Page 48 of Plaintive Vow


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I take a healthy sip of my drink, surprised by the cloying taste of maraschino cherries and vodka.

I don’t realize how quiet the crowd immediately around us has gotten until Alexei steps closer. “What was that?” His eyes blaze with a quiet fury that sends shivers down my spine. Without thinking, I take a step backward, colliding with Andrei who puts a possessive hand on my hip.

“We got married. We didn’t want to wait, so we had a small ceremony the other day.” He presses a kiss against my hair as if we’re the very portrait of happy newlyweds, not the barely functional, mismatched pair that we really are. I force myself to smile up at him, trying to appear more relaxed than I am.

Nadya recovers first, pasting a smile on her face and pulling me into a tight hug.

“Congrats!” Her voice has an air of false cheer to it that makes my stomach drop.

“Thanks,” I mutter quietly.

Chancing a glance at Alexei, I swallow thickly. He’s glaring daggers at the two of us, and I want to crawl home and bury my head in the sand so I don’t have to deal with his seething anger.

“Andrei, a word?” he bites out, jaw tight and fists practically vibrating like he’s clinging to the last threads of his temper. Andrei looks down at me, raising a brow in question.

Irrationally, I want to cling to him so that I’m not alone among the piranhas, but that would just bring more of Alexei’s fury down on me.

I nod, trying to give an encouraging smile. “You two go talk. Nadya and I can go dance for a while. Right?”

She grins, already gripping my arm, ready to drag me toward the dance floor. “We won’t go far,” she promises him.

“Fine,” he replies after a beat too long. “But make sure you stay where I can see you, alright?” I nod, but Nadya’s already pulling me toward the center of the room. She’s laughing, and I laugh along with her, ignoring the edge of hysteria building inside me.

I take another sip of my drink as the song changes, letting myself trust that Andrei’s keeping an eye on me and letting myself enjoy the moment. Nadya tugs me against her as we dance, grinning while we’re enveloped by the crowd.

I can’t remember the last time I allowed myself to just relax and have fun. Probably not since before I met Andrei.

Nadya pulls me close, face against mine so she can be heard. “So, you got married, huh?”

I nod, chewing on the inside of my lip. “It was a last-minute sort of thing.” I can feel how hot my cheeks are, and I shake my head to push the sensation away.

“I didn’t know you were…” She narrows her eyes, no doubt searching for a tactful way to saysleeping with your dead husband’s best friend. I put her out of her misery before she can embarrass us both.

“We weren’t,” I rush. “Like I said, this was a surprise. For both of us.” I feel like I’m shouting, but she shakes her head like shecan’t hear me. Rather than belt out the whole damn story for everyone in the room, I point in the direction of the bathroom, hoping it’ll be quieter.

Looping her arm through mine, she heads in that direction. And thankfully as soon as we’re away from the dance floor, it’s immediately easier to hear myself think. She twirls her head toward me, fixing me with a serious look.

“It’s a brand-new thing? Totally unexpected?” she asks, and I nod. “Well, from what I’ve heard, you picked a good one. As far as Bratva men go, anyway. And he’s not bad to look at, either.” She grins while my cheeks turn pink.

There’s no point refuting that. I’ve always thought that Andrei was attractive. With his broad shoulders, commanding presence, and gray eyes that are so gorgeous they’re almost hard to look at, I’d typically consider myself lucky as hell to be with someone like him. If this were a real marriage, and we actually loved each other, I’d want to show him off at every opportunity.

But it’s not real, and we’re not in love, so I just smile at her.

“He isn’t hard on the eyes, I’ll give you that,” I admit.

“Oh, come on.” She gives me a knowing grin. “He’s hot as hell. And now he’s taken. So, give me something to work with while I’m mourning. How’d he propose? What was the ceremony like? Is he as good in bed as I imagine?”

I can’t look her in the eye, and I definitely can’t tell her that I don’t know.

“Or is this his version of a joke so he can piss off Alexei?” My stomach drops. “Because if that’s what Andrei wants, I’m willing to bet everyone out there’s talking about his announcementand not Alexei’s big night. So, I’d say mission accomplished.” She’s still grinning, and I can’t tell if she’s joking or not.

I hadn’t even considered that.

But Andrei isn’t the type of man to go out of his way to fuck with someone. He wouldn’t go to the length of actually marrying me just to upset Alexei.

“I don’t think he intended to upset Alexei.” I shrug. “I think that’s just a happy coincidence.” She chuckles, leaning a hip against the sink as she fixes her makeup.

When she speaks again, her voice is quieter than before, mindful of the fact that the room is still full. “So, he isn’t just fucking around with you? I don’t have to kick his ass?”