Chapter 43

Anton

"Should we tackle him?"

I glared at Trace, one of Cain's guys. He was in cyber security. We had used him more than once. I knew Vice considered him to be family, so I resisted the urge to break his fingers.

It was extremely tempting though.

"Slow down, brother," Vice said with a kind smile. I sighed and stopped pacing. I had been wearing a rut into the grass. I was terrified that Mishka would change her mind.

Thankfully, Anastasia was with her.

I knew my cousin would tackle her if she tried to run, pregnant or not. But Mishka had not run, I realized as a hush fell over the crowd of bikers. Everyone turned back towards the house, including me.

A vision in silver silk walked towards us. No. She floated.

Mishka was a literal angel.

"You don't deserve her," Preacher said reverently. I had to agree. I grunted, feeling too possessive for words.

Anastasia and Mishka stopped at the back of the rows of chairs my staff had set up. My cousin and her toddler took a basket of flower petals and waited for the music to start. It was bare bones, but my staff had proven to be incredibly resourceful and expedient.

They'd even found a small arch for us to be married beneath, and used flowers from the estate to decorate it with an explosion of artfully trailing flowers. That and feeding an entire wedding party with less than an hour's notice meant that the employees of the entire estate was getting a raise.

A very generous raise.

Not that I could think about anything other than making Mishka mine, once and for all. This was a permanent solution. We would be together for life.

I could not wait to begin that story with her.

She was mine and I would be damned if I ever let her go.

I had never loved anyone the way I loved her, and I knew I never would. She was the center of my world. She excited me, thrilled me, and brought me peace. Everything was better with my girl around. I wanted only her. A thousand beautiful women could be paraded in front of me and I would not even notice.

She was the most precious, remarkable, special, adorable, sweet, and sexy woman that ever walked the earth, and I loved her, and only her.

And someday, I hoped to love the children we created together. But she would always come first. I would live and die for her. For the rest of my life, and beyond, if I had anything to say about it.

Music played, from where I had no idea. It was the piece she had played for me in Brooklyn. I shivered as she started down the aisle once everyone had taken a seat, and Vice and my brothers stepped behind me as Preacher and I waited for my bride-to-be.

My whole life had led me to this moment and I could not be more grateful.

I could not tear my eyes away from the exquisitely beautiful woman walking towards me, to be mine to protect and to serve, forever.

Finally, she came to stand beside me, giving me a shy, sweet, and astonishingly sexy smile. How could I want to ravage her in the middle of a group of almost fifty outlaw bikers? But I did. Somehow, I did.

I was staring at her hungrily when Preacher began to speak.

"We are gathered here today to marry this incredibly lovely and naive young woman to this very, very bad man."

I heard my bride make a strangled sound as my startled gaze flew to the grizzled biker standing in front of us. I narrowed my eyes at him, realizing that I could not kill him. Yet.

I had heard about his outrageous behavior at weddings, even that he went so far as to put his lips and hands on the women. He had been punched, threatened, and even been thrown in a lake by one of the Devil's Riders, from what I'd been told. It had all seemed amusing.

Until now.

I looked at Mishka as Preacher continued. I was more than a little worried she would run. God knows I had given her enough reasons to.

She was a beautiful, brilliant woman. Any man alive would be grateful to have her by his side. I knew I could be a good man for her, but Preacher was right.

I had been a very bad man for a very long time.

"Despite my deep misgivings, I will ask you this, miss. Do you take this dastardly and craven man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, for the rest of your life?"

Mishka bit back a giggle. I exhaled. She wasn't scared or angry. She was laughing.

"I do."

My whole world fell into place. A tremendous feeling of peace washed over me. She had said yes.

"And do you, you devil, promise to protect ad provide for this glorious angel for the rest of your life?"

He barely had the chance to ask me the same before I said loudly and with great emphasis "I do."

He paused, looking displeased. He sighed dramatically. Then he brightened.

"Does anyone have any reason that these two should not be joined in holy matrimony?" A pause. No one said anything. "What about you God? Right now, would be a great time for a bolt of lightning."

He looked skyward and everyone laughed.

"Fine," he said with another heaving sigh. "Then I have no choice but to pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride," he added, giving me a sly wink.

I did not have to be told twice.

Mishka's eyes widened as I swooped down upon her, tilting her back and kissing her thoroughly, with a possession I did not know I was capable of until that moment.

"Now, I will kiss the bride," Preacher said, reaching for Mishka. I yanked her away. I had heard stories about this outlandish behavior from the so-called ‘man of the cloth'. He did not let go of her hand. For a moment, we were caught in a tug of war with my startled bride in the middle. Finally, he grinned, lifted her hand, and pressed a long kiss to the back of it, holding my eyes.

"You are the bravest man alive," Alexei said, not even joking. I had briefly considered murdering the older man. It was a good thing he had a wife and children at home. I knew he had actually kissed multiple brides in the past. If he had done that, I would have removed his lips.

I smiled at the thought.

"What was that?" Mishka asked, staring at me as I pulled her away from the crowd who had surrounded us to offer congratulations.

"What?"

"That smile?"

"Nothing, pet," I said, squeezing her hand and kissing her again. I did not even break my stride as I hurried us towards the house.

"Where are we going? Isn't it customary for there to be a party after a wedding?"

"There is. But I wanted to steal you away for a moment," unable to resist the urge to kiss the surprised look off her luscious lips. Once again, I did not let her go or stop walking. I was on a mission.

A mission to make sweet love to my lawfully wedded wife.

Make love to her for the first time with our new legal status. It would be far from the last. I hoped it would be seventy years or more before I drew my last breath, hopefully with her underneath me, crying out in pleasure.

I could not wait to see what kind of woman she would grow into. I could not wait for gray hairs or crow's feet. I could not wait to see every incarnation of this beautiful, remarkable, adorable, brilliant, ever-so-lovable woman that I adored.

Starting now.

"Anton!" She said, tugging back on my hand.

"What?" I asked, not the slightest bit annoyed. I smiled at her with what I imagined was a foolish looking grin on my face. I was besotted. Smitten. More in love than any man had ever been.

In the entire existence of humanity.

I loved her the way wolves loved the moon. The way the ocean loved the shore. The way a bee loved the bloom.

My very existence was centered around her now.

She was everything to me. Pure. Sweetness personified. Femininity incarnate.

And right now, I wanted to claim her for myself. To take her as my wife. As my woman. As the ultimate prize to be treasured and protected, forever.

I also wanted to do dirty, filthy things to her.

Now that she was my wife, no one could stop me.