Chapter 26: Vlad

Everything had happened so fast and now I wasn't just a father-to-be; I was a husband to the most beautiful woman I'd ever set eyes on. Life as I knew it was no longer as it used to be.

So far, it had been peaceful and undeniably amazing. I didn't think it was possible to love someone as much as I loved this woman, and to me, nothing else mattered.

We'd gone on several dates since our wedding because I was willing to spoil and pamper her, the one who had brought out this side of me that I never knew existed.

I got her gifts upon gifts just so I could see that smile on her face. I knew I was doing too much, but I didn't mind. All I wanted was for her to be happy all the time. I loved seeing her excited; she deserved to be, considering everything she'd had to endure, everything I put her through.

No amount of care, love, and attention could be enough to make up for her pain and her hurt.

She'd once teased me to dial it down with the gifts, but she'd done that with a smile that said she loved them.

Sienna was already in her trimester, and I was counting down to the big day: the day our mutual guest would arrive. In the meantime, though, she needed all the love and attention that I could give.

A happy woman, they say, is a happy home, and I was determined to make my woman happy—for my sake and the sake of the baby to come.

"Here you go," I said, setting a tray of fruits on the table.

"Aww. How sweet," she said, blushing on the couch she was seated on, watching TV. "But I just ate barely thirty minutes ago." She chuckled.

"These are fruits," I said, sliding in beside her. "No harm has ever come from eating fruits."

She laughed. "Who are you, and what have you done with Vladimir Wolkov?"

I picked up a strawberry from the tray and fed it to her. She took a bite, munching quietly on it as I watched her.

"Have I told you that you have an amazing smile?" I asked, my voice low and husky.

Her cheeks flushed, and her face lit up with a wide grin.

"That right there is priceless," I said, gesturing at the smile she had on.

"If your plan is to make me blush, then I have to admit, it's working," she replied, her grin spreading across her face.

"What if it's to make you wet?" I smirked, caressing her thigh.

She giggled, and her breath ceased when my hand traveled up her dress.

"Did you know," I began, leaning closer with a whisper, "that constant sex when a woman is pregnant has an important role to play during delivery?"

She chuckled in between soft moans. "I hear you, Dr. Wolkov."

I kissed her, and she returned the favor. I withdrew my hand from underneath her dress and caressed her hair with it. Our kiss wasn't heated, but we could feel the passion dancing around us.

"Is this what being married feels like?" she asked, staring lovingly into my eyes.

"It's what we can make it feel like," I replied.

"I see you, Vlad," she said, her tone so tender. "I see how hard you're trying to make me feel loved and cherished." She smoothed my hair back. "But you don't have to try too hard. I know how you feel about me and about this baby in my womb."

"You deserve everything and more, Sienna," I replied, my gaze fixed on her amazing eyes. "You're worth doing much for."

She touched her chest and blushed. "Thank you."

"No, thank you, " I said.

"What for?" She squinted, her eyes narrowing at me.

"For showing me that I could be better, that my life wasn't overwhelmed by utter darkness as I'd thought," came my reply.

"Well, I'm glad I did that." She slipped into my arms.

Lately, I'd been thinking about Joshua a lot and how ironic it was that I had ended up with his daughter. With how I hated him, I wouldn't have thought, twenty-one years ago, that I'd share a room with anyone related to him. But things took a turn for good, and the unexpected had happened.

A part of me wished that he hadn't betrayed me, that I wasn't forced to end his life. Maybe things would have been different today. But the deed was done, and in the end, I still got all I wanted.

Sienna's ability to shove aside the past and forge ahead with her father's killer was baffling. But it was proof of her maturity and her love for me. Paul and Natalie Summers did raise the perfect child; they did a better job than Joshua and Sienna's biological mom could have ever done.

I was proud of the woman she was, even though we were still two separate entities, but like I've always said, unlike terms attract.

Despite how she had affected me positively, I was still the same man when it was time for business. I learned to balance family and work without mixing up the two. At home, I was a loving husband, but at work, I was the cruel and ruthless boss I was known to be.

Simon believed I was on the right track, that the balance I had struck was perfect; he'd told me two days ago that with Sienna, I'd hit the jackpot.

"She's a rare gem, that one, Boss." His voice resounded in my head. "And I believe you two were meant for each other."

He was right to believe so, and with every single day that passed, I was grateful that I'd met her when I did and that things turned out this way.

Sienna was someone I could never replace; she was perfect for me regardless of our differences. Nothing she did was wrong in my eyes, nothing at all, and sometimes, I felt like I was bewitched. She had crawled under my skin and occupied every nook and cranny of my mind.

She was an amazing person all round, and with her, I'd found peace; I'd found love. I was happy around her, and seeing her happy all the time was satisfactory.

There was a knock on the door, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Are you expecting someone?" she asked, eating a strawberry.

I pondered for a moment. Not really. Although there was this one guy who'd been pestering me to see Sienna. Could it be him at the door?

"I'll get it." I kissed her forehead, rising to my feet.

I opened the door, and there he was, standing on the other side with a bouquet of flowers in his hands.

" Zdravstvuyte , Vlad," Andy said, literally meaning, Hello, Vlad . He was dressed up in a nice suit, just as he was the night we'd first met at the club.

" Zdravstvuyte , Andy," I replied, my expression blank.

"Is Sienna home?" he asked. "I'd like to speak with her if that's okay with you."

I glanced at the bouquet in his hands and returned my gaze to his face, where regret was plastered all over.

He would have had a lot of explaining to do as to why he'd brought flowers for my wife, but I knew better.

Andy had reached out to me two days earlier, begging to have a talk with Sienna. I knew he had some things to let off his chest, but a part of me was still mad at him for the stupid stunt he'd pulled on her life.

The only reason he was still breathing, still walking this Earth, was because Sienna had asked me to spare his life.

I'd had him holed up at a secret facility where I'd planned to torture him slowly for attempting to hurt my wife and unborn child.

After Sienna's plea to spare his life, I thought about him and realized his actions were driven by rage, considering the cycle of violence we were trapped in. He knew I'd killed his brother, and he wanted vengeance. Same as me when I took Joshua's life.

In the end, Andy and I were not so different, after all; we were both victims of our rage, and we let it drive us, control us.

"Please, let me see her," he begged, pleading with his eyes. "You know I wouldn't be here if I didn't think it was important."

I sighed and stepped away from the door. "Come in."

"Thank you," he said, walking in.

"Hey, babe, who was at the…door?" The slight pause came when Sienna turned in our direction.

The shock in her eyes was subtle, but it was there.

With his shoulders hunched, Andy approached her, reeking of remorse. "Hello, Sienna."

She rose to her feet, looking at me. I nodded; then, she returned her gaze to him.

"I brought you these," he said, holding out the bouquet with a faint smile. "I didn't know what kinds of flowers you liked, so I asked them to mix up the best of the best."

She hesitated, but eventually, she accepted it. "Thank you."

I walked over to my wife and stood by her side as she watched him in silence.

"I know you're probably wondering why I'm here," he said softly. "So, I'll just get right to it." Andy let out a sigh. "First, I'd like to apologize for the pain I put you through, the trauma you must have suffered because of me. Kidnapping you and threatening to harm you and your baby was too extreme. You have my sincere apologies."

She heaved a sigh, blinking back the tears in her eyes, and I slipped my hand into hers. "It's okay. At least no life was lost," she said, her voice almost a whisper.

"Despite what I did, you still stood up for me. Thank you for saving my life, Sienna. If you hadn't stopped Vlad when you did, I'd have been dead by now, so thank you."

She nodded gently but didn't say a word.

"The second reason I'm here is to ask a favor of you," he said.

Sienna stole a glance at me, then said, "Ask away, Andy."

"I recently just learned that you're my late brother's daughter—and the guilt of what I did to you has been eating me up since then. This means that you're my niece, my blood." He took gentle steps forward. "You're the only living relative that I have now, Sienna. And I'm glad that Vlad showed up when he did and stopped me from making the biggest mistake of my life."

For some reason, his words made her emotional, but she wouldn't give in to the tears that welled her eyes.

"All I'm asking, Sienna, is your permission to be a proper uncle to you and to be a part of the baby's life. I want to make up for the harm that I caused you," he said, regret coloring his eyes.

She sniffled and managed to squeeze out a genuine smile. "Alright, Uncle Andy. I'd like that, too."

"Really?" His eyes widened. Maybe he wasn't expecting her to agree so easily.

"Really." She nodded. "To be honest, I don't blame you at all. It's this life of violence that makes people do the unthinkable. But I'm way past that now. So, let's bury whatever happened behind us and move on—start a new chapter in our lives, one that's free of hate for one another, a chapter where we're all united as a family."

I'd never been more proud of my wife; her goodness and understanding was beyond my comprehension. She was such a gentle soul, so kind and thoughtful.

The world needed more people like her because her type would make it a better and safer place for all.

"That's so kind of you," he said, spreading his arms with a grin. "Can I hug you—with your permission, of course." The last statement was thrown to me.

I scoffed and nodded; then, Sienna slipped into his embrace.

"Thank you for being different," he said to her.

She smiled and exhaled softly.

"Alright, then," he said, letting go of her. "I better be on my way. My job here is done." He flashed her a grin and nodded at me before turning to leave.

"Uncle Andy," she called.

He stopped in his steps and looked back at her. "Yes?"

"Would you stay for dinner?" she asked.

"I…uhh…." He was speechless. "I wouldn't want to impose." He looked at me.

"She wants you to stay for dinner," I chipped in. "Do you really want to turn her down?"

"Not in a million years," he replied.

She smiled. "It's settled, then."

Andy walked back to the living and joined us. There, we talked at length on random subjects with Sienna at the forefront of the conversations.

It was all worth it to see my wife so happy.