Second Best (Volkov Bratva 1)

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.