“Telling me about the past won’t make a difference.”

“Yes, it will. How else are we going to get familiar with each other again?”

“Why should we?”

“Because you’re my wife and I’m no fucking stranger you’ll sleep separately from. If familiarity is what you need, then I’ll give it to you.”

“What if I need space?”

“I don’t believe in space. That’s a word invented by losers who couldn’t figure out their own minds.”

“And you have?”

“I have.” There’s so much conviction in his tone, it takes even me by surprise.

“So what now? Are you going to keep holding me like this?”

“I’m also telling you about the past.”

“The one I said I don’t want to hear about?”

“The one you want to forget about, but we’ll rectify that. Where was I? Right, the first time I met you, after the ballet. You don’t go to those anymore, because they remind you of Nikolai. The one time you went to one after his death, you hid in a corner and reemerged with your eyes red. Since they weaken you and you’re in no position to allow weakness, you stopped going altogether.”

He…he shouldn’t know that. I made sure no one saw me that way —not even Ruslan and Katia.

“So that’s the thing, Princess. I didn’t only see your strength, I also witnessed your weakness. It was bound to happen after Nikolai asked me to keep an eye on you when I wasn’t on a sniping mission. You were a proud thing and didn’t want to admit when you needed help, but you were a fast learner. You obviously enjoyed my company since you wouldn’t leave me alone, and that’s when you fell head over heels for me.”

Lying asshole.

I didn’t fall in love with him. The most frustrating part is that I can’t contradict him because that would mean I do remember.

“But then again, I’m the very loveable type, Princess.”

You’ve got to be kidding me.

“Every morning,” he goes on in his serene voice, “we woke up early and jogged together, then I taught you how to shoot for long distances because, as you said, Vladimir sucks as a teacher.”

He’s the one who said that, not me. Jesus. He tells a story so convincingly, mixing lies with truths. If I didn’t know my own memories, I wouldn’t suspect it.

“Needless to say, you fell in love with me more with every passing day. Especially after I kind of saved your sister.”

“I don’t believe any of that.”

“I’m the one with the memories, remember?” He brushes his lips against mine and I taste something different than any of the other times he’s kissed me, but I can’t quite put my finger on it.

Kyle has always had a distinctive taste and smell, but right now it feels like a mixture of longing, despair, and something else.

“That doesn’t mean whatever you said happened.”

“It did.”

“In your dreams, maybe.”

“In my dreams, I’m thrusting into your wet cunt and feel it strangle my dick as you scream my name. Do you want me to show you?”

Blood rushes to my cheeks. How can he remain so calm while saying shit like that? I’m on the verge of combusting. “Let me go.”

“You’re a fan of that sentence, but you should know by now that it doesn’t work on me. I need to continue touching you so you can familiarize yourself with me again. You usually get aroused the moment I touch you.”

“That’s not true!”

Challenge twinkles in his eyes. “Do you want me to prove it?”

“No!”

“I’m in the mood to check.” His fingers leave my face and bunch the material of my dress.

Shit.

He can’t get that close this early. He just can’t. Because if he goes any further, I have no clue how I’m going to react to him.

“Are you going to force yourself on me?”

He pauses, the dark blues of his eyes zeroing in on me. “What the fuck did you just say?”

“I don’t want this, so if you go any further, you’re taking me against my will.”

“Against your will,” he repeats, as if he’s getting a taste of the words.

“Well, aren’t you?”

“If I want to fuck you, I will.” The darkness in his voice penetrates me to the bones. “I can and will use your body against you until you beg me for more. You’re my wife, Rai. You took vows, you said your ‘I do’, and guess what? I believe in till death do us fucking part.”

My heartbeat explodes like a thousand bombs thrown all at once. I try to regulate it, to think of the current situation, but the way his eyes hold me hostage keeps me pinned in place.

He’s going to act on his threat, and I have no will or strength to escape.

His mouth hovers an inch over mine and I slam my eyes shut, not wanting to look at him. Maybe if I don’t, this whole thing will end and—

Kyle’s lips brush against my forehead and he releases me. I blink, but before I can form a proper reaction, he lies on his back and pulls me atop him so my head is nuzzled in his chest.

“You’re tired, so sleep for now, Princess. I’ll deal with you when your strength is back.”

7

Rai

Kyle hasn't left my side.

He stays with me every step of the way, refusing to budge. When I wake up in the morning, he’s there to join me for a walk. When I sit down for meals, he pays extra attention to placing food on my plate. When I ask either Ruslan or Katia to help me with something, he dismisses them and takes over the task.

It doesn’t matter that I keep shooing him away; he bounces right back like he’s rubber. He’s impossible to deal with—or rather, get rid of. So I come up with the simple solution of pretending he doesn’t exist.

The keyword being, pretend. Because there’s no way in hell his presence can become invisible.

It’s been a week since I was discharged from the hospital, and as per Sergei’s orders, Kyle has been accompanying me to V Corp. In order to work without hassle, I had the doctor tell Kyle that even though I lost my memories from the past ten years, I can still access the part of my brain that stores my cognitive skills, and therefore I do remember how to do business.