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Only Nik and Roman know the truth, but not the extended family. He told them that somebody attacked us in our home. He gave Uncle Lev a hero’s death, though I don’t know why.
Maybe it was to protect his own heart.
Once the first shovelful of dirt is thrown, Aunt Libby stands up and wipes her hands on her dress. She looks at me across the grave, one eyebrow arching and the corner of her mouth curving.
Uncle Lev’s death is no real loss to her, even though she once loved him. It was clear to me that she stopped loving him a long time ago and was just waiting for the day when she would be free of him.
As I look up at Ivan, I know that if anything ever happens to him, I will be a wreck. I won’t be able to sit beside his graveand feel freedom. Someone would have to hold me back from crawling into the grave with him.
People start to disperse as I reach down and take Ivan’s hand in my own.
I don’t know how to ask him if he’s okay because I know he’s not. He keeps staring down at the casket like Uncle Lev is going to jump out and be the man that Ivan remembers.
I would give anything to take his pain and make it my own. Anything to lighten his burden even a tiny bit. Just a tiny bit.
But I cannot. All I can do is stand here in a black dress, hold his hand, and pretend that the death of a monster bothers me.
I’m glad he’s dead. He can never hurt us again.
“Let’s go,” I say in a faint voice as Ivan turns to me with a pained look. I start to lead him to the car because I need to get him away from his people. I only want them to see his strength. Not his weakness. “It’s over.”
He is silent as we walk to the car, and none of us says anything more. He nods to Nik and Roman as they walk over and hands them a flask. We stand by the car together, watching as people still pay their respects to Uncle Lev.
May he rot in hell forever.
Ivan looks over to the grave. “Fuck, I killed my uncle, my blood. But I don’t feel guilty. He deserved it.”
“You can feel however you want to feel about it.” I loop my arms around his waist and pull him into a tight hug. “If youdidn’t take care of him, this never would have ended. You would have either been arrested or killed.”
I could see it in Uncle Lev’s eyes that day. He looked crazed. There was only one way that we were leaving that room and it meant he had to die.
“He was going to kill you. He turned against me. I don’t know how I could have let him live after that.” His voice is hollow as he rests his chin on top of my head. “He was a traitor. He shouldn’t have had a funeral. I should have told everyone the truth about what Uncle Lev did, but I couldn’t.”
“Let’s get in the car,” I say, glancing at the people around us. “Your people have been through enough today and so have you.”
Ivan nods and slides into the car, his gaze vacant as I get in beside him. I hold his hand in mine as he starts the engine.
“You did what you had to do.” I run my thumb over the dozens of small scars on his knuckles. “You promised you would protect me, and you did. There was no sign that Uncle Lev had turned on you. Not at all.”
“He was like a father to me. For my entire life, when I didn’t feel like I could turn to my father, he was there. He was just biding his time until he could take control of the Bratva. He ruined our family.”
“He can be a traitor and a person you loved, Ivan. There’s no need to reduce him to just one thing.”
Ivan lifts my hand to his mouth and kisses it on the back. “You amaze me, you know. You are a strong woman. I can’t imagine my life without you anymore. I wish we had starteddifferently. I should have treated you like a princess, but instead, I forced you into a life where a gun was held to your head twice, one of them being my uncle, it’s so fucking unbelievable.”
“I do not regret it.” I squeeze his hand and smile. “The beginning of our relationship may not have been ideal, but I love you, Ivan. I wouldn’t change a moment of the life we’ve already shared.”
“Whoa - what?“ His face is beaming. “You love me?” He smiles and leans over the console at a red light to kiss me. “I love you too, Sophia. I never thought I would ever say those words to a woman, but the moment I saw you in The Quartz, I knew that you were the one I wanted, doll. Even if you were trying to kill me.”
I laugh and lean my head on his shoulder. “You know, I keep thinking about that night. Maybe we should go back there and see where it leads when I'm bent over the bar in the private room this time.”
Ivan grins, turning a corner and heading straight to The Quartz. “And you are a mind reader too, things are starting to get better every minute, doll.”
As we walk into the place where it all began, I fall even more in love with my husband. He leads me to the private room and closes the door behind us, his mouth closing over mine in a passionate kiss.
The start of our marriage may not have been perfect, but I know that the years to come will be.
*****
THE END
