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But I didn’t tell her that. She wouldn’t believe me if I did. “You can’t leave even if you wanted to.”
She raised her brows. “What does that mean?”
“It means you’re mine now, Giselle.” I took a sip from my whiskey and tried not to frown as the heat trailed down my throat. “We’re getting married.”
“Married.” She remained expressionless for a moment. “Oh, that. I told you I wasn’t going to marry you.”
“You don’t have a choice.”
“I do.” Her voice broke a little. Still, she managed to push her words through. “I’m not an idiot, Nikolai. Even animals have choices.”
“I don’t think you’re an idiot.”
“Well, you’re treating me like one,” she retorted. “I won’t marry you.”
“We are getting married, and that is final.” I finished my drink and walked out of the living room before I could see her crumble with sadness. She didn’t want this, I knew that very well, but it didn’t matter what she wanted. Her safety and our babies were my priority.
I signaled Mikhail to keep an eye on her, then strolled to the pool area outside.
Golden lights streamed in from the glass wall, striking a yellow glow on the surface of the pool. It was a cold evening tonight, and I guessed it was from the weight of the decision I made tonight.
If I were a smoker, I’d empty a packet of cigars right here, but Sergey’s dislike for cigarettes meant my brothers couldn’t smoke either. He’d kill us if he’d found any of us inhaling a cigar while we were younger.
I tucked my hand into my pocket and stared at the pool absent-mindedly. I knew marriage was a point of no return, what if I was making a mistake by marrying her?
“You look fucked.”
I craned my head to Sergey. “I am fucked.”
He smiled and walked to my side, then he buried his own hands in his pockets and stared at the pool, not absent mindedly though. Unlike me, who had to be logical, my brother didn’t have to second guess everything he did. Millions of thoughts crossed his mind in seconds, and he never held back when he needed to do or say something.
“Is she here yet?” he asked.
I nodded. “Vlad brought her in not long ago.”
“Have you told her yet?” He looked at me. “I guess she isn’t happy about it.”
She wasn’t. “How did you do it?” I met his gaze. “With Lilianna, I mean. How did you get her to become a good wife?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t do much, to be honest. I was honest with her and gave us a chance. Everything else fell in place eventually. I guess it was the universe rooting for us.”
I squinted at my brother. “That is poetic and heartwarming coming from the head of the Bratva.”
His lips quirked, and he let out a long exhale. “Only my family gets to see this version of me.”
I inclined with a nod. “Right.” He wasn’t bluffing. Only the Vadims saw the softer side of Sergey Vadim. To the rest of the world, he was a brutal mafia leader with no emotions. He loved it that way, emotions were a weakness in our world.
“What now?” he asked, concern marred his expression.
I shrugged. “I have to marry her.”
Silence permeated the air for a moment. “Do you love her?”
The question came so suddenly that I staggered backward. “Love?” Fuck. No. “I care for her because she’ll be the mother of my child. I want to protect her and make her life easy.” And my cock hardened whenever I thought of fucking her again, but love was a bit of a stretch.
“When do you want to get married?”
“Tonight or tomorrow, if possible, and in private.” I didn’t need to add that I wanted a private ceremony because I despised getting unnecessary attention from the Italians. For centuries, strong men in our world have been murdered during big occasions. It was common sense to avoid that from happening.
