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vladi

M y stomach twists into knots as she slams the door in my face.

Dammit. I fucked up. My chest tightens filling with regret.

With disappointment in myself that I couldn’t get the words out of my mouth.

I couldn’t fucking tell her I care about her.

That I love her. Tell her that I don’t want to breathe without her near me.

Once again, proof of my inability to be what she needs.

I pound my fist against the door, pain radiating through the wounds of trying to keep her safe.

But the sting in my hand is nothing compared to the fear clawing at me.

I can’t lose her. I’ll find her. I’ll tell her. I’ll fix this .

I rip open the door, nearly removing it from its hinges, and see her jogging down the damn hallway.

I run toward her knowing I can catch up.

She glances over her shoulder and picks up her pace.

She darts around a corner, and my breath hitches, my throat tightening.

I can’t see her . A loud crash interrupts my thoughts, followed by shards of broken dishes sliding across the floor. Fuck.

I burst into a full sprint, like I’m skating off the ice toward the bench to allow another attacker on the offensive. I shove past the panic closing in around me. I have to get to her .

As I round the corner, I see my Magdalina lying on the floor and a man reaching his hand out toward her. My fingers curl into fists at my sides, rage coursing through every inch of my veins. I shove him to the ground, a shout bursting from my lungs for him to leave her alone.

I turn to face her, calming slightly at seeing her seemingly okay, offering my hand to her. “Let me help you.”

She bats my hand away, stubbornly picking herself up off the ground. “You need to calm the fuck down. It was an accident . I ran into him .”

I run a hand through my hair trying to keep myself from reaching out to help her. Hold her. Fuck, my chest is so tight again. “Did he touch you? You were walking too fast. You should not walk that far ahead of me.”

I run my gaze up and down her body, looking for any signs of harm.

She seems unscathed and breath finally returns to my lungs.

The waiter, however, is still down and shaking, horror in his eyes.

A slight pang of regret hits me, knowing I overreacted when she wasn’t really in danger.

She’s safe for now. But the scowl on her face and the tick in her jaw tells me she is more upset with my actions than anything else.

She turns to speaks to the waiter. “I’m so sorry, sir. I’ll find someone to get this all cleaned up. This was my bad.”

She walks to go get help, grabbing my arm and yanking me along. My body loosens more with every step. But, when she finally jerks us to a stop, I swear there is steam radiating from her face.

“What the actual fuck, Vladimir?” I look at her in shock, raising an eyebrow at the use of my name.

“Yeah, I just full named you. Again. That’s what you get for calling me Maggie when I asked a serious question earlier.

You never call me Maggie.” Her voice shakes as she trails off, her glossy eyes looking down.

A tense beat passes between us. Then two, causing me to shift on my feet.

She shakes her head, her eyes meeting mine.

My stomach drops realizing this is not a look of passion.

This is the full rage of Maggie James coming at me like a freight train.

“First of all,” she points her finger at me, “I’m a grown ass woman and allowed to walk at a pace of my choosing.

Second, while I appreciate your concern for my safety, you can’t go all ‘touch her and die’ when anyone is within a foot of me.

That was an accident . I bumped into him because I need to be away from you .

” I wince, her words punching through my ribs leaving a hollow ache behind.

“But you and your damn caveman attitude decided to chase me down this hallway with your freakishly long goalie legs, so I was?—”

“He should have been paying more attention to where he was going.” I push back my sadness, my anger now in full force as I crack my knuckles, scanning the area for any signs of others who might hurt her.

“You can’t keep me safe from everything!

” she shouts. “I cannot live my life being smothered to death by someone I am fucking in love with! Especially one not letting me move an inch without them. And especially someone who ‘doesn’t know’ what the fuck we are.

” She makes air quotes with her fingers as she lets out a defeated sigh.

My heart sinks into my stomach. Did she just say she loved me? The world tilts, my mind spins like I took a hit to the head. I want to go and punch that waiter onto the next closest island, but my heart is pounding so fast I can’t breathe. I reach out, placing my hand on her arm. “ Lisichka …”

She pulls away from my touch, my heart shriveling in my chest. “No. You don’t get to call me that anymore. You said that’s for people you care for. So don’t you dare call me that until you can figure out what the fuck that means.”