Second Best (Volkov Bratva 1)

Aurora was different. I’d sensed it the first time I met her.

Now, she proved it. Even as she was afraid, her mouth couldn’t seem to stop, and I, for one, fucking loved it.

Don’t get me wrong, the women in my life had all known the score. I was good for a quick fuck, nothing else. I never got close. Always kept them at arm’s length. They always knew I was there for a release and I didn’t always care if they felt it too. In fact, I’d even used lubrication when I hadn’t been in the mood to make them wet enough to take me.

Aurora shouldn’t have been any different.

I didn’t love her. I didn’t have a crush on her. She wasn’t strikingly beautiful, and yet for me, I picked her out of a crowd with ease.

Staring at her now, with her soft body so close, I hated that we were in the restaurant. Along with the spark of attraction, she also held fear.

Even with her emotions all over the place, I liked her mouth. The way she talked back. Some men would have backhanded her. Not me. I didn’t want a puppet or a submissive that couldn’t think for herself.

This was the most refreshing moment of our marriage so far.

Tilting my head to the side, I looked at her, really looked at her. She possessed brown eyes. At first, I had thought they were dull, but they were anything but. They sparkled. There was a lot going on inside Aurora’s head, and I didn’t have the first clue what half of it was about. I had no doubt she was afraid I’d kill her. Tonight, she was safe.

She’d curled her long brown hair, and it fell around her like a frame. I happened to love the length. How long it looked, and there were times I wanted to run my fingers down it. I hadn’t taken nearly enough time to appreciate my wife.

She had a small nose, full lips, and nice cheekbones. Nothing was too sharp. She had curves on her as well.

Some people might think she needed to drop a few pounds, not me. The few times I’d fucked her, I’d loved there was more than a handful. I wasn’t afraid of pounding inside her. She wouldn’t break beneath me and could take all of me. That alone held an attraction.

Her tits. The dress I’d given her accentuated the size of her breasts, and again, I wanted them naked beneath me, swinging above me.

There were moments like these where I wanted the time to explore Aurora. Where our marriage, the treaty, the Bratva, or her mafia family didn’t get in the way.

Years of training were hard to let go. We both had our past.

“You want to sit and talk while we eat dinner?” This was new to me.

In the past, women had been more than happy for me to ignore them, just so long as I paid the bill. The same went with all areas. If I paid, they were happy to give me what I wanted.

Again, Aurora was different. She’d yet to use my money on anything. The clothes she’d gotten were the ones I brought for her.

“Yes,” she said, cutting through my thoughts.

“Then let’s go and talk.”

She nodded her head, but I hadn’t moved. “You need to step back.”

“I will, but it’s going to cost you,” I said.

“What?”

“Kiss me.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” I said. I could have taken the kiss. Aurora wouldn’t fight me. The training her family had thrust into her was hard for her to ignore. She’d let me do anything to her. This was our world. Women, unfortunately, were nothing more than a commodity. A price someone was willing to pay. For Aurora, the Bratva paid in peace as did her family.

“You want me to kiss you?” she asked.

“Yes. Like you mean it.”

“I don’t know how.”

“Simple. Kiss me like your life depends on it.”

“That’s not a good reason to have a kiss.”

“It’s the only reason you need. We’re not leaving until you kiss me.”

“You’d keep the restaurant open all night just so I’d kiss you?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“You’re bluffing.”

“I own the restaurant. They’d do as they’re told.”

She licked her lips, and I saw her struggling, but I’d won. She just needed to realize I had and there was no point in fighting it.

I wanted that tongue on mine.

For a few seconds, nothing happened. She stayed perfectly still, and I kept her trapped. I had no problem holding her here. This worked for me because I had her close to my body. The soft curves of her breasts calling to me.

Slowly, almost too slowly for me to appreciate, she put her hands on my chest. Her touch light, soft. She slid her hands up to cup my face. Aurora touched my face and let me go.