Chapter EighteenMiller“Cheating asshole?” I bark when Pumpkin crawls away from me and crosses her arms over her chest.
“I know all about her.” She sniffs but still won’t look me in the eyes.
I let out a stream of curses in Russian because I can’t get my mouth to catch up with my translation. “Explain,” is all I can manage to calmly say as I move closer to her.
“The woman I saw you with.” When she finally turns her eyes on me, they are filled with anger and tears. “Someone was even kind enough to send the engagement announcement.”
“It’s a lie,” I hiss, grinding my teeth. I’m going to burn my mother’s house to the ground for distressing Pumpkin like this.
“How do I know?” Her shout ends on a whimper as she slumps in the seat.
When I pull her to me, she begins to cry harder, and I beg her to stop.
“No, you cannot cry.” I hold her tighter and bury my face in her neck. “You’re breaking my heart.”
“God, Miller, how is this happening?” She looks up at me and pleads, “I don’t even know you yet, but it was love at first sight. I thought this was it and you were the one.”
“I am.” I run a frustrated hand through my hair. “Who was on the announcement?”
She blinks a few times and sobers as if thinking it over. “Someone named Chel.”
I curse again in Russian and shake my head. “It is not real, it is a lie.”
“What?” Her eyebrows pull together as she leans back a little.
“It’s my mother, krasota.” I bury my face in my hands and I feel her touch on my back. “I’m so sorry she’s done this to you.” I take a deep breath and try to think of the best way to explain this. “She is a wicked and selfish woman. She would stop at nothing to have what she wants. And that certainly includes getting in the way of the woman I love.”
I cradle her face in my hands and stroke my thumb over her lip.
“You were right, it was love at first sight. You are my soul mate, Pumpkin. I didn’t know I was looking for you, yet here you are.”
“Why would any mother do that?”
“I believe she is broken inside. She is a victim of abuse, yet she is unable to leave our father. We tried many times to help her leave, but she has chosen to stay.” I shrug my shoulders in defeat. “She’s tried everything to manipulate us, including today.”
“I saw you with a young blonde today.” She looks down at her lap, and I force her to meet my gaze.
“My mother brought Chel there as part of an arranged marriage with Frost and me.”
That causes her to pause, and she tilts her head to the side. “To both of you?”
“Da.” I roll my eyes because it’s embarrassing to admit. “Chel put her arms around me before I could step away. She took me by surprise, but her touch repulsed me.” I lean into Pumpkin’s hand and close my eyes. “There is only one woman that will ever touch me as long as I live.”
“So this was all just a misunderstanding?”
I open my eyes to see her biting her bottom lip. “In time we will learn how to speak with open hearts so that there is nothing unsaid.” I place a soft kiss on her lips and then look into her eyes once more. “But we have our entire lives to do that. Until then, we may stumble, but always together. Da?”
“Da,” she agrees and smiles as she throws her arms around me.
“You know how hard it makes me when you speak to me in Russian.”
She leans close to my ear and licks the shell before she whispers. “Ty mne nuzhen.”
My body stiffens and my hands go to her ass as I grind her down on my cock. “You need me?”
“Da,” she says again, and I have to close my eyes and ask God for control.
“I don’t want to fuck you in a car again. Let me come to your bed tonight.”
“At my parents’ house?” Her eyes widen, but I see curiosity there.
“I know you have much to do in the morning. Allow me to wake you up with my tongue between your lips.” I cup her pussy with my hand and squeeze.
She moans and rocks into it.
“Okay,” she whispers, her eyelids becoming heavy.
I call out to the driver, and we turn back toward her house. Quickly we get out of the car and sneak back into her house through the kitchen and up the stairs. The home is modest, but it feels like there is love in every corner of it. The books stacked up next to a chair, the blankets across the couch, and the board games nearby that look old and worn. This home was a place for children to feel safe and laugh. That is the home I want to have with Pumpkin.