Page 51 of Brutal Reign

“No, angel moy, I’m not going to torture you,” I murmur as I brush a thumb along the corner of her lips. “I’m going to marry you.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY

HOPE

Marry me?

My brain scrambles, trying to make sense of his words, but they don’t compute.

“You’re out of your goddamn mind.”

Pavel shrugs, swinging open the door in front of us. “No one would argue with that.”

Stepping aside, he gestures toward the open doorway, expecting me to walk through it like this is all perfectly reasonable.

I shake my head, backing up a step into the hallway. “No, I’m not doing this. You can’t seriously think?—”

His hand slams against the wall beside my head, the other finding my hip as he leans in so our faces are inches apart.

“We’re getting married,” he says simply. “Try to run again, and I’ll chain you to me until the ceremony’s over. We’re not leaving this island without my ring on your finger.”

My heart thuds so hard it’s all I can hear. He’s serious; I can see it in his expression.

The weight of my secret presses down on my chest. Kin.Ourson. The boy Pavel doesn’t know exists is somewhere in this mansion, hopefully still safe with Mei. I‘ll have to tell him I have a child eventually, but not until I understand his true motivations for marrying me.

What I’ll never reveal is that Pavel is Kin's father. Men like him care about bloodlines above all else, and if he discovers his son, he might take Kin away from me.

“Why?” I say, praying this is all a very bad dream. “This is about revenge, isn’t it? The ultimate power move: steal the Black Company heir on her wedding day and claim her for yourself. I’m a pawn in whatever game you’re playing.”

“If this was only about revenge, there are many other ways I could exact retribution and make Simon suffer. It’s about much more than that.” His thumb traces my jawline with unexpected gentleness, sending an involuntary shiver through me. I hate the way my body reacts to him. “Believe it or not, this is for your own good.”

“For my own good? Yeah, right. So you can do whatever the hell you want with me.”

“I could do that anyway,” he says with a small shrug. “I don’t need a ring to claim you. There’s nothing stopping me from doing exactly what I want to you right here, is there?” I swallow hard when his fingers drift from my jaw to trace the outline of my lips.

“The only person I need protection from is you! If you’re so worried about me, let me go, and I’ll hide somewhere far away where no one will ever find me. I already did it once before.”

“And how did that work out?” He lifts an eyebrow. It’s a reminder of how easily he found me. “You’re the daughter of Lai King. If it’s not the Syndicate after you, it’ll be Simon or another enemy. You’ll always be a hunted woman.”

My gut twists at the truth of his words. There really is no escape from who I am.

“Simon, you, the Syndicate—what’s the difference? I’m trapped either way.” The words taste bitter on my tongue. “You were sent to kill me. Just because you didn’t follow through doesn’t mean I will ever trust you.”

Pavel laughs, leaning in until his forearm braces against the wall above my head, his body forming a prison of heat and muscle around me. Up close, I can see how the years have changed him. He’s broader, more muscled, his jaw sharper, and his eyes harder. The charming author I remember has been replaced by something infinitely more dangerous and stupidly attractive in a way that makes my pulse race.

Slowly, he wraps his big hand around my jaw. I’m forced to stare into his eyes. Eyes that I can so easily get lost in despite myself.

“I didn’t kill you, did I? I didn’t hurt you. In fact, I’ve done nothing but protect you, even after you stabbed me.”

“What?” I whisper, my body going completely still. “It was you? During the raid on the villa?” The man who spared me.

My mind flashes to our night together, and the scar on his back, the one I touched with trembling fingers. That was me. I did that to him.

I swallow hard, my voice catching in my throat. “Why?” I ask. “Why did you let me live?”

A question that I’ve asked myself many times over the years and have never been able to answer.