Second Best (Volkov Bratva Book 1) Read online

  The threat was obviously always there, but it had nothing to do with him.

  Our positions were thrust on us by our positions.

  I wondered if he’d have tried harder with Isabella.

  Don’t go there. No pity party for Aurora.

  When Isabella did visit the last time with the whole fish dinner, Slavik hadn’t paid her the slightest bit of attention. He hadn’t shown me any either.

  I didn’t know what would have been worse.

  “Working is not an option, however, I have no issue with you studying. I’ll arrange for a multitude of courses to be presented to you. You can take your pick.”

  We’d spoken about it before, but nothing had come from the conversation. This time, it was different. He already had his cell phone and was barking orders at someone to find the right college for me.

  My mouth fell open in surprise.

  The moment he finished the call, I hugged him, showing him my appreciation. “Thank you.”

  “We’ll see if you’ll be thanking me when we get back.”

  I didn’t care. I was so happy we’d arrived at our hotel room.

  It was a large building, fancy, private car parking. Slavik’s men took the lead and were already booking us in as we were headed to the elevator.

  I ignored the stares, refusing to let it bother me today. I was so happy. I was going to pick a college course and further my education.

  I had no idea what I’d pick. Again, our conversation from before rushed through me but now with my choice of any course, I wondered what would hold my attention the most.

  My smile dissipated when I saw the dress waiting for us on the sofa. Considering this was a hotel room, there was a small sitting room and even a table for us to take our meals.

  “Can you cancel me being a bridesmaid?” I asked.

  “It’s good for public image.”

  “How?”

  “Andrei is one of us. You’re my wife. It shows a unity of power.” Slavik picked up the dress. It was a pastel pink. “Come on. I’ll help you get it on.”

  We went into the bedroom as the guards brought up our stuff. The last thing I wanted to do was wear the bridesmaid’s dress.

  Slavik helped me out of my current dress, sliding the zipper down. “Doesn’t the bride want someone she knows to be at her wedding?”

  “Aurora, shut up. You’re not going to get out of this.”

  I rolled my eyes, stepping out of the dress and turning to Slavik. His gaze was on my ass and slowly traveled up my body. I was very much aware at that moment of how not perfect I was.

  “You’re beautiful,” Slavik said.

  “Would you please stop saying stuff like that?”

  “You want me to stop paying you a compliment?”

  “When it’s not true, yes.”

  “And who says it’s not true?” he asked.

  I sighed. “Come on. You and I both know the truth. You don’t have to pretend with me.” I’d been told all my life how ugly I was. How I didn’t measure up to my sister.

  Slavik dropped the dress, and within seconds, I was trapped on the bed. My arms pinned above my head, his body flush against mine. In the process, my legs had spread open and he lay pressed against me.

  Pleasure rushed through me. Instantaneous. A burning need only he could put out.

  “I find you beautiful,” he said. “I’m your husband. Your keeper. Your protector. My word, in your world, is fucking law. I’m getting tired of having to compete with all the bullshit going on inside your head. It doesn’t have a right to fucking live there, Aurora. I don’t say shit I don’t mean. When I tell you I think you’re beautiful, I mean it. Do you understand me?”

  I nodded.

  “Are you beautiful?” he asked.

  I started to shake my head. He glared down at me.

  “I can’t.”

  “Wrong answer.” He slammed his lips down on mine.

  I kept my eyes open as he kissed me. Slavik didn’t close his as he thrust his body against me. I gasped as he touched just the right spot. With most of my clothes off, I only had the lingerie to protect me. He knew this and used it to his advantage.

  I gasped as he held my hands above my head, and with a single finger, he traced down my arm, going to the puckered bead of my nipple.

  This man aroused me. Slavik was doing stuff to me that I wasn’t sure I liked. I wanted to hate him, but the truth was he shattered my defenses. He took me by surprise and the guard I had up came down so easily around him.

  He stroked my nipple gently through the fabric of my bra. I tried to keep my arousal in check. My body, the traitorous bitch that it was, had other ideas. She didn’t want to play nice with me. No, she liked Slavik. The more he stroked, the hotter I got, my pussy heating with each touch. He pushed the cup of the bra back, and I nearly jolted off the bed as his mouth covered the hard peak.

  He flicked his tongue back and forth and made no move to leave me alone. Then he slid his body to the other side, making sure not to hurt me. The pain in my shoulder was a dull ache. The pleasure far outweighed the hurt.

  I didn’t want him to stop. I liked the way he held me down as he played with me.

  He did the same to my other nipple and released it with a plop, which seemed to echo in the large room.

  “I fucking love your tits. They were designed for a man’s pleasure.” He cupped them both together and nibbled the edge of one. “You are beautiful to me, Aurora, and I’m the only one who should matter to you.”

  He thrust his cock against me, and I couldn’t help but gasp. He was hard as rock for me. I sank my teeth into my lip in an attempt to get control of myself, but nothing worked.

  Slavik let go of my tit to cup my face. His thumb held my chin, and he pulled down, releasing me. “I want to hear every single sound you make.”

  “Please.”

  “Do you want me to fuck you?”

  “Can you?”

  His gaze flickered to my arm and he smiled. “I can make it so it doesn’t even hurt.”

  Was that a promise?

  The moment he touched me, everything stopped hurting.

  “Show me,” I said.

  Slavik eased off my body and reached for his pants. The sound of the zipper echoed in the air. I never knew this sound could be so erotic, but he worked it so damn well. He pressed the tip of his cock against my wet pussy. He slid up and down my slit, getting his cock nice and slick before lining it up with my entrance.

  Slowly, inch by inch, he sank inside me so I felt it all.

  It was amazing. So hard. I no longer cared about the pain in my arm. My only focus was the man inside me.

  He cupped my hips and gave me a few firm strokes, each seeming deeper than the one before. The angle made me desperate for more.

  Suddenly, he stopped. One of his hands released me but not for long as his fingers began to stroke over my clit while he was still inside me.

  “I want to feel you come all over my cock, Aurora,” he said. “Give it to me.”

  His fingers were magical. I had no idea I could feel this way beneath his touch. Slavik set me on fire, hungry and desperate for more. There was no control.

  He held on to it.

  Nurtured it.

  Captured it all to himself.

  I cried out, begging for more but not really sure what I was asking for. Slavik knew. Of course, he did. This man knew everything when it came to sex and pleasure.

  He was the master.

  I, his student.

  I came hard, screaming his name. Slavik rewarded me by pounding into my pussy, not letting go, and damn it, he was right, there was no pain. I only focused on my need for him. On the hardness as he plunged inside me. Each thrust driving me higher and higher into need unlike anything else.

  He showed me what I could take. Never holding back, and when he came, I followed him into another mini-orgasm as he stroked just the right points inside me. Each flow of his cum made me feel whole. This was what scared
me.

  My husband, Slavik Ivanov, had started to make me fall for him, and I had no clue how to stop it.

  ****

  Slavik

  The dresses were normally monstrosities for the bridesmaids, but the one Aurora wore suited her. A beautiful pastel pink, and it was like the dress was designed exactly for her as the arms fell away from the shoulders, covering the upper arms and hiding her bandage. The very sight always angered me, but I’d been able to keep it in check.

  I sat in one of the seats as Aurora took her place at the head altar. She didn’t look into the crowd as the bride began to make her way down.

  The moment we’d arrived, there had been some kind of commotion. Aurora had been requested to go to the bride’s quarters immediately.

  I didn’t get a chance to ask her what the hell was going on, but I could imagine. The younger sister didn’t want to marry Andrei. Not that I blamed any woman being forced into a marriage like this. I stood with everyone and watched as the bride made her way down the aisle. The dress looked a little on the tight side. Even with the veil across her face, I noticed her huge, bulging tits that were no doubt going to pop out if she wasn’t careful. The bouquet quivered slightly.

  The man beside her looked angry.

  Kind of reminded me of Aurora’s dad. The march was slow, and I didn’t know if that was the father or the bride.

  Adelaide looked ready to flee.

  One look at Ivan, and I saw our boss was a very happy man.

  Adelaide stopped at the altar and her father lifted the veil then kissed her cheek, which looked more like a press of lips rather than an actual pucker. The fucker couldn’t even be bothered to kiss his daughter goodbye. Andrei took the hand given to him, and I watched the ceremony, not listening to a word as I watched my wife.

  Aurora held some roses within her hands. She’d woken this morning feeling sick. It was only going to be a matter of time before she found out about the pregnancy. So far, there was no sign of it. No swollen stomach. No tenderness of her breasts. She’d experienced some sickness in the mornings, but I helped to convince her it related to her bullet wound.

  I was a complete and total bastard.

  After the way she reacted to Ivan’s confession, I didn’t want her to jump to conclusions about why I wanted to sleep with her. I should just let her believe the worst of me. Most people did, and I was a horrible person. The truth was I would do what Ivan asked me to do for the good of the Bratva. If it meant fucking her until I knocked her up, I would. There was just a blurred line on exactly how I’d go about it.

  I liked Aurora. I truly believed it was more than liking her.

  In the most inconvenient times, I found myself thinking about her, curious what she was doing and wanting to be with her. I enjoyed her smile. The laughter she’d often allow to spill from her lips when she found something so funny. I liked how sweet she was. Even at the fight, surrounded by people not from our world, and yet she’d been the only person to scream for mercy.

  Everything about her called to me, and I had no fucking clue how to turn this off. It couldn’t be love. I was incapable of loving anyone, but Aurora, damn it. She made this hard for me.

  The ceremony came to an end with a kiss.

  Andrei didn’t seem to mind his bride had changed at the last minute. In the way he held Adelaide and kissed her. I hadn’t given Aurora the kiss.

  She’d been a laughing stock at her wedding and at the time, I hadn’t cared.

  Like everyone else, I stood and clapped.

  My woman finally looked at me, and there was a smile. Not one that lit up her face, but a sadness.

  When people started to move, Aurora came to me. There, surrounded by people, I cupped her face and kissed her, how I should have done the day of our wedding.

  I finished the kiss off with a quick peck to the lips, and when I pulled back, Aurora’s eyes were closed.

  Slowly, they opened, and I saw the flush working its way up her body. “What was that for?” she asked.

  “Because I wanted to, and I didn’t want to go another second without kissing those lips.” I stroked my thumb across it.

  “What a way to take the spotlight away from the scared little bride,” Ivan said.

  I looked around to see we were the only ones standing in the church.

  “They’re gone,” Ivan said. He put his hand on Aurora’s shoulder with a smile. “I’m glad to see you’re not dead.”

  I wanted to tear his fucking arm off for touching what was mine.

  Aurora smiled. “Thank you.”

  Ivan walked off. Conversation terminated.

  “That’s good, right? He’s pleased I’m not dead? I should worry if he wanted me dead?”

  I laughed and kissed the top of her head. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

  I’d hoped to steal my wife away to have some alone time. No such luck. The bride rushed over to us and took Aurora’s hand. She didn’t look my way, and my wife went, holding on to my hand in a final attempt to keep me.

  The bride wrapped her arms around Aurora for some of the pictures. The bride looked to be falling apart, and my wife comforted her.

  I glanced at the bridesmaids and spotted Bethany away from the small group, looking spitefully at her sister.

  I didn’t care as I returned my gaze to my woman.

  “What do you know?” Ivan asked, coming to join me again.

  “It was sloppy,” I said, immediately talking about my wife’s attack. We hadn’t gotten a chance to talk as Aurora’s father had been furious to learn she’d been shot. Not enough to come and visit her. He’d made his displeasure known to Ivan. There had even been talk of Aurora going home so they could protect her. The family couldn’t even stand her and treated her like shit, but the insult was there. They’d still protect family better than us we could. There was no way I’d let my wife go back to her family.

  She belonged to me. No one else. I would never allow her to go.

  “How sloppy?”

  “Whoever hired them was not used to doing so, or they wanted it to appear so.”

  “Any hunches?”

  “One and you’re not going to like it.”

  I turned to Ivan and gave him the name, and he instantly shook his head. “You’re wrong.”

  “Look at the facts and you tell me that I’m wrong,” I said. “Do you think I haven’t tried to find an ulterior motive? Or one of our enemies? This is the only one that makes sense and you know it.”

  “Before you act, find out more.”

  “You know I’ve got physical evidence,” I said. My suspicions had been raised several times, but this was the first where I knew what I was talking about.

  The pictures were finished even as the bride tried to get everyone to stay. Aurora held Adelaide’s hands and began to talk to her. I saw the bride begin to calm, and when Andrei approached, she went with him.

  “Time for the real party to start,” Ivan said. “Tell your wife I want her to save me a dance.”

  “Not happening,” I said.

  “I’m the boss.”

  “And she’s my wife.”

  “Ah, but she wouldn’t be your wife without me. So, I get a dance.” Ivan slapped me on the back.

  Not if I took all of her dances.

  Aurora rushed over to me, and in front of everyone, she hugged me. “Please tell me Andrei is a good guy and won’t beat her?”

  “What’s going on?”

  Aurora blew out a breath. “When I arrived, Adelaide was having a panic attack. Bethany had said something to her, and with the dress, she’d snapped. The dress had been altered at the shop, but someone mysteriously brought the wrong size here. I imagine that was Bethany. She’s been spiteful since the moment I arrived, and I bet even before then too.” She blew out a breath and glanced back.

  The bridesmaids were all getting into the back of the car, and I took Aurora’s arm, leading her away from the nonsense. I agreed to my wife being part of the wedding part
y, but not leaving my side.

  After she was shot at, I vowed to do better to protect her, and not because of her family.

  “I talked her out of her panic attack. Convinced her that marriage is not so bad.” She took my hands.

  “How?”

  “I told her that … I was petrified on my wedding night, and I got through it.” She smiled up at me. “That I survived and I live to tell the tale. I also mentioned my husband isn’t so bad either.”

  I kissed her knuckles. “We’ve got to get to that party.”

  “Yes. Adelaide could have a massive freak-out, and I don’t want her to get hurt.”

  This was just another part of my wife I fucking loved.

  I stopped.

  Hell, no.

  I didn’t do love.

  I liked my wife.

  Liked.

  Not loved.

  “Is everything okay?” Aurora asked.

  I cupped her face and kissed her hard. She touched my face, kissing me back and pressing her whole body against me.

  “Not that I mind you kissing me, but do you want to tell me what the occasion is for?”

  “Making up for lost time.”

  She giggled. “I like it.”

  I kissed her again, sliding my tongue into her mouth and reaching down to cup her ass. Let people see. I didn’t care. This was my woman.

  A car horn filled the air, and I broke the kiss to glance over Aurora’s shoulder to see Ivan standing next to a car.

  “Come on, I want a drink. Time to go and party,” he said.

  Damn. I forgot we were sharing a car with Ivan. Taking my wife’s hand, I walked toward the car. Ivan had already climbed in, and I allowed Aurora to get in next. I closed the door and glanced at Ivan.

  “This is cozy,” he said.

  I didn’t want him anywhere near my wife.

  The car pulled away from the curb as Aurora snuggled against me. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, and Ivan smiled wide.

  “Good to see you two are getting along so well.”

  I was tempted to give him the bird, but instead, I kissed my wife’s head. Ivan was still my boss. Best friends we may be, and we’d defied the odds of the Bratva, but I knew if he felt he needed to, he’d take me out in a heartbeat.