Her words make me suddenly and violently begin laughing. She smiles with me, which is as much as anyone will ever get out of Vik.

“You really did want him, didn’t you?” I ask once my laughter dies down.

“Yeah. Because I thought he was worthy of me. Now I know that no man is. I’ll be a spinster forever.”

“You’re not going to be a spinster forever, Vik.”

She shrugs. “I don’t like to put up with anyone’s bullshit. And I feel like a lot of Bratva men are full of bullshit. So, I’m good being on my own.”

“Not if Boris has his way.”

The shudder that racks her body is almost comical. “Well, we’re here now. Boris can’t force himself on Mila any more than he can force me to marry another man.”

“Just don’t do anything stupid to make Mikhail want to kick you out again, please.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

VIKTORIYA

I barge into Mikhail’s office. “You’re supposed to be taking care of my sister.”

Mikhail slowly lifts his eyes from his computer to me. “What is this about, Viktoriya?”

“Sofiya told me everything about last night. I’m here to remind you to make sure she’s safe.”

“I did. And since you know everything, then you will know that’s why I killed Irina. To keep Sofiya safe.”

“I meant from you.”

Mikhail sighs and leans back in his seat. “Is this conversation going to last a long time?”

“No. I’ll keep it short. Never put Sofiya in a dangerous situation like that again.”

“Or what?”

Instinctively, I take a step back. “What?’

“You said I should never put Sofiya in a dangerous situation again. There was an implied ‘or what’ included in that. So … or what? What will you do if I put Sofiya in another dangerous situation?”

“Or … you’ll regret it. I’ll have no choice but to hurt you.”

Mikhail looks at me for a moment before laughing. It stings, even though I would never admit that. “You can’t hurt me, Viktoriya. You and I both know that. And since we’re on the topic of threats, if you piss me off again, I’ll have you married off to a man of my choosing. How does that sound?”

Sounds horrible, but I can’t let him know that. “Sounds great.”

He huffs. “You’re lying. I saw the way you turned your nose up at the men at my parties. You think you’re better. So, I think you wouldn’t appreciate being married off without your consent. But I will do that, Viktoriya. I will do that in a heartbeat if you make me angry again. And right now, I’m not angry, but I am annoyed. I will always take care of Sofiya. Physically, she will always be safe with me.”

But what about emotionally? “I held my sister for the entire night while she cried in my arms. All because of what you did to her.”

Mikhail’s face is stoic, but there’s a tightening around his eyes.

“So, threaten me all you want,” I say, “but I will always fight for my family.” Keeping my head held high, I leave Mikhal to sit alone in his office.

SOFIYA

Mikhail left a note in our bedroom, telling me to meet him in the playroom.

The moment I step over the threshold, I feel my body quivering. It’s a Pavlovian response.

He’s standing in the room in his normal white button-down, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and his usual black slacks. No shoes this time. That’s unusual. The only times I’ve ever seen Mikhail without his shoes is when he’s in our bedroom and … last night when we had sex.

“Come here,” he says, motioning me closer.

My bare feet melt into the plush carpet as I walk over to him.

“Your sister and I had an interesting conversation today.”

I frown. “What?”

“Viktoriya. She wanted to make sure I’m taking good care of you. I need to know she won’t cause any more problems.”

“She won’t. I’ll make sure of it.” Oh, Vik. Why did you have to say anything?

“And I wanted to ask you. Do you think I take good care of you? You can be honest with me.”

“I think …” I lick my lips. His eyes notice. “I think you want to keep me safe. And you’ve done that. So … yes.”

Mikhail nods once. “Good. But just in case you weren’t sure, I wanted to show you tonight how much I can take care of you. I want you to take your clothes off and lean over that chair.” He points to a low-back chair in the corner.

“Are you going to punish me?”

“No, Sofiya. Tonight is not about punishment. I want to show you what kind of pleasure I can give you.”

I need to trust him. Mikhail has only ever protected me. He’s never hurt me.

Slowly, I take off my clothes. Mikhail’s eyes latch onto every inch of my skin as it’s exposed. Then I lay my stomach over the back of the chair and relax.

Mikhail walks up behind me and places his hands on my butt. My breath catches in my throat. “Fucking you last night was one of the best nights of my life. Finally getting to claim you as my own. Nothing could be better. So, know I’m going to claim you as my own again.” His lips touch my spine, making me gasp. He trails the length of my spine, following each bone up and down. “I want you to lie down on the bench and raise your arms above your head.”

I stand up and walk over to the bench, keeping my eyes low. I need to trust Mikhail. I can do this.

My body trembles as I lie down and raise my arms. Mikhail gently grabs my wrists and wraps a soft leather cuff around each of them. I gasp. The cuffs are attached to a rope embedded in the floor. I’m not going anywhere even if I want to. My breath comes out faster, and my head whips around.

“You’re ok,” he says, placing his hand on my stomach. It helps to steady me. “You need to learn to give up more control. I will make you feel good, Sofiya.” As he takes his clothes off, his erection springs forth, shocking me again. I think I forgot how big he was, but my body remembers. On instinct, my inner walls clench.

Mikhail pulls my lower body to the edge of the bench, stretching my arms all the way out. “Trust me.”

“Yes.”