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Before she could retreat into herself, I cupped her face and kissed her.

Soft, slow, nothing like the demanding kisses I usually claimed.

This was...gentle.

Coaxing rather than taking.

When I pulled back, her eyes were wide but no longer guarded.

“Let’s keep watching your silly American movie,” I murmured, tucking her under my arm and pulling her against my side.

She settled against me with a small sigh, her head finding the hollow of my shoulder as if it belonged there.

As the movie continued, her breathing slowed, her body growing heavier against mine.

By the time the credits rolled, she was fast asleep, her face peaceful in a way I rarely saw when she was awake.

One small hand rested against my chest, fingers curled into my shirt as if anchoring herself to me even in sleep.

I should have woken her.

Should have sent her to bed and maintained the careful distance that kept our arrangement simple and clean.

Instead, I found myself memorizing the weight of her against me, the soft whisper of her breath against my neck, the way her hair caught the light from the television screen.

Carefully, I slid one arm beneath her knees and the other around her back, lifting her sleeping form against my chest. She stirred slightly, nuzzling closer to my warmth, and something possessive unfurled in my chest.

Mine.

I carried her to our bedroom, moving slowly to avoid waking her.

In the low light filtering through the windows, she looked angelic—porcelain skin and dark lashes against flushed cheeks, lips slightly parted in sleep.

I laid her gently on the bed, her body sinking into the cool silk sheets.

She made a small sound of protest when I pulled away, and I found myself pausing, watching the way she unconsciously reached for me even in sleep.

Quickly, I stripped out of my clothes and slid into bed behind her.

The moment my arm came around her waist, she pressed back against me with a contented sigh, her body fitting perfectly against mine as if we'd been sleeping together for years instead of weeks.

This morning, taking her in, sound asleep in the circle of my arms, I understood something fundamental had changed.

She wasn't just my captive anymore, or even just my future wife.

She was becoming my home.

And that terrified me more than any enemy I'd ever faced.

CHAPTER 25

ALINA

The emerald-cut diamond slipped down my finger again as I raised my hand to smooth the intricate beadwork on my sleeve.

The massive stone caught the afternoon light streaming through the penthouse windows, sending rainbow fractals dancing across the mirrors surrounding us.

"Stop fidgeting with that ring," Yelena scolded, pins between her teeth as she adjusted the hem of what might have been the most beautiful wedding dress I'd ever seen. "You've lost weight. Again."