Page 49 of Axel (Belles & Bratva Beasts #2)

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

RUBY

“We need to name them.” Axel pets the kitten prowling up his chest.

I lie nude on my side, nestled against him. We’ve been cuddled in bed all day, watching movies. Then, he brought Sparky and the kittens to bed for some comfort, too, and I understand.

For two days, he’s been quiet, processing the shock of his son.

“But they all look alike.” I pet another golden fur ball. “I can’t tell them apart yet.”

“This one has white sock feet.” He pets the one on his chest. “And this one,” he reaches for the one, climbing his thigh. “Ouch. With sharp claws, has a white face and?—”

But I feel this for him too much. Axel’s hurting, and I want to help him talk about it.

“What did you want to name … him ?”

I’m not asking about our kittens.

Axel’s moved us to a villa at a golf resort on Daniel Island. He said Alena’s wedding is here in three days, and the kings own this resort. They have it locked down and covered with security. And he said he wants me to come to Alena’s wedding.

No hiding behind a lace hood this time.

I’ll join him as his future queen.

“Max,” Axel answers me heavily. “I always wanted to name my first son after my real father, Maxim. My mom’s second king. The man who helped us escape.”

“Maxim was good to you?”

“He was good to all of us. He was a Vor. A vory v zakone . It’s an elite status in the Bratva.

They’re leaders. They settle disputes. They’re connected to politicians, and that’s how we got out.

Maxim used his connections. Burned them, actually.

To get us out, knowing he’d never go back.

He crashed his plane into the Baltic Sea and died for us.

My father thought we were on that plane. ” He pauses. “Or so we thought.”

“I believe Roman,” I say warmly. “He was hurt just like you. I don’t think he’s a threat.”

“I don’t either. So that means…”

“That means it was someone else who told your father and Katya where you were.”

Axel nods, silently rubbing Sparky’s chin. She sits beside him, loyal and purring.

“Do you want to talk about him? Lev?”

The hinge of his jaw flexes. “I’ll kill him if he’s hurting him.”

“Roman said he’s not. He said your father is old and dying. Maybe after losing his sons. Maybe he’s changed. Maybe his grandson is too precious to him. He won’t hurt him.”

“If age doesn’t kill that man first, I will. I’m going to rip my father’s throat open for what he’s done.”

I kiss the black skull on his shoulder, believing him.

After a moment, letting his rage pass, he says, “I wonder what he looks like.”

“Like you,” I answer tenderly. “You’ve got all that alpha DNA. I bet he has dark hair and brows with a perfect nose, perfect lips, and blue eyes that melt your heart and?—”

“I want one with you,” he interrupts, turning to me.

“Ruby, I swear I’ll get my son back. I feel sick, worried about him, wondering about him.

I won’t rest until Lev is home, safe with me.

With us . I’ll never give up on him, and I want one with you, too.

Daughters and sons. A real marriage. A woman I love and trust. Old age and rocking chairs and?—”

Heat blooms in my chest.

“Axel, are you asking me?—”

“God, Wildfire.” He finally smiles. “You’re so predictable. I can’t propose after anal, but you want our engagement to begin with me in boxers and covered in kittens? No, I’ll propose the right way.”

He has no idea how right he looks right now.

Domineering. Doting. Lethal. Loving. A killer covered in ink and kittens.

No time like the present to commit to my future.

But I worry, “You need to know what you’re asking for. I understand your world now, but you have to understand mine.”

His brows furrow. “I do. I see you, Ruby. I always have.”

“No.” I exhale, sharing what I hide from most. Even him.

“You see a lot about me, but not my epilepsy. It’s an invisible disability.

Most of the time, I’m fine. I take my meds, manage my triggers, and take care of myself.

But it’s always there, waiting for me like a bomb that can drop at any moment.

And if I want to get pregnant, I have to change my medications, and that changes everything. ”

He reaches for my face. “I’ll do whatever you need.”

“But Axel, we’d have to plan it. What if I have a drop seizure while I’m really pregnant or holding our baby? I worry about having a seizure all the time,” I confess, tears welling in my eyes. “I just don’t like talking about it. It owns enough of my life as it is. I won’t give it more power.”

“Okay.” He nods. “How do we plan?”

“We’d need a new house,” I explain. “No stairs. No sharp corners. All soft carpets. It’s dangerous for me to cook by myself, or even take a bath by myself, and what if I have a seizure while bathing our baby? I can’t do some things on my own, and if I’m a mom, what if?—”

“It’s okay.” He cups my cheeks. “I’ll be there the whole time. We’ll baby-proof and Ruby-proof our new home.”

His smile is assuring, but…

“You can’t be there the whole time.”

“I can be there as much as I can. I want to be. And when I’m not? Have you met my mom? She’d love it. Or Wren. Or Sire. God, he’d make the best uncle. You should hear him sing. And Jace? He’s a teddy bear. Kids love him. And then add in all your sisters? We’re not alone. For better or for worse.”

“What if you resent me one day? For needing you?”

He shakes his head, as if he’s in on a secret I’m just now learning.

“Wildfire, you needing me is all I’ve been waiting for.”

He pulls me into a kiss. His lips soft. His beard tickling. His tongue tempting. His breath promising, “Because I need you, too.”

I search his piercing eyes and see our truth. Our future together.

“Okay,” my voice eases, “but we’re getting way ahead of ourselves.” I nuzzle his nose. “There’s no ring on my finger.”

“Such a feisty woman.” His lips quirk. “You want to fight me for it?”

“Fight you? For my ring?” With the way Axel looks now, I’d kill for it. “You may be primal, but I have pride. You know the drill. Get on your knees for me. ”

“Yes, ma’am,” he smirks, plucking kittens off him. “Come on, Sparky. You know the drill, too. No more cockblocking and blue balls.”

Axel corrals the kittens, exploding my ovaries when he holds all six, mewling in his inked arms. “Listen here,” he orders them, aiming for the ensuite bathroom. “Play with the toilet paper. Make a mess as usual. I don’t care. Just give us an hour or three.”

Once he sets Sparky in there, too, he closes the door and stalks toward the bed.

“Now, someone was talking about me on my knees with my blue eyes and alpha DNA, and—” He yanks my ankles toward the edge of the bed, making me squeal. “I think we need to practice spreading it.” He smirks. “Like your thighs.”

“You’re already ready for me?”

Slowly, he wedges his boxers to his ankles, his eyes locked to mine as his hefty cock springs free. “Look down and find out, Wildfire.”

I lick my lips, my heart lighter now that Axel’s smirking again. It’s been a rough couple of days for him, and this isn’t about me. I need to take care of him, too.

“Lie down, my king, and let me serve you.” I tease, “Any way I please.”

His eyes narrow, intrigued. I move aside so he can stretch across the bed with his head on a pillow.

“It’s my turn to kneel.” I fist his thick base, lifting his heavy shaft.

Gazing into his eyes, I wrap my lips around his tip and take what I can of his length into my mouth.

Loving it. His girth. His taste. His pleasure.

Bobbing my head up and down, I moan, giving him a show, letting his crown hit my throat each time.

“ Fuck ,” he rasps, “look at you. So fucking beautiful choking on my cock.” He fists my hair, licking his lips at the sight. “But this isn’t how we practice making our babies. ”

Spit webs from my lips to his swollen tip while I grin, “Shut up, dickhead,” and flick his sensitive frenulum with my tongue, making his eyelids flutter with his moan.

“Now, let me give you something you’ve given me.” Leaning over, I open the nightstand. Of course, I brought toys and lube. We’re here for a wedding after all. The mood is perfect.

I turn back and present him with the purple anal plug he used on me last week. “Can I please you with this, my king?” I ask, teasing it over my hard nipples.

Axel grins. “You want to take my virginity?”

“You mean you’ve never?”

He shakes his head. “But I will for you. I meant it, Ruby. I’ll do anything for you.”

“But do you want it?”

When he spreads his muscular thighs, opening himself to me, it’s so sexy, my clit ignites. “I’m sure my Wildfire will make me want it.” He fists his shaft. “Are you going to pop my cherry with your fingers first?”

“No, rookie.” It’s my turn to smirk. “Not with fake fingernails, I won’t.”

“Hmm.” His eyelids hood with lust. “Then keep your nails natural for our wedding night, so I can feel you inside me.”

Our wedding night? I can see it.

And tonight? I feel this inside, too. It’s so erotic. It makes me so wet, covering the smooth toy in lube and pressing it to Axel’s virgin entrance.

He grunts, shocked by the sensation, but doesn’t fight it.

For the longest time, I don’t push it in.

I tease and probe him, relishing his moans while I lavish his cock, stroking it and sucking it, making him writhe until he lifts his hips off the bed, demanding, “Fuck, Ruby. Do it, baby. Put it in my ass. ”

Gently, I press, slowly stretching him until the plug is at its widest part, about to breach him. “Exhale,” I tell him. “Exhale while I push it in.”

Axel obeys and it’s the hottest thing ever, taking his ass for the first time, while I plunge my mouth down his swollen cock, gagging on it for his pleasure, too.

He fists my hair tighter and roars, “ Fuck!! ”

I open my eyes to see tremors shaking his inked quad. With his leaking tip salting my lips, I ask, “Do you like me in your ass, Axel?”