Page 26 of Love to Defy You (The Dark Love #2)

“She was drinking from a flask all afternoon.” Birgitta swirls her drink. “Didn’t you notice?”

No, I suppose I didn’t.

“This is my last hurrah, boys!” Anastasia’s loud voice doesn’t hold its usual sophistication, and her words slur together. “Who wants to fuck me before I get sold off?”

The guys cheer and reach for her, skimming their hands over her body to pull her closer. I glance around, but Alek is nowhere in sight to intervene. If Anastasia loses her virginity tonight, she’ll have to answer to both her brother and her mother.

Instead, Mikhail appears and shoves the guys aside, sending one backward onto the floor. “Get your filthy hands off her.”

“Mick, don’t ruin my fun.” Anastasia pouts.

He growls so loud I can hear him over the pulsing bass. “You’re drunk.”

Ana starts to argue, but Mikhail hoists her lithe body over his shoulder like a sack of flour.

He rests his hand on her ass to support her weight as he weaves through the crowd, a head taller than everyone else.

She kicks and beats on his back, screaming like a banshee, but Mikhail doesn’t put her down. Instead, he carries her up the stairs.

“I think he’s going to lock her in her room.” Birgitta covers her mouth and giggles.

“Better him than Alek,” I say. I’m not sure what would happen if Alek saw those guys touching his underage sister, but I’m sure it would involve his switchblade.

Josie downs the rest of her champagne in one gulp. When she finishes, she sets the empty glass down and turns to me. “Word of advice—make sure Alek is fully committed to you before the next ritual.”

I frown. “What do you mean? What’s the next ritual?”

She stands up abruptly and wanders off without giving me any more. Before I can ask Birgitta, she jumps up from the couch and chases after Josie, calling her name.

What is she warning me about? How does the next ritual test Alek’s commitment to me? Does it somehow test a candidate’s strength to resist other women?

Red-hot jealousy courses through my system as my mind comes up with all sorts of scenarios. Alek wouldn’t cheat on me unless he had no other choice. Unless our lives were at stake... and they are.

Would Enzo use this to drive us apart?

“Ladies and gentlemen!” The DJ’s voice rises above the music. “Please turn your attention toward the window for the New Year’s Eve Drone Show.”

Every head in the room turns toward the panoramic view of the dark valley, and sure enough, dozens and dozens of lights appear in a grid pattern in the sky.

The lights slowly morph from color to color as they transition into the shape of a stick figure, which begins to wave its arms above its head. The room laughs.

The drones break apart to form another shape, this time a flower, which starts to pinwheel in the dark sky above the valley.

“Fireworks are banned in this area of Switzerland,” Alek’s low voice whispers in my ear. He wraps his arm around my waist to watch the sky with me.

“They do this instead of fireworks?” I ask.

He nods.

“But it’s not midnight yet.”

“No, not yet.” A smile ghosts across his lips. “Besides, I promised I’d tell you the plan before midnight.”

I tilt my chin to look at him. “Are you going to tell me now?”

“First, I need to give you your Christmas present.”

Oh, right. I forgot that they exchange presents on New Year’s Eve. My presents for the others are still sitting under the tree.

“Let me grab yours.” I break away from him to retrieve his present, pushing my way through the crowd, who are mesmerized by the drone show outside.

When I return, Alek has a bottle of champagne and two glasses in his hand. He nods his chin toward the stairs for me to follow.

He leads me to our bedroom on the second floor. “Wait here.” He disappears into the closet and emerges with a thick coat, which he tosses to me. “Put this on.”

I grimace. “Are we going outside in the freezing cold? Where’s your coat?”

“You’ll see.” He winks and heads back into the hall. We head up another flight of stairs until we reach the top floor, and Alek leads me to an exit door at the end. He pulls it open and gestures for me to walk outside first.

I tighten my coat around myself and step into the frigid night air. But when I take in the sight of the rooftop balcony, my discomfort is forgotten and replaced with stunned surprise.

A glass dome sits in the middle of the open rooftop, and a pathway toward the door is marked with dozens of white flower arrangements and flickering candles in glass lanterns.

White rose petals are scattered along the winding path toward the igloo.

Millions of stars hang in the velvet night sky above our heads, and we also have a clear view of the drone show over the valley.

I suck in a breath at the romantic view. “Alek, what is all this?”

“Your present,” he says with a grin. “Come on. I’ll show you the best part.”

Alek leads me down the petal-covered path toward the glass dome and opens the door. “Ladies first.”

When I step inside, the air turns warm from the heater overhead. A round lounger bed sits in the middle, piled high with pillows and blankets, which are also strewn with rose petals. More pillar candles in vases line the perimeter, ensconcing the bed in a ring of flickering light.

“Oh, my God.” I cover my mouth with my hands. “This is so beautiful.”

He tips his chin toward the bed. “Take a seat. I’ll pour us some champagne.”

I slip off my coat and toss it onto the floor before climbing onto the bed. With the pillows behind me, I settle back and pull the blanket over my legs to watch the drone show.

The cork pops, which startles me and makes me yelp, although I immediately burst into laughter afterward at my reaction.

With an amused grin, Alek hands me my glass before crawling in beside me, and he stretches one of his arms around my shoulders. We take in the beauty of this moment in silence, sipping on champagne and relaxing into the pillows.

I curl against him. “Alek, thank you so much. This is amazing.”

“You know I’d do anything for you, malishka .”

“I know, but this is so...” I wave my hand in the air while thinking of the right word. “Romantic.”

He glances down at me and arches his eyebrow. “Am I not romantic?”

I snort. “Not in the traditional sense.”

“I suppose you’re right.” He lets out a sincere laugh that makes my chest grow warm.

“But I love my present,” I add. “Thank you.”

Alek presses a kiss into my hair. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” I push the present into his lap. “Here, open your gift. It’s kind of lame compared to this, so don’t be too disappointed.”

He sets his glass of champagne on the floor before tearing open the wrapping paper. Inside is a leatherbound photo album documenting our travels from the past year.

“I wasn’t sure what to get for the guy who has everything,” I say.

He flips through the pages. “This is perfect, malishka. Thank you.“ He closes the album and sets it off to the side. “But you’re wrong. I don’t have everything I want.”

“Oh, no?” I raise my eyebrows. “What could you possibly want that you don’t have?”

He nods toward the sky, and I turn my gaze toward the drones, which form a heart that oscillates between red and pink hues.

“You want a drone?” I ask. “I’m sure we can get you one when we get back to Zurich.”

He chuckles. “No, not a drone.”

The drones break formation like dancing fireflies. After a few moments, they come together and start forming words in block font. I tilt my head, trying to figure out what they’re spelling out.

And when the last drone locks into formation, I read the message aloud: Marry me.

“Aw, that’s cute. Someone’s proposing to their girlfriend tonight.” My face relaxes into a serene smile at the sweet gesture, and a couple of beats pass before my eyes grow wide. Shock settles over my body, which goes numb as I slowly turn to look at Alek.

A velvet ring box sits in his hand, and the lid is open to reveal a thick, white-gold band. The center stone is a massive marquise garnet in a blood-red hue, surrounded by a halo of tiny black diamonds.

Is there drool hanging out of my mouth? Because my jaw is wide open right now, and no words are coming out.

“Marry me, Willow Baker.”

I blink, and the only words I manage to spit out are “You’re so bossy.”

He smirks. “It isn’t a request. You’re mine in every way except one. I made you a promise once that I would make you my wife, and I intend to follow through on that promise.”

I set my glass on the floor. “Well, yeah, but... so soon? We’re barely adults.”

“ Malishka, most people go their entire lives without a love like ours. An all-consuming, obsessive love where we take every step and every breath in tandem. We move through life as one, and when you die, I’ll die, too.

That is how tightly our souls are entwined.

Our age doesn’t change that.“ He slides the ring out of the box and holds it between his finger and thumb. “So, say that you’ll marry me.”

I brush my fingertips against the tear that slips down my cheek.

“I must warn you, though.” His face grows serious.

“Once you put this ring on, you won’t be able to take it off.

It will slide on easily, but there are tiny spikes on the interior of the ring that will make it incredibly painful to remove.

Sort of like tire spikes for your flesh—safe to drive over in one direction, but not if you try to back out. ”

“What?” I lean away from the ring as if it’s about to bite me.

“My wedding band will have the same design,” he says. “Because once I put it on, it’s never coming off. If you ever leave me, my shredded finger will be the physical representation of my broken heart.” He places his hand over his chest. “It’s a symbol of my commitment to you.”

“I’d never leave you, Alek,” I whisper.

He reaches out and cups my cheek. “I know. But think carefully before you accept this ring, because it means forever.”