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Selina

Roman smirked at me from the couch across the room, but his grin quickly faded when Nikolai shot him a murderous glare.

Two days had passed since our arrest, and only now had Nikolai agreed to see him. After a long argument the night before, where I had refused any physical contact with my husband, which had only worsened his mood.

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed down the stairs, and my sister appeared in the hallway dressed in sportswear, her hair pulled back in a ponytail.

“I’m going for a run on the forest trail.”

“Sienna—” I tried to stop her, but she was already out the door with a brisk “See you later.”

I sighed, sinking back onto the couch. Since my emotional outburst, we hadn’t spoken. She had been avoiding me like the plague, and I couldn’t blame her.

Nikolai took my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze as I inhaled deeply, trying to keep the tears brimming behind my eyelids from falling.

“She won’t talk to me,” I whispered, closing my eyes.

“Give her time,Solnychko. Everything will work out,” my husband reassured me.

“Yeah, your sister is far more forgiving than my brother, Selina,” Roman interjected, immediately drawing Nikolai’s attention—a grave mistake.

My husband was on his feet in less than a second, but I grabbed his arm.

“Nikolai !” I cried, but he didn’t even glance at me.

“You took my wife to a damn street race !” he growled through clenched teeth.

“Because I asked him to,” I replied, even though he wasn’t addressing me.

“She could’ve been hurt ! And as if that wasn’t enough, she got arrested !” he shouted. I silently thanked God that no one else was home. Then again, I wasn’t sure if it was a good thing, considering how close Nikolai was to tearing his brother apart.

“It wasn’t his fa—”

“I know. I’m sorry,moy brat,” Roman interrupted, lowering his gaze to the floor.

I stared at him, stunned.

“I shouldn’t have taken her. It was a mistake,” he continued, apologizing while Nikolai watched him in silence for a moment before exhaling sharply.

“For the next month, Sasha will handle the races,” he said darkly. I saw Roman clench his fists, but he said nothing, simply accepting his punishment.

“Uh, I’m right here, you know? You do realize I’m not a damn chi—”

I swallowed my words when Nikolai’s dark eyes landed on me. “Oh, trust me,Solnychko, I know that very well,” he murmured, stepping toward me.

Before I knew it, I was seated again.

“I’ll go pick up the boys from Agata’s,” Roman announced before making a hasty exit.

My husband stood before me, hands on his hips, “what ?” I challenged, crossing my arms and furrowing my brows.

He knelt in front of me, spreading my legs gently to settle between them, his hands resting on my hips.

“Selina, what’s wrong,moylubov’(mylove) ? If you’re upset about what happened… I’m not mad at you. I’m not angry,” he said softly.

“I know you’re not, Niko. I just… I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Lately, I feel like I’ve lost control of everything,” I admitted, burying my face in my hands as tears threatened to spill again.

“Hey, hey, Selina, look at me,” Nikolai said, gently grasping my wrists and pulling my hands from my face. I tried to pull free, shaking my head, but he held me—firm, yet careful.