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“Ready?” Scarlett whispers, her voice barely audible over the pounding of my pulse.
“Da,” I respond. I run my eyes from her head to her toes and then back again. The gentle swell of her belly is now visible beneath the cut of the dress…and it’s magnificent.
Her cheeks redden beneath my scrutiny. As she turns to pass her bouquet to Jess, I hear her muttering. “God, I feel like a whale.”
If we weren’t standing here in front of everyone who matters to us, I’d sweep her up against me and tell her that the sight of her carrying our child only makes me want her even more.
“You have never been more beautiful,” I assure her, my voice low and steady. She dimples up at me.
So fucking beautiful…
“Dearly beloved,” the minister is beginning, and I realize that this is it. The start of something new. Something better. Something an animal like me probably doesn’t even deserve.
As the minister speaks, I glance over at Luka. He nods, his eyes filled with something that I haven’t seen there before. Perhaps he feels it too – this shift from the world we shared. Niko is close at my side, his eyes wide as he follows the proceedings, his face beaming.
“Scarlett,” the minister prompts her, and she gives a nervous little smile.
“I, Scarlett Jones, take you, Anton Ulianov, to be my lawfully wedded husband…” she begins, her voice tremulous. “To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health.”
As she declares her commitment to me, I feel something change deep inside, as if a door that had been long locked is finally opened. Fuck, maybe this is what redemption feels like – the chance to build a life worth living, with people worth loving.
“Anton,” the minister turns to me and I swallow hard, knowing it’s my turn to make my vow to Scarlett.
“‘Ya, Anton Ulianov, brat tyebya, Scarlett, za svoiu zakonnuju ženu’– I, Anton Ulianov, take you, Scarlett Jones, to be my lawfully wedded wife.‘Chtoby imet’ i deržat’, nacinaja s etogo dnja’– To have and hold, from this day forward.” I continue my part of the vow that will bind us together. She won’t know all the words, but many of them will be more familiar to her now, after I’ve said them to her so many times.
“The rings?” the minister says, and Nikolai steps forward solemnly, holding out two small boxes. He’s taken his role so seriously that he spent the morning polishing the gold bands. They gleam now as the winter sun touches them.
“With this ring, I marry you,” Scarlett says as she reaches for my hand and slides the band over my knuckle. Her fingers tremble against mine and I squeeze them gently.
“With this ring, I marry you,” I repeat, locking our fingers once her own ring is firmly in place.
“It gives me great pleasure to pronounce you husband and wife,” says the minister. “You may now kiss the bride.”
Finally.
The part I’ve been waiting for. A breathless anticipation fills the air as I lean down and brush my lips against my wife’s. She slides her arms around my neck and pulls me down firmly, her lips parting beneath mine as she deepens the kiss, and I let her draw me into it. The violence that once consumed me falls away in this moment, replaced by a love so fierce and powerful, it humbles me.
A round of applause erupts around us as we break apart, our eyes locked in a silent promise. A promise I made once before…
I’ll kill for you.
I’ll die for you.
But somehow, I don’t think that will be necessary. Not anymore.
She smiles at me, and it’s a vision of pure joy.
“Alright, that’s enough you two,” I hear Ivan say behind me, his hand on my shoulder. “There’s partying to be done. There’s food to be eaten, vodka to be drunk!”
“Now you’re speaking my language,” Luka adds.
Our friends, our family cheer for us as we walk back down the aisle together. The cold bites at my face, but the warmth between us is enough to chase it away.
“Oh my God, look at that!” Scarlett laughs as we head out of the small chapel. Snow is coming down in little flakes that melt as they touch us.
“We’d better get inside before you freeze,Zayka,” I tell her. She shakes her head, tipping it back and catching tiny crystals on her tongue. I feel my cock hardening and wonder how soon we’ll be able to get out of this place.
I pull her close and lower my mouth to her ear, my breath ruffling the crimson tendrils of her hair. “I need to be inside you, Mrs. Ulianov.”
