Page 42 of Sweet Deception

“What?”

He crossed the room in three slow steps. “Your sister didn’t run away on her own, Anna. Your father staged it. He knew what kind of man I was, knew the risks. So instead of sending his precious Maria, he sent you.”

I felt my breath hitch. “No. That’s not true.”

Gleb didn’t argue. He just watched me, as if waiting for the realization to settle in.

My stomach twisted. Had my father really done that? Had I been nothing more than a disposable pawn in his game?

I forced myself to keep my voice steady. “You claim to hate me, yet you investigate me.”

His lips curved into something resembling amusement. “I was raised to protect what belongs to me.”

My pulse pounded. “I’m not your property, Gleb. I am your wife.”

His eyes darkened. “You are both.”

Before I could protest, he crouched down, his arms sliding beneath me. I gasped as he lifted me effortlessly, carrying me toward the bathroom.

“Gleb...”

“You can’t walk.” His voice was soft but firm. “Let me take care of you.”

The warmth of his body against mine made my breath hitch. I was too stunned to argue as he carried me into the large marble bathroom.

He set me down carefully near the edge of the tub, kneeling before me. His face was unreadable as his fingers reached for the hem of my top.

“You need help undressing.”

My throat went dry. The air between us felt charged, dangerous. I had pushed him, taunted him, but now? Now I wasn’t sure I was ready for whatever this was.

His fingers brushed my skin as he lifted my top over my head, leaving me in just my bra.

I inhaled sharply, instinctively wrapping my arms around myself. It was stupid. I knew that, but something about this moment, about the way his gaze flickered down my body, made my skin prickle with heat.

His expression remained blank. “Shy now?”

I wanted to deny it, to throw back another sharp remark, but for once, I didn’t have words.

He exhaled and stood, stripping off his own shirt.

My breath caught.

I had seen him shirtless before, but never like this. Never this close, this deliberate. His body was all muscle, broad, powerful, and laced with scars that told a hundred stories I’d never heard.

He turned on the water, steam rising between us.

And then he reached for me again.

Chapter 10

GlEB

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I walked into my uncle’s mansion with a calm, measured pace. As soon as he spotted me, his voice boomed, laced with forced cheerfulness.

“Gleb!” He strode toward me with his arms wide open. I accepted the greeting, allowing him to tap my back before gesturing for me to follow him.