Page 43

Oh God, how did we get here so fast? I gripped the edge of my seat as Nik pulled through the final set of gates at his brother Aleks’s house. The family meeting. The one to decide if I was still a part of it.

Despite shouting over the phone at Nik that we were supposed to turn up here the day after Arkadi’s attack against them, three days had gone by. I spent those days in bed, both with and without Nik, supposed to be recuperating, but mostly going out of my mind with worry.

No matter how many times Nik told me there was nothing to be concerned about, I could easily see he was as anxious as I was. What if they told him he had to give me up? What if he finally saw the light and agreed?

At that point, everyone in his family was probably so upset with me and what had come about because of my bad decisions, that all I’d have to do was say one word, and they’d send me packing back to my parents in Georgia. It was difficult to believe there was ever a time I would have jumped at that, no matter how humiliating. That wasn’t what I wanted at all anymore. My foolish pride had been in charge then, going against what was good for me for what I thought I wanted.

What I wanted now was Nik. He was my husband, and I loved him. So damn much it consumed me, but I still felt too awful to find a way to say it without it seeming false. That love was there, real, and burning bright. I hoped he saw it despite my inability to make the words come out. I clung to the memory of him telling me he loved me on the night of Arkadi’s attack.

So simple, so heartfelt, I had no choice but to believe him. He hadn’t said it again, maybe waiting for me. He had his pride, too, after all, and I’d certainly put him through the wringer.

“It’s going to be fine,” he said for the millionth time as he opened my door.

I was frozen, but it would only look bad on him if I made him carry me inside. Swallowing hard, I climbed out of the car and stayed locked to his side as a stranger opened the door, nodded at Nik, and waved us toward the back of the house.

I tried to take comfort in the long hallway, lined with family photos of not just Aleks and his wife and their young daughter, but Aleks’s older daughter Nat and his brothers and their kids. The last picture I saw before the door loomed before me was Mila’s high school graduation picture, surrounded by her protective older brothers, all towering over her with huge smiles. This was a happy family, no matter what they did for a living, right? It shouldn’t matter.

Except, the fact they were crime lords did kind of matter. It mattered a lot, especially since I was basically responsible for causing them to lose a huge chunk of their properties throughout LA.

Yes, the verdict after that night hadn’t been pretty. Nik tried to hide it from me, but I pried it out of him, having to know the truth. Now, I had to face up to it.

I could barely focus on the sea of stern faces when we entered the library. Mila and Nat sat near the wives, keeping a neutral air about them that didn’t offer any comfort. While they had worked so hard to plan my wedding for me while I ran the restaurant, we’d become friends. I’d even started thinking of them as sisters, and I wanted to keep it that way. It hit me then that I didn’t just risk losing Nik, but the whole clan, who’d shown themselves to be the kind of family I wished I had for myself.

Could have had if only…

Aleks cleared his throat, and the meeting began. At first, they just spoke about the losses and what was being done to continue the search for Arkadi. It was rumored he was down in Mexico, but there’d also been a sighting in Moscow. And another in Prague. Once again, he was taunting them, staying one step ahead and out of their reach.

I glanced at Mila as they were winding up the Arkadi update, and her face was set in stone, eyes seething with hatred that had me recoiling. She was such a sweet woman, but one whose bad side I clearly didn’t want to be on.

The brothers started talking about rebuilding efforts, and it devolved into disagreement, then a heated argument with none of them able to settle on anything. I couldn’t keep up and took to fiddling with my cuticles until I heard my name thrown out.

And not in a very complimentary way.

Nik jumped up, literally popped out of his seat next to me, and stared down Lev, then his other brothers. “There’s no way you’re blaming Emerson for what that asshole did.”

“Nobody’s blaming anyone,” Dima said.

“Hell right, they’re not,” Nik continued. “We all know the Mikhailovs have been wanting what’s ours since they moved to LA. Arkadi is a power-hungry madman who took an opportunity.”

“One that was given to him on a platter,” Dima muttered.

So much for not placing blame. My cheeks burned, and I kept my head down, wondering if I should just walk out now before they threw me out.

Nik wasn’t having it. “Maybe none of this would have played out if you hadn’t tried to wheel and deal with him in the first place,” he snapped at Dima.

“That’s true enough,” Aleks said, waving at Dima to keep quiet. “But Emerson did get herself involved, and all because she never wanted to be part of this family in the first place. You basically kidnapped her.” A few of the wives snickered, but without glancing their way, Aleks continued. “We can’t have someone who’s not trustworthy or loyal, Nik. You know this.”

I sucked in a breath. The words felt like slaps, no, like knife cuts, deep and quick, and drawing blood.

“Why don’t we let Emerson speak for herself,” Katie, Aleks’s wife, said. I looked over and saw her smiling at me reassuringly. “Just speak your mind.”

“Go ahead,” Aleks said gruffly.

With a glance at Nik, I stood up on shaky legs, feeling like I might sink straight through the floor. Okay, here was my chance to convince them, but how? How to make them believe what was true in my heart? I opened my mouth, hoping the words would flow out on their own, but Nik stepped in front of me, as if shielding me from the stony eyes of his wall of brothers.

Then he dropped to one knee.

“Marry me, Emerson,” he said, shocking the hell out of me. Out of everyone in the room, according to the gasps. “I wouldn’t change a thing,” he continued. “But I know it wasn’t exactly how you wanted, and I’m willing to do it in any way that will make you happy.” He turned and scowled at Aleks and his other brothers. “If that means you cut me off, then so be it. Emerson is my life, and I’ll make my own way if that’s what needs to happen.”

Oh, hell no. Even as my heart sang, I grabbed his shoulders to pull him up, but he wouldn’t budge. “I don’t need that,” I told him, stepping in front of him to face down the jury. “I won’t let you cut him off, and I’m not leaving, either,” I said in a fit of bravery brought on by Nik’s love and devotion. “I’m a Fokin now and forever, and I’d really like to see any of you say otherwise.”

There was a long, tense moment where my confidence began to drain out of me, but then everyone burst out laughing. I put my face in my hands, confused as all get out at the change of mood.

“Of course, you’re a Fokin.” Aleks said, standing up to pull my hands away. His grin was wide and his eyes were full of welcome.

“She just proved it right there,” Mila said, getting up to pull me into a hug.

“Nik’s lucky to have you,” Katie said, reaching over Mila’s shoulders to pat me on the arm.

What was happening? I didn’t get it, but I liked it. I was finally able to smile and laugh with them when it was clear they’d accepted me wholeheartedly. I didn’t have to go back to Georgia to a loveless family. I was going to stay right here, where I finally understood that I belonged.

With Nik, who jostled me away from everyone’s hugs and pats, and pulled me into his arms. I heard a pop from behind us, and we both turned to see someone had cracked open a bottle of champagne, while Dima hoisted a bottle of vodka over his head.

“Looks like we’re at a party now,” Nik said, kissing me deeply and causing everyone to laugh some more.

I felt dizzy as someone pressed a glass of champagne into my hand, and Nik clinked it with a shot glass of vodka. After the toast, everyone settled into a more tame chaos, and Nik pulled me aside, reaching into his pocket.

Holding out his hand, he opened it to reveal my rings nestled in his palm. “I meant to propose properly all along,” he said, taking my hand and pressing his lips to my knuckles. “It just burst out of me back there.”

“I’m glad it did,” I said, welling up as he slid the rings back where they belonged on my finger. Happy tears this time, and ones I didn’t mind rolling down my cheeks. “I love you,” I whispered. Then repeated it louder, more assured.

“I love you too,” he said. “Always will. You’re mine, Emerson.”

I nodded, pushing up on my toes to seal it with a kiss. Yes, I was his, and when I was with him, I was home. Exactly where I wanted to be.