Page 21 of Cruel Russian Monster (Safin Bratva #2)

“And you're sure he's okay?” Zahkar asked, brow arched. “You're not just saying that to get rid of us?”

I stepped into the lounge, and all eyes turned to me. They were standing in the middle of the room, and I walked over to Vera and placed my hand lightly on her hip.

“I'm fine.” I nodded at both men. “Thank you for staying just in case Vera needed you.”

Yegor and Zahkar gave a nod.

“And now that my husband is fine, I'd like for him to stay that way.”

“It's not like we set out hoping he'd get hurt,” Zahkar said flatly.

“You're right, you didn't, but the manner in which you got him to go with you was sneaky and underhanded.” Vera folded her arms across her chest.

“And for that, we apologize,” Yegor stated. “I'm sorry.”

He extended his hand to me, and I shook it firmly.

“So am I.”

Zahkar extended his hand, and I shook that, too, before returning it to Vera's hip.

She took one of her brothers’ hands in each of hers.

“When our parents died, I was still pretty young. Artyom was busy with the faction, and both of you had the task of raising Kira and me.”

She looked at Yegor. “Yegor, you taught me to be tough, yet in control. To value integrity.”

Then shifted her gaze to Zahkar. “Zahkar, you taught me it was okay to enjoy life, to let my hair down once in a while. But you also taught me the reward of hard work, and what it means to be there for family.”

Vera sighed.

“I need you to trust me. Trust that the lessons you taught me stayed with me. Jaroslav is my husband, which means he’s family now. So I’m asking, as your little sister, please… Don’t involve the Safin men in your plans. Don’t make me choose between my husband and his brothers, and mine.”

During Vera's speech, I watched Yegor’s and Zahkar’s faces change from hard-edged Bratva men to doting brothers.

“Vera,” Zahkar said, “the last thing we’d want is to force you to choose. You have our word that we won’t involve the Safin men in anything we’re planning.”

“We’ll still be overprotective assholes,” Yegor added, glancing at me before returning his gaze to Vera. “That’s not changing just because you’re married. You’ll always be a Rykov by blood.”

There was still a thread of warning under Yegor’s words, but could I blame him? If someone messed with Ninel or Mariya, I’d do worse. Marriage didn’t erase sibling loyalty, but it definitely complicated the dynamics.

Vera stepped away from me and into her brothers’ arms. The way she went to them willingly, and how they held her, showed that their bond was strong. She loved them, and they loved her.

I couldn’t help but want that for myself—Vera’s love. For her to willingly come to me, to trust that I could love her, too, for her to love me back.

But how could I ask for that, when we’d both agreed to keep this casual? We were finally getting along, being civilized to one another. She was comfortable here, and I wasn’t going to be the reason that changed.

Yegor pulled back first. “We’ve got to go. But since you’re here, we wrote our letters to Katya. Do you mind giving them to her?”

Zahkar walked over to a nearby table, picked up two folded pieces of paper, and handed them to Vera.

“I’d love to.” A genuine smile touched her lips. “Tell Kira I love her. I miss her.”

They nodded.

“I’ll walk you out,” I said, already heading for the door.

Vera stayed inside while I escorted her brothers to the car. We walked in silence for a moment before I spoke.

“Can you help me bring Kira over without Artyom finding out?”

Zahkar nodded. “Sure. Kira’s going to be miserable at the mansion without Vera, though.”

“We’ll figure out how to tell Artyom soon, so she'll be able to come and visit Vera freely.”

We stopped at the car. Zahkar climbed in first while Yegor lingered beside me.

“Take care of Vera,” he said quietly.

“I plan to.”

He gave me one last look, then got behind the wheel. The engine started, gravel crunching under the tires as they pulled out of the compound.

I stood there for a moment longer, watching the car disappear, before heading back inside.

I found her in the kitchen, her back to me. I leaned against the doorframe and watched for a moment.

After speaking with her brothers, she should’ve been calm.

She wasn’t.

Close by was an open bottle of wine and half a glass.

She downed the rest of her wine in one go, set the glass down hard, then started chopping something on the cutting board that I couldn't quite see, like it’d done something to her.

One hand bumped a tomato; it rolled off the counter and hit the floor.

She muttered under her breath, picked it up, rinsed it, and poured herself another glass.

Then she opened the fridge to grab some eggs, tried to close it, but something inside blocked it. She kept pushing until she slammed the door harder, her frustration boiling over in a low growl.

I moved toward her, adjusted the container that had been blocking the door. She didn’t say anything, just walked away and poured herself another glass of wine.

After a few strides, I reached out, took the wine from her hand, and set it down on the counter.

“Vera,” I said, concern lacing my voice, “what’s wrong?”

“I’m fine,” she muttered, barely looking at me.

She tried to push past me, but I wasn’t letting that slide.

“Vera. Talk to me.”

She stopped. Her eyes snapped up to mine. “You want to know what’s wrong with me?”

I folded my arms, head tilted slightly, waiting.

“You are what’s wrong with me!”

I stiffened. “Explain.”

Her eyes flickered. “What happened between you and my brothers…that’s the real reason I broke it off with you three years ago.”

My jaw tightened. “Explain,” I repeated.

Vera backed up until she hit the kitchen island, arms wrapping tightly around herself like she was trying to make herself small.

A sad look washed over her face. I wanted nothing more than to go over and pull her into my arms. But if what she had to say explained the real reason why she broke up with me, and it wasn't about an ex? I needed to hear every damn word.

Her soft gaze met my narrowed one. “I was in a store shopping one day with Kira and Yegor. We saw you through the boutique window, and then Yegor told us who you were…that you belonged to a rival faction.

“I knew…” she inhaled deeply, voice cracking, “I knew if Artyom found out I was dating you, he’d kill you. No questions asked. So I did what I had to do to protect you.”

I didn’t say a word. I was too fucking stunned by the words she just uttered.

Tears slipped down her cheeks.

“I didn’t have an ex. I’d never dated anyone before you...or after you. You were my first…”

She let the words linger. She lowered her gaze, voice softer as she continued. “I knew I had to tell you something bad enough to make you hate me, to keep you away.”

And fuck, it worked. Vera lied to protect me. Made me hate her to keep me alive.

And while that truth brought some warped kind of comfort, that didn't stop the anger from surging through my veins.

“Dammit, Vera!” I ran my hand through my hair. “You could’ve met with me! Told me the truth! We could’ve worked it out! Found a way!”

“How?” she shot back. “There was no way I could admit to Artyom that I was in love with a rival faction’s underboss! He would’ve killed you, dragged me out of college, and had me married off before your body hit the ground!”

“You should’ve let me decide! You took that from me! You took away my chance to fight for the woman I loved! To fight for us! For our future!”

“And you’re alive because I did!” she cried. “Look at us—three years later, we’re married, and we still don’t know how we’re going to tell Artyom without him going batshit crazy! If making you hate me ripped my heart out, knowing that you died because of me would have killed me.”

Vera began to sob uncontrollably, and I moved then. I held her, and she clung to me.

“I'm so sorry, Jaroslav, for what I did to you back then…for what I'm making your family go through now,” she said between sobs.

There was no way I could stay mad at Vera. She did what she thought would keep me safe and alive, even though it killed her to do it. And the fact that I was her first, and she didn't have anyone after me? Fuck. I'd be a fool to let her slip through my fingers.

Call me a misogynistic bastard for loving the fact that I'm the only man who's ever touched her, kissed her, pleased her…her moans belonged to me, and so did her body.

I was done with all this casual bullshit. Vera. Was. Mine.

I cupped her face and looked into her eyes.

“Malishka, thank you for protecting me.”

Then I kissed her, and she whimpered. The longer we kissed, those whimpers turned into moans. I grabbed her ass and lifted her to the island, and she wrapped her legs around me. My erection was flush against the heat radiating from between her legs. I growled.

I wanted Vera, but not here. I need her in my bed under me.

“Hold me,” I whispered.

I lifted her off the island, my hands under her ass, legs locked around me, hands around my neck. I kissed her as we moved, not wanting to break our connection. I pushed past the pain in my side as I climbed the stairs.

Once we got to my room, I turned the knob and entered my bedroom, kicking the door closed. I planted her on the floor next to me.

“Take off your clothes and get in the middle of the bed,” I said gruffly.

Within minutes, Vera was stretched out in the center of my bed, her back flat against the sheets, her body warm and inviting beneath mine. I hovered over her, kissing her deeply, the tip of my cock nudging her already wet pussy, teasing her with what we both knew was coming.

“I want to touch you,” she whispered into my mouth, breathless and needy.

“You are touching me,” I murmured between kisses, cupping her face.

“No…I want to taste you.”

That made me pause.

I pulled back just enough to see her face. Her cheeks were flushed, lips swollen, eyes filled with desire.

I rolled onto my back with a low chuckle, hands laced behind my head.

“Then touch me, malishka. Show me.”

She straddled me and placed her palms on my chest. Her touch was soft at first, fingers exploring the ridges of muscle, tracing the scars I never talked about. Her eyes didn’t drift away; they drank me in like a vortex…an abyss I never wanted to leave.

Her hands moved lower. Slower.

She wrapped her fingers around my cock and began to stroke me.

I moaned with every pump, encouraging her.

I wanted to close my eyes, but I was mesmerized by that sexy hooded look in her eyes and the smug little smirk on her lips.

She dragged her thumb across the head and then sucked the pre-cum from it.

I made a noise in my throat that I didn't recognize.

And then…her mouth replaced her hand.

Fuck me!

It was hot. Wet. And fucking perfect.

I groaned, one hand sliding into her hair as she took me deeper. Her mouth moved slowly, tongue circling, lips tightening with each pull. Her hands didn’t stop; she worked me in tandem as she began to speed up, gaining momentum, dragging pleasure out of me in waves.

“Turn,” I rasped. “On your hands and knees. Pussy to me.”

She obeyed without hesitation, never letting me slip from her mouth, even though her face was bright red.

I grabbed Vera's ass and spread her cheeks, licking her from clit to ass. She moaned into my cock, and I focused on licking her glistening folds.

I pushed one finger into her, then two, and found her G-spot. Her legs began to shake, and the hold her mouth had on my cock loosened. As I pumped my fingers into her, I sucked her clit hard.

“Jaro…” she moaned loudly.

Her juices ran from her lips down her inner thighs, onto my chest. It was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen. By now, Vera wasn't even focusing on my cock; she held it in her hands, and her moans got louder as her pussy clenched around my fingers.

“Don’t you dare cum,” I growled, spreading her wider with my hands. “Not yet.”

She whimpered, but nodded.

“Don't move,” I whispered huskily.

I slid out from under Vera. Then I positioned her on the edge of the bed, head down and ass in the air. I stood behind her and drove into her in one slow movement.

“Fuck, Vera…”

I gripped her hips and thrust into her hard and fast.

“Touch yourself,” I ground out.

Between Vera's mouth and her pussy, I wasn't going to last much longer, but I needed her like this, taking everything I had to offer. As Vera's finger flicked her clit, I felt her muscles begin to strangle my cock.

She looked back at me and whimpered, “Jaroslav…please…”

“Cum for me, malishka.”

And she did.

Her cry split the air as she shattered beneath me. Her body tightened, legs trembling as pleasure took her over.

I followed her over the edge seconds later, spilling deep inside her, holding her in place as we both shook.

We collapsed in a tangled heap, dragging ourselves up to the head of the bed, limbs heavy and hearts racing.

I pulled her into me, wrapping an arm around her waist.

“Rest,” I murmured against her hair. “We’ll order out when we wake up.”

“You're bleeding,” she whispered, looking at my bandage.

“Rest, you're in my arms. I'm okay.”

I felt her smile more than I saw it as she relaxed into me. I looked down at her, pressed my lips to the top of her head, and sighed.

Vera came back to me…and I was never letting her go.