Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 64993 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64993 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
I give a sob of joy. It feels like I just won the lottery. The thing I wanted that I never believed would happen just got handed to me on a platter.
And I know who made this happen.
Part of me wants to reject this gift Dima has given me, but how can I?
This is a dream come true!
I don’t know how he did it, but he is truly amazing.
I hold both my hands over my heart, which is contorting inside my chest. Why does knowing Dima cares feel so damn painful? Because I still can’t have him?
Yes. Exactly. I don’t want to open the door to this pain again.
I know I should go up to the penthouse to thank him personally. But I’m not ready to see him. Not without it tearing my heart out. I still love him too much. So much it burns to be near him. To relive his denial of me.
Of us.
I’ll give it some time. Get myself together.
Maybe I’ll write an old-fashioned thank you note and mail it to him.
I open the blinds in my bedroom and something different about the view makes me pause.
I gasp. A giant banner is hanging on the building across the way at exactly the same level as my window.
In huge, red capital letters, it reads, I LOVE YOU, NATASHA. My stomach surges up to my throat. What? Below it, in a script, it says, You are my everything.
I cover my mouth with my hand as a flood of emotion threatens to knock me over. Love, grief, laughter, tears—it all rushes out at once.
“Dima!” I gasp.
What is this? Is he saying he does want me? A lump grows in my throat.
“Natasha!” my mother calls from the living room.
My tummy flutters. I guess there’s no keeping this from her now. I steel myself. But when I come out, she’s looking out a different window—one that faces the lake.
“What is it?” I ask.
“What does that sign say?” she demands, pointing.
“What sign?”
“There’s a plane with a sign. What does it say?”
I stand beside my tiny but fierce mother. Sure enough, a tiny plane loops around near the shoreline, carrying a banner behind it that reads, I love you, Natasha.
“Mama,” I murmur, unable to stop the tears.
“Who did this?” My mother turns, looking elated. “Alex?”
“Not Alex. Dima.”
“Dima?” Her smile fades. “From upstairs?”
My spine straightens, and I lift my chin. “Yes. He’s a good person,” I say defensively. “He’s fiercely loyal, and he loves deeply. He would do anything for the people he loves.”
My mother stares at me, eyes wide. “You’re… seeing this man? He is bratva.”
“I know.” I draw a breath. Until this moment, I was still holding back. Still protecting my heart from getting torn to shreds again. But the act of convincing my mom makes me realize that Dima is worth risking everything for.
Worth trying again.
Without any more explanation, I grab the keycard to get to the penthouse and walk out to the elevator.
As it surges upward, my heart pounds in my temples, my wrists, my throat.
I’m terrified and certain at the same time. I’ve never wanted anything more, and yet I can’t take any more heartache, either.
The elevator stops at the top and the doors slide open.
“Dima.”
He’s standing there, waiting for me. He knew I was coming. Of course he did—that’s his job.
I stumble out of the elevator straight into him. After a split second of surprise, his arms bind around me, and he holds me as tightly as he did at the parking garage.
“Natasha,” he murmurs. “Forgive me. I never meant to hurt you, sweetheart. You’re all that matters to me. I know it didn’t seem that way.”
“No,” I speak against the soft cotton of his black shirt. “It did. But you also kept pushing me away.”
“Never again,” he swears “I’m all in with you now, amerikanka. If you’ll have me.”
“Promise?”
“I promise. I’ll tell you about Alyona now. But only if you want. Whatever you want.” His lips are in my hair, his hands stroking up and down my back. “I’m yours, Natasha. I’m sorry I wasn’t ready before, but I am now.”
I lift my face from his chest and pull his head down to mine, claiming his mouth.
He lets me kiss him for a moment, then he takes over, grasping the back of my head and angling his face to deepen the kiss. His tongue slips between my lips, dancing with mine. He pulls away and brushes the backs of his fingers across my cheek.
I realize the little ring is gone from his pinkie finger. I pull his fingers away to be sure.
“You took it off.”
He nods. “I said goodbye and left it in the woods where we saw the doe.”
I kiss his fingers. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
He laces his fingers through mine. “It was a long time ago. I just didn’t know how to move on until you kneed me in the balls.”