it’s my fucking daughter!”
“Careful, Chris, don’t stroke out on me.” I laugh, but he doesn’t join in. “All right, all right,” I say, holding up a hand to placate him. “I understand your concern, so let me set your mind at ease. I love your daughter, and I will never hurt your daughter. What happened at the club has nothing to do with her. David fucked up, and I had his permission to clean up the mess. Problem solved, and you’re welcome for keeping that giant fuck-up under wraps.”
Chris scrubs a hand over his face and then goes to pour himself a whiskey. I shake my head when he offers me one. He downs it and pours another.
“Did you kill Connor?”
I smile. “What do you mean? Connor was lured in and murdered for his money. That’s not really my style.”
Chris can’t decide if I’m telling the truth or not, and I couldn’t give less of a shit about it. I take a seat in one of the leather chairs and rest my ankle on my knee.
“Things are going well between us. I see no reason for that to change. Pink will be opening soon, and I see a long, prosperous future in front of us. David said you have a shipment coming in, and I have four brothers who are getting antsy. We have money to spend, Chris.” I hold his gaze. “A lot of money to spend. You may not like all of our methods, but we’re not a threat to anyone who doesn’t start shit first. A rule was broken, my girl got hurt, so I fixed it. Done. There’s no need to discuss it any further.”
He finishes his second drink while he thinks. Finally, he says, “I agree. It’s best to move past it.” Setting his empty glass down, he starts to do some fast math and grins. “You really have four brothers interested in making investments?”
“I do.”
He tries to hide his smile and fails. Letting out a soft laugh, he smacks my back and gives my shoulder a squeeze. I grit my teeth to not break his wrist.
“Welcome to the family, son.”
I smile and promise myself yet again that one day I’ll put a bullet in his head. My smile grows. When we leave the office, I see the look on Angela’s face and almost laugh. It’s red from anger and her lips are pinched in a thin line. Emily turns to face me, and I’m so fucking proud of her. Her head is held high, and there’s a peaceful look in her eyes. She walks over, wrapping an arm around my waist and tilting her face to mine.
“Change of plans,” she says. “Let’s grab some steaks and take them back to the house instead.”
I laugh and kiss her. “Sounds perfect, solnishka.”
We turn and leave without a backward glance. My business with Chris is far from over, but my wife has decided she no longer needs to put up with their shit, and I’m more than happy to back her on that. She’ll always have my support in anything and everything. We leave her old family behind, and when we show up at the penthouse carrying bags from the best steakhouse in the city, my brothers remind her of the family she now has. She smiles up at them, laughing at their jokes and blushing every time I give her a quick wink. It’s perfect. The only thing missing is Alina, but I know she’ll be here soon, and then we’ll all be together as the family we’ve chosen to become.
Grabbing Emily when she walks by, I pull her into my lap and kiss her until I’m forced to come up for air. Her hands cup my face as she smiles and rests against me.
“Thank you, Roman.”
“For what, baby?”
“For everything.” She looks around at my brothers who are still happily stuffing their faces. “For this, for wanting me, for protecting me, for marrying me.” She smiles again. “For everything.”
