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I kissed her jaw, then leaned up to look at her. She looked like a goddess with her hair spread out around her head in wild tangles, her cheeks tinged pink, and her rosebud mouth tipped up at one corner.
“Being with me means no pain,anghele mou. I’d do anything to keep you safe.”
Her eyes clouded over, and a tear trickled down the side of her face. I caught it with my mouth, then kissed the spot where it had been. “Why the tears?”
She put her arms around my neck, sinking one hand into my hair. “You make me so happy.”
“I’m about to make you even happier, I hope.”
Her face smoothed out again, and she leaned up to kiss the corner of my lips, then my cheek. “Impossible.”
I growled, taking her mouth in a deep kiss. “Sounds like a challenge to me.”
After that there were no more words, the only sounds our labored breathing and me sliding in and out of her with careful movements I’d never thought I’d be capable of. But Vanna was more important to me than simply getting off.
I could do that anytime and with anyone. But only with her did I feel complete. Only with her did I want to last for as long as possible.
She soon met my strokes, lifting her hips and winding her legs around me. The knowledge that she felt comfortable enough with me to show me what she wanted made me feel like I could fly.
My restraint was slipping with every kiss and touch, my body demanding release. When I felt Vanna clench around me, her head thrown back in ecstasy, I finally allowed myself to let go. My climax washed over me, and I buried myself deep.
Not ready to let go of her—something I didn’t think I’d ever be able to do—I rolled us over so she was on top. We were still connected, and it wouldn’t take much for me to get hard again.
She pushed against me, but I put my arms around her, running my hands over her back. She tensed when I brushed over thick scar tissue, and I stilled. There were a lot of scars. Most of them were large, some of them smaller. But all of them must have caused her a lot of pain.
Not giving her a chance to stop me, I slid out from under her and held her on her belly. She’d never told me she had scars on her back. Was that what Mom meant when she said Vanna hasn’t had it easy?
She tried rolling over, but I was holding her hands over her head and had her hips pinned between my legs.
“Gabriel, stop.” Her voice was hoarse, her movements desperate as she wriggled underneath me. My hold wasn’t tight enough to hurt, but it was enough to keep her in place.
I took in the crisscross patterns all over her back with disbelief. This wasn’t from an accident. They were whipping marks.
Rage unlike any I’d ever felt before overtook me, and I struggled to talk through the red haze that had descended over me. “Who did this to you?”
I was certain I already knew the answer. But I needed to hear her say it.
“It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past. They don’t hurt anymore.”
“Do you really think that makes a difference? Whoever did this to you will pay. No matter if they hurt you ten years ago or today.”
Some scars were quite old, and I realized this must have happened over many years. She was still struggling underneath me, and I released her but didn’t let her get far. We ended up on our sides, facing each other, my legs tangled with hers, one arm around her, the other beneath her head.
“Vanna, look at me.” She lifted her head, the dull gleam of her eyes and resignation on her face sending a sharp pain through my body. “Tell me it wasn’t Aleksándr.”
“I can’t.” Her voice wavered and broke, her body deflating like a popped balloon. She rested her forehead against my chest, winding her arms around me. The wetness I felt against my skin broke my heart.
“He’ll never be able to hurt you again. I swear it on my life. You’re safe now.” It was a vow I would uphold until my last breath. I’d make him pay. Even if it meant starting the war we’d all been so desperately trying to avoid.
But for now, all I could do was hold my wife’s trembling body as she cried herself to sleep, cradled in my arms.
I realized with a start that we hadn’t used a condom. For the first time in my life, I hadn’t worn one, hadn’t even thought of putting it on.
Thinking of Vanna pregnant filled me with pride instead of the dread I would have felt before she came into my life.
Holding her small body close to mine, I listened to her soft breaths and promised that Aleksándr would never touch her again.
* * *
