Page 77 of Cinderella and the Daddy

"It's not nothing." I reach for him, but he catches my hands, holding them still.

"Cindy." There's something in his voice I've never heard before. "I need to ask you something."

"Now?" I stare at him in disbelief. "Luka, you're bleeding. We need to?—"

"Now," he says firmly, his hands tightening around mine. "Especially now."

Before I can protest further, he's kissing me.

He jerks his head back. "Marry me."

For a moment, I'm sure I've misheard. The gunfire must have damaged my hearing more than I thought. "What?"

"Marry me," he repeats, and this time there's no mistaking it. His eyes are intense, burning with something that goes beyondthe adrenaline of survival. "Right now. Today. Tomorrow. I don't care when or where or how, but marry me."

I stare at him in disbelief.

"You're in shock," I say weakly. "We're both in shock. This isn't?—"

"This is exactly the right time." He stands up and lifts me to my feet. "I almost lost you. I almost lost both of you. I’m not wasting any time.”

Tears are streaming down my face. "Luka..."

What am I going to say… no?

I’m not an idiot. He’s not exactly asking.

And I don’t need him to. I know what I want.

"Yes," I whisper, and then louder, "Yes."

The smile that breaks across his face is brilliant enough to light up the destroyed room.

The sound of heavy footsteps and men shouting breaks the spell. My eyes go wide.

Luka curses in Russian and shoves me behind him. "Stay behind me," he orders.

"Luka!" A voice calls from down the hall.

"Grigori," he calls back. "About time you showed up to the party."

"Sorry, Boss," comes the reply.

Three men appear in the doorway. They’re all armed and look pissed as hell.

Grigori shoots me a dirty look.

“Sorry,” I murmur.

"Boss, looks like you handled it,” one of them says.

"One of them got away," Luka reports, holstering his weapon. "Black sedan, license plate starts with 'GHY'—that's all I got before he disappeared."

"We'll find him," another man promises. "What about cleanup?"

"Handle it," Luka says curtly. "We need to move. Now."

He turns to me. "Can you walk?"