Chapter 18 - Anya

Rodion is furious. He keeps looking in the rearview mirror, which he has angled down to the back seat so he can keep an eye on his sister.

My anxiety is rising because I know he must be angry with me.

I am the one who convinced him not to send his guys to take her home right in the beginning.

I bite at my lip, wondering if it is going ruin the rest of our night together.

We’ve been having so much fun. I loved dancing with him. He’s really good at it too. It made me feel so incredibly sexy to move with him like that. And the way he looked at me—I want to melt against him right now.

But he’s so angry.

“Are you ok?” he asks.

“I’m fine, yes,” I say without looking at him. Should I apologize for making a bad choice about Ruslana? I didn’t know she would get this drunk.

Rodion reaches across the car and rests his hand on my thigh. Sparks shoot through me as his skin heats mine.

My heart beats faster and a wave of relief rushes across my body. He can’t be too mad at me. Not if he’s still being so sweet.

I place my hand over his and thread my fingers between his.

It’s feels so good.

Part of me is still worried about whether or not this is something I should allow. Because I don’t know who I am to him. I might just be something he feels the need to conquer. To own. I am risking my heart by allowing myself to feel anything at all towards him.

But I can’t help it.

He’s caught my attention, and he treats me as though he genuinely cares for me. I’m just worried about my heart.

We drive through the dark night, street lights flashing past the car and lighting the road on the way to his brother’s mansion, where Ruslana stays.

Both of us are quiet and my thoughts are on Ruslana and how I should maybe have done things differently.

Arriving at his brother’s place, Rodion tells me to stay in the car.

“I won’t be long at all. I’m just going to carry her upstairs and put her into her bed. I’ll let my brother know she’s there and he should keep an eye on her. He’s not going to be happy about it.”

I watch as he lifts Ruslana into his arms.

“Where am I?” she mumbles, resting her head on his chest.

“It’s a bit late to be asking where you are, dumbass,” Rodion says to her.

He disappears into the house. I see lights come on inside, then about ten minutes later his brother, Roman, walks him to the door wearing nothing but dark grey sweatpants. I guess the muscular body runs in the family.

They are discussing something and Roman looks annoyed. I can guess what it’s about.

Rodion shrugs, points to the car, and then throws me a smile which doesn’t match the rest of the conversation he is having with Roman. I smile back at him, my heart fluttering.

It doesn’t take long for Rodion to come back to the car.

He sighs when he gets in and pulls the door closed.

“He’s pissed off. I don’t blame him, though. And Ruslana got right out of bed and ran to the bathroom. It sounds like she’s going to have a long, unpleasant night.”

He starts the car and pulls out of the mansion's driveway. Finally, we are headed home. It’s been a long night and even though it didn’t end the way I hoped it would—I actually had a lot of fun. Rodion is a good dancer, and it was nice to see him let go a bit and just laugh with me.

“Rodya, I wanted to say I am really sorry about Ruslana. I feel so bad about how it ended. I should have listened to you and just let you send your men to fetch her,” I say to him, nervous to look in his direction.

He reaches out and touches my leg again. “No, hey, no—you don’t need to apologize. You were there for her. You did a great job keeping an eye on her. And I think the way it was handled tonight was the best possible solution.”

“Oh, really? How? She’s in a terrible state,” I say in shock.

He laughs. “Yes, the thing is that usually, I drag her out of the clubs before she can get into that state, so she’s never had to deal with a hangover or the consequences of her bad choices. Tomorrow, she will find out why I don’t let her do whatever she likes—because this is where it ends. And hopefully, she will have some recollection of almost being dragged home by that asshole —“ he sighs. “But honestly, Anya, you were amazing. And you took good care of her given the circumstances. Tonight would have been very different if you weren’t involved.”

He squeezes my leg a little tighter, a reassuring gesture that makes me smile. I am so relieved to know he isn’t angry with me.

Finally, we arrive home. I kick off my high heels as soon as we walk into the door. My feet press against the marble floor and the cold tiles soothe them. I hadn’t noticed how sore they were because I was having so much fun dancing all night.

Rodion closes the front door, then turns to me.

“Do you think our married life is just going to be a series of interrupted moments?” he says, his deep voice echoing in the quiet house.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, princess, I mean that I want time with you where no one interrupts us. Just you and me.” He takes a step towards me and wraps his arm around my waist. “You—me—and this red dress.” He chuckles, lifting me into his arms while my heart begins to beat wildly.

I giggle and hold onto him as he climbs the stairway towards his bedroom.

Rodion brushes his lips across my neck and the heat of his breath shivers over my skin leaving goosebumps on my neck and arms.

In his bedroom, he lowers me to the floor, leaning down he wraps his hand around the back of my head and kisses me, deep and intense.

The kiss shoots through me like lightning.

“I would have danced with you all night, princess,” he whispers against my ear. My heart swells with something I’ve never experienced before. It’s the way his words make me feel.

A soft moan escapes my lips when he reaches down and runs his hands up the back of my thighs, pulling my dress up. He grabs my ass, letting his fingers slip between my legs, teasing me, like he has been teasing me all night.

My breathing grows faster and heavier. I have to force myself to focus because my thoughts are slipping away to enticing places I’ve waited so long to experience with him.

I reach up and thread my fingers through his hair, tugging him back towards my mouth so I can taste him again.

His cock is hard and pressing against me and our bodies are moving together like we did on the dance floor.

He growls, pushing me away from himself, he pulls the buttons of his shirt open and tosses it to the floor, then grabs his belt and unbuckles it, pulling his pants off. My eyes take in all of him. His sculpted body. Chiseled and perfect. I can’t believe he is my husband. He’s fucking gorgeous. The dark ink of a serpent tattoo starting on his hip curls upwards over his muscled ribs and threads around his broad shoulder onto his back, out of sight. I’ve seen it before, but seeing it now again—really looking at it—I want to run my tongue over the pathway it has etched into his skin. I want to trace my fingers over the detailed artwork on his body.

My pussy throbs, begging me to be with him. I want to know what he feels like inside me. His monstrous cock, thick and rock hard.

I slide my panties down my legs, stepping out of them, watching him move, the way his muscles flex when he moves.

His eyes are drinking me in, roaming every inch of my body.

The intensity of his gaze alone is driving me wild.

Standing naked in front of me, his cock is throbbing, the veins along his shaft are pulsing and I can’t tear my eyes away from it.

He chuckles. “Do you want this?” he says, grabbing his cock in his hand and sliding his wrist back and forth.

I bite my lip and nod.

I step backwards, feeling the edge of the bed behind my legs. Crawling onto it, I lay on my back and spread my legs a little, teasing him.

“Open your legs wider, princess. I want to see everything,” he demands.

I stretch my legs open as wide as I can and a devilish smile spreads across his face.

He kneels on the bed between my legs, leaning forward, he wraps his arm around my waist and lifts me up onto his lap. I shudder with need when his cock presses against my pussy. Grabbing a handful of my hair he tilts my head back and trails his hot tongue over my neck. I rock my hips back and forth on his lap, dancing over him, desperate to feel him inside me.

I have never wanted something so badly in my life.

My body has never felt such an urgent need as this.

He runs his hands up my back, beneath the red dress. “It looks incredible on you—but nothing looks better than you—just you.” He pulls the dress up, over my head, throwing it to the side. His hands caress my breasts and I press my hips harder against him, begging him to give me what I’ve been waiting so long to feel.

He grabs my ass cheeks and lifts me, rubbing his cock against me—then slowly lowers me down as he pushes his cock inside me. I moan loudly, and more intensely the deeper he thrusts inside me.

His cock pushes my pussy open, spreading me wide and filling me up.

I’ve waited far too long for this. I’ve been so frustrated, and now finally—

He pulls out and thrusts in harder the second time.

I cry out again as my tension is released, with each push of him into me, my body lets go of the frustration I’ve been holding onto.

He grips my hips and begins to fuck me with force.

I melt into his control.

I hold onto his neck, steadying myself as each push from him jolts through me. His cock slams into me again and again and the pleasure makes my world spin.

Rodion lifts me off his lap and throws me onto the bed, he crawls over me and pushes my legs wide apart with his hips.

He growls, low and dangerous as his cock slides into me again and I squeal, wrapping my legs around his waist. He grabs my wrists and pins them above my head, increasing his speed and pushing even deeper inside me.

His cock slides in and out of my pussy, causing pulsing waves of ecstasy through my body. The desire consumes me and leaves me breathless.

My nails dig into his back, leaving red marks on his skin.

I can’t hold myself back anymore.

My legs start to shake, and he moves even faster.

My pussy tightens over him and then all of a sudden my entire body explodes like fireworks, wave after wave of pleasure slamming into me as my orgasm hits me.

I feel Rodion’s cock go rigid inside of me and he growls deeply when he releases, his hands gripped tightly on me.

We lie still for a long time, our bodies knotted together, still connected, and our breathing heavy but in sync.

After a while, his body relaxes against mine, and he trails his fingers over my arm.

“Fuck,” he whispers, as in awe as I am.

I never in a million years expected it to be that incredible.

He rolls off me, stretching his arms above his head and sighs contentedly.

I sit up, grinning like a crazy person. “Is it ok if I use your bathroom quickly?” I ask, scooting to the edge of the bed.

“Of course, I was just about to have a shower.”

“Oh, me too. I can go to mine then.”

“Are you kidding—shower with me.” He slides off the side of the bed and pulls me to my feet, leading me into the bathroom.

We both stand beneath the hot flow of water and Rodion rubs soap over my body.

My mind keeps drifting back to how incredible it was to be with him. I felt completely at ease, there was no tension or nervousness like I expected there to be. He made me feel like a goddess.

He gently pushes me beneath the water again and brushes his hands over me to rinse off the soap bubbles.

I wrap my arms around his waist and stand on my tiptoes to kiss him. I feel so close to him right now. It’s as though this is how it’s meant to be between us.

But I know reality is still a bitch and I need to be careful of what my heart falls for. Rodion climbs out of the shower first and grabs two towels. He wraps one around his waist and then waits for me to turn the water off.

I step out into the towel that he is holding for me. He wraps it around me and pulls me up against his body, kissing the top of my head.

“Will you stay in my bed tonight?” he asks softly.

My heart summersaults. He wants me to sleep next to him. I thought what happened now was just about the sex. But—he’s asking me to stay.

I grin, hiding my face against his chest.

“Ok,” I answer, nervous about what this means. Excited about how our relationship is growing and surprised because I never expected to fall for the man I married as part of an alliance agreement.

Rodion dries me off slowly, rubbing the towel over every part of my body. Letting me hold onto his shoulder when he lifts my foot and carefully dries that. He is treating me like I am a princess and I’m loving every second of it.

Back in his bed, he drags me right up onto his chest—my back curved perfectly against him. He nuzzles his face into my neck. “Goodnigh,t princess,” he whispers.

I close my eyes and fall asleep with a smile on my lips, my heart swollen with hope for something I never knew I wanted.