Page 31 of Plus-Size Bratva Possession (Vadim Bratva #12)

Elena was about to ring the bell at Caspian’s when I didn’t know what came over me. “Wait,” I cried out and grabbed her hand, making her stop.

She paused, but linked her fingers through mine.

“It’s going to be okay,” she said, making gentle circles along my wrists.

“I’m not so sure,” I said, the nervous anxiety coiling through my body. “They have every reason to hate me.”

“They’ll understand. Trust me,” she said softly. “Think of it as ripping off a bandage.”

Tonight was the first night I saw her family in the hopes of making peace. For so long, I denied them any chance to do so, and now, I was here hoping for the same. I felt like a hypocrite. I wanted to do nothing more than run.

But I also didn’t. Elena had slowly become my world, and this was her world. I couldn’t split her into two.

This meant that today, I finally had to make amends.

Today, I would apologize to the men I'd wronged for years, and hope they could forgive me, if not for my sake, then for Elena's.

“Ready?” she asked, after I’d talked through everything in my head.

I nodded and gave her hand a squeeze. “Ready.”

She knocked, and moments later, Caspian opened. His expression was neutral as he looked at me, then softened when he turned to Elena.

“Finally,” he said, embracing his sister. “Everyone's waiting.”

He stepped back, allowing us entry, and I felt his eyes on me as I passed. I could hear voices as we walked to the living room, but when we entered, the chatter turned down.

Gio, Federico, Dante, Luca, and Achille all looked at me with various degrees of skepticism. Beatrice gave me a little awkward wave while Kate smiled warmly.

I returned her smile, though I felt my cheeks shake from the nerves. My eyes darted around for my sister, for Larissa, and there, I saw her seated by the window with a little bundle in her arms.

My niece. I wanted to rush over and beg for her forgiveness; to say I was a fool for not holding that baby. A baby, who was also my family.

“Come,” Caspian said softly, patting me on the back and guiding me in.

For a moment, I stood there feeling awkward, like I knew I had to say something, but nothing came to mind. But then, Larissa caught my eye and gave me a gentle, encouraging smile, and I felt more confident. She was my sister. This was her family, too, and she was mine.

Even though I never admitted that to her. God, I’ve treated her like shit.

I ran my hand through my hair and faced everyone. “I…I want to thank you all for meeting tonight.”

No one said a word. They all just watched, like hawks.

The tension in the room was so thick, like a furnace. I knew what I had to do, and there was no point in delaying it.

“I'd like to say something, if that's alright,” I said.

The brothers exchanged glances before Caspian gestured for me to continue.

I cleared my throat, suddenly aware of how dry my mouth was.

“First, I want to thank all of you for what you did at the warehouse.

You saved our lives, and I'm grateful. But that's not why I'm here today.” I looked over at Elena, then back at her brothers.

“I'm here to apologize for everything I believed was wrong about your family. I was a man blinded and couldn’t see the truth.”

Elena moved now to stand beside me, and that slight motion gave me so much strength.

“What I did to you all was unforgivable. I caused you all so much pain, especially you two,” I looked at Gio and Larissa.

“Most of all, Elena, to you,” I turned to her and took her hands in my own.

The words were difficult to say, but they needed to be said and I turned back to face her brothers.

“I was wrong. Not just about Adriana's death, but about all of you.”

“Damn right you were,” Dante muttered, earning a sharp look from Caspian.

“I don't expect forgiveness,” I continued. “I wouldn't forgive if I were in your shoes. But I want you to know that despite how this all began, meeting Elena has been the best thing that's ever happened to me.”

My gaze shifted to her, and the love I saw reflected in her eyes nearly took my breath away. “She's shown me what truly matters in life. She's made me a better man than I ever thought I could be. And I am sorry, truly sorry, for the pain I caused all of you.”

The silence that followed felt endless.

“You intend to stay married?” Gio asked suddenly.

I nodded without hesitation. “Forever, if possible.”

“And you, Elena?” Caspian turned to her. “After everything?”

Elena stepped closer to me, her hand finding mine again. “Yes,” she said simply. “There’s no one else for me.”

The brothers exchanged looks again, some subtle communication passing between them.

Finally, Caspian spoke. “What happened at the warehouse, that was family protecting family. You fought for Elena. Your brothers fought alongside ours. Maybe. That means something.”

“It does,” Larissa spoke up from her place on the couch. “Gastone may be stubborn and bull-headed—” she shot me a look that was half-teasing, half-serious, “—but when he loves, he loves with everything he has. Give him a chance,” Larissa said. “For Elena. For the baby.”

At the mention of the baby, the atmosphere in the room shifted subtly.

I saw the brothers exchange looks, and slowly, their stances became softer.

“Thank you,” I said, meaning it, even though they hadn’t said a word.

Gio stood up then and came to me, extending his hand. “If you hurt her again,” he said quietly, “there's nowhere on earth you can hide.”

I accepted his hand, meeting his gaze steadily. “I know.”

And just like that, the tension broke. Not completely, there were still wary glances, but enough that we could move forward. Over dinner, the conversation slowly became less strained. We spoke of the warehouse fight and laughed over all the stupid mistakes the Espositos made.

We were friendly.

“You should have seen Gastone when Ricardo had me,” Elena said at one point. “He offered himself in my place.”

The brothers looked at me with new respect after that.

As the evening wore on, I kept glancing toward Larissa and the baby. I had yet to properly meet my niece, and the guilt was clawing at me. The truth was, I didn’t know if I had the right to see Sophia after I had shunned her existence. A sadness crept over me, a fear I might have lost out forever.

But after desert, Larissa caught up with me.

“Hi,” I said, smiling at my sister.

“You’ve been looking at Sophia,” she murmured. “Throughout. I noticed.”

Once again, I looked over at the little cot she lay in, near the dining table.

“Larissa, I’m so sorry. I asked for forgiveness from all, but not my niece.”

I hung my head in shame, and Larissa took my hand and squeezed, forcing me to look at her. “Would you like to hold her?” she asked.

“I would,” I said, unable to keep the emotion from my voice. “Very much.”

Larissa walked me to the cot and slowly lifted my niece up, handing her to me. “Support her head,” she instructed softly. “There, like that.”

I swear, I didn’t think my hands had done anything useful until then.

“She looks like you.” Larissa smiled with tears in her eyes. I felt mine well up, too.

I glanced around the room and caught Elena watching me, her expression soft and full of emotion. In that moment, with my niece in my arms and Elena looking at me like that, everything felt right. Complete, in a way I hadn't experienced since before Adriana died.

No—this was different. Better. This wasn't built on a lie or a half-truth. This was real.

***

Later that night, Elena and I lay in bed, the day's events washing over us. She was curled against my side, her head on my chest, my arm around her.

“Thank you,” she said, her voice quiet in the darkness.

“For what?”

“For today. For apologizing to my family. I know how hard that was for you.”

My fingers traced lazy patterns on her shoulder. “It was the right thing to do. Should have done it long ago.”

She propped herself up on one elbow to look at me. “Better late than never.”

I reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “I was such a fool, Elena. Blinded by hate, by the past. I nearly lost everything that matters.”

“Which is?”

“Love,” I said without hesitation. “Family. The future we could have together. I've spent so long looking back, I almost missed what was right in front of me.”

She smiled, leaning down to press a soft kiss to my lips. “And what's that?”

“You,” I whispered against her mouth. “Us.”

When she pulled back, there was a thoughtful look in her eyes. “Did you mean it? What you said about family being what matters?”

“Every word.”

She bit her lip, suddenly shy. “Would you ever want one of your own? A family, I mean.”

My heart stuttered in my chest. “More than anything,” I admitted, watching her face carefully. “But only on one condition.”

“What's that?” she asked, her voice barely audible.

I cupped her cheek, making sure she was looking directly into my eyes because this was a moment we would forever remember. I didn’t know if there was a correct way, time, or place to say such a thing, but it felt right just about then. Natural.

“My only condition is that if there is to be a family, it's to be with you. Only you, Elena. I love you. I don't deserve you after everything, but God help me, I love you so much it terrifies me.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “I love you too,” she whispered, and my heart flooded open with such love, I couldn’t believe it. “I think I have for a while now.”

I pulled her to me, kissing her with all the emotion I couldn't put into words.

I kissed her softly, and she pressed harder.

I tasted her lip gloss on her and slid my tongue out for a little taste.

She smiled as she parted, allowing me to slide in.

Her body was warm and perfect against mine, and she draped a leg over mine, sliding her hand under my shirt.

That contact. That burn.

Every cell in my body ignited. I rolled us so she was beneath me, my weight braced on my forearms as I deepened the kiss. She arched against me, making a soft noise in the back of her throat that drove me wild, and I slid my tongue across the ribs of her mouth.

I trailed kisses down her neck, my hand sliding up under her nightdress, feeling the silky skin of her thigh, her hip, her waist.

“Don't tear it,” she murmured, laughter in her voice.

I grinned against her skin. “I've learned my lesson.”

Instead, I slid the fabric up slowly, savoring each inch of skin revealed. She raised her arms, allowing me to pull it over her head. The moonlight through the window painted her body in silver and shadow, and goosebumps rose on her skin as the cool air touched her.

“Beautiful,” I whispered, bending to press kisses across her collarbone, down to the swell of her breasts.

I unhooked her bra, drawing it away and letting it fall beside the bed.

Her breasts were perfect—full and soft, the nipples hardening as I gazed at them.

I took one into my mouth, sucking gently, circling the sensitive peak with my tongue.

Her hands tangled in my hair, holding me to her as her back arched off the bed.

While my mouth attended to her breasts, my hand slid lower, fingers tracing the elastic of her panties before dipping beneath. She was already wet for me, and I groaned at the feel of her.

“Elena,” I murmured against her skin as I slid her panties down her legs. “My Elena.”

“Yours,” she whimpered and arched as I stroked her slowly and watched her face as pleasure overtook her. The way her lips parted, the flutter of her eyelashes, the flush spreading across her chest—it was the most beautiful sight I'd ever seen.

When I could feel how ready she was, I positioned myself between her thighs, the tip of my cock pressing against her entrance. I entered her slowly, both of us sighing at the sensation of becoming one. God, she felt like a glove I always needed and never knew.

I began to move, setting a languid pace, wanting to savor every second. My cock got harder, lengthened, with each slow roll of my hips. Her hands roamed my back, nails scraping lightly over my skin as I continued.

Suddenly, she planted her hands against my chest, pushing me onto my back and twisting until she was straddling me. The new position sent me deeper inside her, and I groaned.

“Getting frisky, are we?” I grinned up at her.

She smiled down at me, her hair falling around her face like a curtain. “You were too slow,” she said, beginning to ride me at a pace that had me gripping her hips.

God, she was magnificent like this. In control, confident in her own pleasure. Her breasts swayed with each movement, her curves accentuated by the moonlight and shadow. I couldn't take my eyes off her.

“You're so beautiful,” I told her, my hands sliding up to cup her breasts, thumbs brushing over her nipples. “So perfect.”

I gripped her ass, guiding her movements as I began to thrust up to meet her. The change in angle made her cry out, her head falling back, exposing the long line of her throat.

We moved together faster now, the room filled with the sounds of our pleasure. I could feel her beginning to tighten around me, her movements becoming less coordinated as she chased her release.

“That's it, baby,” I encouraged, one hand sliding between us to where we were joined, my thumb finding her clit. “Let go. I've got you.”

She came with a cry, her inner walls fluttering around me, her body tensing and arching above me like a bow.

The sight of her coming undone, combined with the sensation of her clenching around me, pushed me over the edge.

I thrust up hard once, twice, before my own release crashed over me, my vision whiting out with the intensity of it.

She collapsed onto my chest, both of us breathing hard, sweat-slicked skin pressed together. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her close, never wanting to let go.

“I love you,” I whispered into her hair, feeling more at peace than I had in years.

“I love you too,” she mumbled against my skin, already half-asleep.

As I held her, listening to her breathing even out, I thought about the future we might build together. A family of our own, perhaps. A life free of hatred.

For the first time since Adriana died, I felt truly hopeful. Whatever came next, we would face it together. And that was all that mattered.