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He pauses, one foot in the bathroom. His wide back is covered in tattoos – Giordano, in the same Old English as Sabrina’s Giordano tattoo – splays from shoulder to shoulder. “She’ll figure it out soon enough.”
“You’re fucking diabolical.”
He grins. “Have you told her you already made an appointment to get your balls working again?”
My smile drops. “Kind of.”
He murmurs something I can't hear, steps into the bathroom, and closes the door. I settle back in with my girl and close my eyes, only waking up when Maksim wakes her up in the best way possible. Shebegs for him to go slow, and I watch as he makes love to her, until she reaches for me.
Like I said, somehow I made it into heaven, even though all the demons are here.
I’m nothing more than an elevated heathen, invisibly and willingly chained to an altar of my choosing.
Her.
It willalwaysbe her.
She is the only religion I know.
And I will always fall to my knees andworship at her call.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Sabrina.
Brooklyn Heights, New York
All Hallows Eve
"Duchess!"
"In the kitchen, husband!" I yell out. Huh. A little dumbfounded at how natural that feels to say now, I go back to wiping down the counters, making sure I get rid of all the excess flour and sugar that always seems to flutter about when I bake. Strong, delicious arms wrap around my torso as Maksim peppers kisses to the tattoo of our last name on my shoulder. Parker does the same to the other shoulder. Usually, he nips it, lightly dragging his teeth on it.
I should've gotten them on my neck.
My husband tightens his hold on me, then presses his expansive, muscular chest to my back. "What are you baking today?"
"White chocolate raspberry muffins." I reply, finishing with the counter, and removing my apron.
He groans, tilting his forehead to the back of my head. "I've gained ten pounds since we've been married." He pauses. "When will they be ready?"
I turn in his arms and place my hands on his chest, feeling the soft fabric of his shirt beneath my fingers. I tilt my head back to look up at him, my breath shorting at the softness in his dark chocolate eyes. "Ten minutes."
"Good." He presses a kiss to my lips, then my forehead, before taking a step away from me. "Gives me enough time to give you your gift."
My brows hike up, and I eye him curiously. "My birthday was two days ago, and you already gave me my gift." I tap my ears, pointing to the little crown earrings he gave me.
He shakes his head. "This is something else. Go on.” He coaxes. “Close your eyes and hold out your hands. You’re gonna love this one, I promise, cara mia."
I squint cautiously at him again, but the smile on his face tells me he's excited about this. So I do as I'm told – hold out my hands and shut my eyes. The square he places in my hands has weight to it and it's a little lighter than I was expecting but I'm not exactly expecting, anything. I open my eyes to see a sleek, black box with a pastel pink bow around it.
"Go on. Open it." He wiggles his brows and bites his lower lip.
I place it on the counter and untie the bow, pulling off the top to reveal...
A gun!
"Oh my god!" I shriek, bouncing on my toes. I pluck out the M&P9 Shield 9MM, make sure the safety is on, and cradle it to my chest in a hug. "Did Bianchi say I passed? I can be an enforcer?"