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A ripple of laughter moves through the crowd.

“Especially for me,” Konstantin continues.

Cillian exhales sharply beside me.

“But for those who don’t know, let me sum it up: it took themwaytoo long to get here. Honestly, I started thinking we’d all die of old age before they got their act together. And yet, here we are.” He pauses, tilting his glass slightly. “So I, for one, sincerely hope this is the end of their problems, because the last thing anyone wants is a funeral.” He grins. “Za zdorovye.”

He raises his glass, and the room erupts in cheers, glasses clinking together.

Cillian mutters a curse under his breath while I struggle to contain my laughter. Because of course, it’s just like Konstantin to end a toast with a thinly veiled death threat.

CHAPTER43

DINARA

The noiseof the evening fades into a quiet hum. The guests are long gone, leaving us alone.

The space between us feels suddenly endless. Even as the walls of my bedroom close in around me, I reach into a drawer to retrieve a nightshirt.

Glancing at Cillian, I want nothing more than to jump into his arms. To kiss him. To run my fingers through his hair while he looks into my eyes. To feel everything I should feel with my husband.

But instead, I find myself filled with nervousness.

“Do you need help with your zipper?” he asks, undoing his cuffs, his gaze locking on to me with an intensity that makes me flush.

I clear my throat, suddenly aware that there’s no way I can reach the zipper on my back.

“Please.” I turn to face him just as he steps behind me.

His mouth brushes against my throat while his fingers glide over my bare arms, sending shivers through me. “You were the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen.”

I’m hardly able to pull in a breath from his words, the gruff way he says them. Every inch of me wants him, needs him, but I won’t let him have me. Not this easily.

“We don’t have to do this. Okay?” I say. “We’re married in name only. That’s all this is.”

When his mouth lowers to the space where my shoulder and neck meet, I let out a pant, dropping my head back against his chest.

“That’s not what it is for me.”

“Well, that’s too bad,” I whisper. “Because Konstantin and I made a deal, remember? We stay married for a year, and after that, if I still want a divorce, he’ll give it to me.”

He lets out a growl, flipping me around to meet his steely gaze. Roughly, he grasps my jaw, bringing his mouth close to mine. “I’ll never let that happen.”

“And how will you stop it?”

His thumb brushes my lips. “By making you fall in love with me.”

My lashes flutter, body coiling as he pulls me flush against him.

“Come to bed with me.” He kisses the corner of my mouth, while my body strains and throbs for him.

“I’m not just gonna jump into bed with you. You’re gonna have to earn it this time.” My skin prickles the more he looks at me with that lustful gaze.

“And how does a man get to earn this perfect body? Because I’ll wait a lifetime if I have to.”

Everything he says just makes me want him more, but I promised myself that I’d only sleep with him again if I feel I can trust him, and I’m definitely not there.

He spins me back around, unzipping the back of my dress and kissing my neck, his breath hot as the dress starts to fall. When I stand there in nothing but a white thong, he mutters a curse.