Forced to Marry the Russian (Nikolai Bratva Brides #2)

Chapter 9 - Zia

Scorching rays of early morning sunlight filtered into the room from the open curtains as Zia opened her eyes, slowly taking in the expensively furnished, monochrome room she found herself in.

The bed was large enough to fit five people, and it was so soft and fluffy that she wanted to snuggle back to sleep. And she would have if she hadn’t suddenly remembered everything that had happened in the last two days.

Her breakup and giving her virginity to a stranger, who was now her husband. Her energy depleted by the second as the awful memories of yesterday flooded her thoughts, but it was the diamond glowing on her fingers that had her sighing and sitting up.

She’d wished all of it would be a dream when she went to sleep last night, but it wasn’t. All of it was a reality. It was her life now. Even if she hated it, she had to learn to live with it. After all, she was married to a rich mafia guy; what could be so bad?

Everything.

Everything was bad about it. She was attracted to him. She loved sex with him. But still… it wasn’t right that everything in her life had changed within two days.

A soft knock on the door caught her attention. She turned her head to the door, almost too angry to acknowledge the knock. “Come in!”

The door handle twisted, and the door slowly opened. A younger woman than Polina poked her head into the room and smiled, “Good morning, Ma’am.”

Zia didn’t want to return the smile. She wouldn’t if it was Lev and one of his stone-faced bodyguards, but this woman had a sweet innocent smile that she couldn’t resist.

Right, she had to channel her anger to the right person, not the people who worked for him.

Lev was the only one who should bear the brunt of her grunt, she reminded herself. This was all his fault, no one else’s.

“Good morning…” she licked her lips. She didn’t know this woman’s name. She hadn’t met anyone else in the mansion aside from Polina. “What do I call you?”

“Sasha,” the woman said. “I’ll be taking care of your personal needs from now on.”

The only thing Zia needed was waking up to find that everything had been a dream, but she doubted Sasha could help her with that. Nodding, she said, “Nice to meet you, Sasha. I’m Zia.”

“I already know your name,” Sasha said, her green eyes gleaming. “It’s time for breakfast. Mr. Nikolai said I should let you know.”

As much as she would like nothing more than to turn down breakfast, her stomach churned and growled most of the night. She’d done herself a disservice by going to bed on an empty stomach. She’d never been the type to turn down food because she was angry, but last night had been different.

“Tell him I’ll be down in ten minutes.”

Sasha bobbed her head. “Ten minutes,” she repeated before gingerly walking out of the room and shutting the door behind her.

Flipping the cover off, Zia slid down from the bed and padded to the bathroom. Polina had given her a new toothbrush, toothpaste, and clean towels. There were already soaps and shampoos of different brands in the bathroom by the time she came upstairs after the wedding.

She quickly brushed her teeth, washed her face, and went downstairs.

Lev sat at the head of the table when she came in. He looked even more handsome this morning. His tousled hair, along with the plain black shirt that showed off the muscles on his bicep, did a perfect job of making him look sexy.

He had such beautiful visuals for a man who was so cruel and had blood on his hands.

Lev looked up from his phone and smiled at her. “Good morning, wife.”

She rolled her eyes as she sat on the chair farthest away from him at the opposite end of the table. Despite the distance, she inhaled the citrus and sandalwood scent rolling off him.

Good thing she sat that far away from him because she couldn’t guarantee she would be able to restrain herself from leaning in just to inhale more of that delicious scent.

He tilted his head to look at her. His brow raised inquisitively. “Were you able to catch some good sleep last night?”

Besides the hunger, she’d slept like a baby, only waking up once and wishing she could go downstairs to find something she could eat. But she was not going to admit that, so instead, she grabbed a plate from the center of the table and said, “I had nightmares. Guess who it was about?”

The corners of his lips quirked into a light smile. “Who?”

“You!” She watched his face for a reaction and was surprised when he had the nerve to laugh at her as if she’d said that to entertain him.

Her chest fluttered, but not with rage.

Lev looked even more handsome when he laughed, and it hit her right in the gut that it wasn’t a good thing. Hot, rich, handsome, dangerous, and a beautiful smile was a dangerous combination. Those were her weaknesses.

Her teeth sank into her bottom lips. God, this man must’ve been sent from the deepest part of hell to torment her and her heart.

He had the audacity to look so at ease, so breathtakingly charming, that Zia's irritation simmered beneath her skin. She stabbed a piece of fruit with her fork and chewed it with unnecessary force, avoiding his charismatic gaze.

Lev leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms as he observed her with an amused glint in his eyes.

“Nightmares about me, huh?” he mused, a smirk playing on his lips. “I must be making quite an impression on you then, my dear wife.”

Zia felt her cheeks flush with a mixture of embarrassment and frustration. She hated how effortlessly he seemed to get under her skin, how his mere presence could stir up a whirlwind of conflicting emotions within her. Swallowing the bite of fruit, she leveled him with a challenging glare.

“Don't flatter yourself; you were unbearable. I don’t think it’s a nightmare I’ll forget in a hurry,” she retorted, though the fire in her tone lacked the conviction she hoped to convey.

Lev's smile widened, revealing a glimpse of his dimples as he leaned forward, the glint in his eyes turning mischievous. “Oh, I aim to be unforgettable in every way, Darling. It seems I’m already succeeding.” He chuckled softly, watching her reaction with keen interest.

Zia tried to ignore the flutter in her stomach at his words, instead choosing to focus on her breakfast and not the man sitting across from her. She couldn’t let him see how much his teasing affected her; she had to maintain some semblance of control in this unexpected and unwelcome situation.

As she pushed the food around her plate, trying to appear nonchalant, Lev’s gaze lingered on her with a newfound intensity. “You know,” he began casually, “despite your apparent distaste for me, I can’t help but find your fiery spirit intriguing. Keep this up, wife, and I’ll actually give you a reason never to forget me.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, a mixture of wariness and curiosity swirling within her. “How are you going to do that? Keeping me locked up?”

Lev’s smirk softened into a faint smile. “No. I intend to do it with my head positioned between your legs while you moan my name.”

Zia froze. The heat on her cheeks worked its way between her thighs. He wasn’t bluffing, and she knew it. She knew how heavenly it felt to have him between her legs. She hadn’t forgotten it, and she didn’t think she ever would.

“No retort?” he smiled dangerously and lifted his brows. “Cats got your tongue, Malyshka?”

Ignoring him, Zia picked up the glass of water in front of her and gulped it down with force. She was certain Lev Nikolai was fucking unhinged. It was unthinkable that she would have to deal with his dirty way of talking for God knows how long.

After she finished the water, she kept the glass cup on the table. Squaring her jaw, she looked at Lev, pretending his words didn’t affect her, trying her best to ignore the wetness between her legs. “Don’t you have any self-control?”

“The only self-control I can manage is to wait until you’re begging me to fuck you, wife.”

Zia sighed. Her husband wasn’t just unhinged—he was mad, literally. “Dream on.” She threw a piece of grape in her mouth and chewed it. “Speaking of self-control, we need to come to an agreement on things to expect from each other in this marriage.”

Lev started to fill his plate with food. “And what are the things you expect?”

“A different room, which I already have, by the way.” She paused and thought. She’d made the list last night, but she could barely remember anything now. Being so close to Lev fogged her mind way too much. “Don’t expect me to cook. I don’t know how to.”

“I have a cook already, Zia,” Lev said calmly.

Zia rummaged her mind for more. There had to be a lot more boundaries to set. “You mustn’t come into my room without knocking.” She waited for his reaction, but he just focused on his food. “No sex.”

That one seemed to catch his attention as his head snapped in her direction. “How long do you think you can go without sex, sweetheart?”

She rolled her eyes. “I went twenty-two years without it. I can go twenty-two more.”

He snorted a laugh. “It’s different when you’ve had a taste of how good it can feel with the right person, Malyshka . You won’t last.”

“That’s up to me to decide.” Ignoring the dark amusement in his gaze, she went back to eating. It looked like she’d gotten him good.

Zia – 1. Lev – 0.

Lev wiped his lips with a towel. “Is that all?”

She didn’t bother to look at him as she returned, “Anything more you’d like to add?”

“Yes.” He straightened up and steepled his fingers in front of him. “You’re not allowed to go anywhere without the bodyguards I’ll assign to you. I have a lot of enemies, and soon, news about our marriage will start to spread. If it hasn’t already, that is.”

She shrugged. “That I can do.” However, the thought of having scary, big guys following and watching her wherever she went was unnerving. But after what she witnessed two nights ago, she didn’t ever want to be in a situation where there would be no one to save her.

Life had really been unfair to Zia—dying a gruesome death would be hammering the nail in the coffin. She may not have had a perfect life, but that didn’t mean she wanted it ripped from her.

“You’re free to do whatever you want as long as it does not hurt you or the Bratva,” he said, his tone firmer than it was before. He sounded like he could overlook anything else as long as it didn’t hurt the Bratva.

Zia wasn’t a coward, but she was no fool. She wouldn’t dare to cross a man like Lev in that way, not when she lived under his roof, and he could easily get rid of her if he wanted. She swallowed forcefully. “I won’t. I promise.” Her voice trembled more than she’d hoped, but it was good as long as he knew she meant it.

“Good, then we won’t have any other problems.” His serious mask slipped off, and a more playful one replaced it. “One last thing, Malyshka .”

Zia’s heart thrummed in her chest. She could already guess what he wanted to say before he said it.

“You’re mine, and I do not share what is mine.” His deep baritone voice was laced with a threatening tone as if the mere thought of anyone touching her was already driving him to insanity. “Let another man touch you, and you’ll know how fast I can end a life.”