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He’s about to open his mouth and say something when Dina interrupts, clearing her throat.
“The food is ready if you are.”
Valery looks irritated but nods as she comes in with two large portions of beef stroganoff and homemade bread.
She smiles at me as she sets mine down in front of me. “Enjoy.”
“Thank you.”
Dina leaves hastily, sensing Valery’s impatience.
“I have something for you,” he says, as soon as she is gone.
I bite the inside of my cheek as he pulls out a black velvet box, making my heart rate speed up.
“What is it?”
“A family heirloom. I want you to have it.” He passes the velvet box across the table and I take it, feeling anxious to actually look inside.
I flip open the lid and there’s a beautiful vintage diamond ring sitting in the center of the cushion. “A ring?” I shake my head. “Why would you give something so important to me?”
He tilts his head. “Because you are more important to me than anything else in this world, Anya.”
“That makes no sense.”
“It makes perfect sense. I’ve known since the day we met that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you.”
The painful sensation I feel clawing at my chest feels like it’s trying to starve me of oxygen as tears gather in my eyes. “How?”
He shakes his head. “I don’t know how, I just knew. I love you.”
“I love you too,” I murmur, unable to believe that he feels the same way I do. “Even if it is completely crazy.”
“I want my ring on your finger to prove that you are mine.”
“Marriage?” I confirm.
He nods.
“What about my father? He won’t allow it.”
Valery’s jaw works. “Let me worry about your father and what comes next.”
I swallow hard and glance down at the ring, feeling more hope than I’ve ever felt.
Hope that I actually will have a say in my own future and won’t be forced to marry someone I don’t care for, but is it a foolish hope?
My father is far more powerful than Valery and his bratva. If he marries me and parades it around Moscow, he won’t rest until Valery is six feet under, and I can’t lose him.
“I’m scared,” I admit.
“Scared of what, printessa?”
I swallow hard. “Scared that all of this is just a fairytale that can never come true.”
“Believe me, printessa. I’m going to make it come true, no matter the costs.”
My brow furrows. “No matter the costs?”
