by V. F. Mason
"Maybe because I'm still a virgin."
Everyone blinked and stared at Rosa with their mouths open.
She was what now? Dom followed her around like a dog guarding his bone, not to mention the heated stares and possessive embraces. How could she still be a virgin? Before anyone could comment, though, the processional music started, and any thoughts about Dom and Rosa left my mind.
Time to marry my Sociopath.
Damian
Standing in the middle of the beach with a few friends and family members, while my brother stood as my best man next to me and the priest with an open book, I resisted the desire to pinch myself and double check my reality, even if it made me sound like a fucking girl.
The little boy who had lived eight years in the cell with no hope for the future couldn't believe in the happiness constantly present in his life.
"Daddy, the music started," Kristina said excitedly, and sobered her face looking cute, but at the same time hilarious wearing her little suit.
My little girl rejected all pleadings and dirty looks from the girls who showed her one beautiful white dress after another with flowers in her hands. She just kept saying no and no, and one day climbed up on Sapphire's lap as we were sitting on the couch and palmed her face. "Mommy, I really love you, but I don't want to be your flower girl. I wanna be Daddy's best man with Uncle Dom." Her words warmed my heart, and I held her in my arms the whole night while she slept on my chest.
At the moment, she held our wedding rings as her excited eyes shown as bright as the sapphire and diamonds in the bands.
The procession began with Frankie, followed by Amanda, Rosa, and Annie. All the women had identical strapless pink dresses that blew in the light ocean breeze. Their hair was made in some up hairdo and oddly enough, despite their differences look-wise, all of them were stunning.
Finally, my Sapphire came into view, and my breath stilled inside me.
Gorgeous, beautiful, even those words were not enough to describe her beauty or give it justice. I pushed all my possessive instincts back at seeing Luke holding her so close and focused my attention on the vision in blue.
We both disliked the color white as it brought too many unpleasant memories of spending time in the hospitals, so she settled on sky blue, which only brought out more the vividness of her sapphire eyes.
Her wavy, black hair was pushed over her shoulder where it was clipped back, leaving visible her graceful neck that I loved to lick and suck so much. But then, there wasn't a part of her that I didn't like to suck or lick. Her chiffon dress was an unusual design; it ended just above the knee in the front, but behind her, it draped down to the sand creating the illusion of a long veil. Sapphire's bare feet had anklets that I longed to run my tongue over as her feet rested above my shoulders when I'd push hard inside her. My cock stirred in my pants.
Not now, later. I'll have her in our bed later.
Finally, they reached me. Luke put her hand in mine. The familiar electricity ran through us, and her breath hitched. Her eyes focused on my lips as hers opened slightly, begging for a kiss.
Rules could go to hell.
My mouth ended up on hers in a passionate kiss. Everyone whistled and catcalled while the annoyed priest's voice said, "Dearly beloved—"
Dominic
Watching Rosa dancing with Kristina tugged on my heart, but I couldn't do anything about it. I barely contained the desire to snatch her from this party and go back to Irkutsk. Her mocha hair would look splendid against my black silky sheets, not to mention her vivid black eyes. My hands itched to lower down the zipper on her dress and run my fingers over her skin while trailing kisses down her back.
However, leaving my twin's wedding was out of the question, so there was nothing else to do but sip whiskey and count for the party to be over.
"Well, don't you look happy for me?" Damian teased, sitting on the chair next to me. He followed my gaze and smirked. "Sucks to be the one watching, doesn't it?" Ignoring his words, I continued to drink while he added, "Women talk, you know." Furrowing my brows, I glanced at him. "What's that supposed to mean?" Damian raised his brow while his mouth twitched, barely containing laughter that wanted to spit out.
Blyat.
Women talked.
I’ve never had a real relationship before, and this small fact sucked. The last thing I wanted was for people to wonder why she was still a virgin if she had been with me for the last three months.
Little Rosa probably forgot to mention the sex was supposed to happen on her terms, and so far she gave me no permission to touch her. Sometimes, it surprised me how much control I willingly gave her just for a chance to prove she could be happy with me.
Maybe I shouldn't have kidnapped her from her father, and waited patiently. But the possessive nature in me was impossible to control; plus, I couldn't have had my woman running around in New York when important business awaited me back home. What if some other fucker wanted to steal her? No one could be trusted with her protection, but me. "Drop it, Damian," I said with a warning because twin or no twin, I'd be damned to discuss my woman with another man.
"Trust me, I wasn't about to ask you about your sex life." He winced "She's a sister to me. Still reining in my desire to smash your face for touching her." I rolled my eyes at this; apparently everyone seemed to think they had some kind of right to my woman, when it fact, she belonged only to me.
Not to her father.
Not to Damian.
Sure as fuck not to herself. My life and hers were forever entwined, so everyone better fucking get used to that.
He held my eyes with his; his had a wistful expression in them. "I just wanted to know if everything was all right with you?" For the last three months, we had shared few phone calls. I came to visit them once but besides that, they didn't establish amazing connection all of a sudden or bonded over the experience. We just couldn't even if we tried. I loved my brother, and he loved me as default, but we simply couldn't ignore all the years we spent apart. Plus, we had a big distance between us, the entire ocean.
Before I could answer him, Don joined our table and sat down opposite us with the serious expression on his face. "Can I have a moment with you two?" Damian and I shared a look. Since when did the man ask anything? The entire night he was busy flirting with Mary, Sapphire's single friend, and he hadn't paid much attention to us. We nodded, and he cleared his throat. "I still hold a grudge against you, Ragazzo." He let me know with steel in his eyes that was easy for me to understand. I kidnapped his child, and our mafia houses were currently at war. We agreed for a truce during the wedding, but all bets were off once it was over. "But there is one thing I wanted to give to you. Both of you." He placed the brown, rectangular envelope on the table and motioned for us to open it up.
Since Damian made no move toward it, I picked it up and tore it open as several photos slid down all over the table. Pushing the envelope aside, I focused my attention on vivid pictures that must had been taken at least thirty years ago due to the quality of the photo and the wardrobe.
A young couple, in their early twenties, rode on the bike in the middle of the empty street with deserts and canyons surrounded them. A guy wearing a black Queen T-shirt and blue jeans along with boots held the handlebars and gazed ahead while the girl behind him wrapped her arms around his waist and laughed happily with her head tilted back. Her hair was blown away by the wind, and the band around her forehead allowed for it not to get into her eyes. Compared to the guy, her clothes had yellow and orange colors with various bangs on her neck, ear and hands. The shot must have been taken from the car riding in front of them because it captured the moment perfectly without them having to pose for it. There was something oddly familiar about the couple to me, but I couldn't name it. Damian appeared just as clueless; he just kept on running his fingers over their faces as his brows furrowed.
The next picture was the same couple during their wedding day; they seemed older. Gone were the hippie attributes, replaced with
a black tux for the man and long and a chiffon white dress with several small pearls on it for her. Her hand rested protectively on the small bump, clearly indicating pregnancy. The couple radiated happiness, which even old-ass pictures couldn't hide.
Another one was with them holding two babies in the hospital as the woman lay exhausted but happy on the bed. The man held his family protectively in the crock of his arm, creating a shield from outside world.
The man who looked so much like me and my brother. The resemblance impossible to ignore.
Then it hit me, all at fucking once.
"Are those our parents?" Damian asked with a hoarse voice as the flat of his palm landed on the last photograph.
"Yes," Don replied. "They used to be my friends. Mine and my wife, Sorcha." A ghost of a smile appeared on his face while remembering his wife. "Sorcha and Kristina liked to get into trouble, and we'd have to rescue them."
"Is this why you allowed me to keep Rosa a few years back and watched me carefully?" Damian asked, his eyes still glued to the picture in the hospital.
"Yes, it's hard to mistake those eyes, plus you do share some of his traits."
"Why now?" The question came from me. I couldn't wrap my head around this information. Why couldn't he share all this before? Don shrugged, took out his cigar and lit it.
"Seemed like a good wedding present and besides, it wouldn't have changed anything."
"So Dad was part of the mafia?"
"No, we were childhood friends. He was a lawyer and heir to an empire. He liked to protect the weak, though, so he was kind of a Robin Hood. Did similar stuff to you guys and one of the reasons those men did what they did. I couldn't come and help on time, even though I warned him not to mess with those men without backup." His hand fisted, but the pitch of his voice stayed even. "That's neither here nor there, though. The point is the life you lead can destroy things you love the most." His narrowed stare burned into mine. "And I don't want my little girl to be collateral damage." Then he shifted his gaze to Damian. "Or your sweet woman. So on your wedding day, I'll give you two pieces of advice. You forget about being a Sociopath and you,"—he pointed his index finger at me—"learn to provide as much possible protection to my daughter as you can." With those words, he left to join Mary on the dance floor while she blushed from his invitation, leaving us dumbstruck.
Silence fell over us for several seconds, with Damian breaking it with a low voice. "Do you want the picture?" I nodded because who wouldn't want them? Remembering our parents was one thing, but having proof that they were happy and wanted us? Yeah, no one could say no to that.
He split them evenly between us and then patted my shoulder. "I need to find Sapphire." He searched for her and finally spotted her near the bar, chatting with Luke. He darted toward her, leaving me sitting there alone with uncomfortable emotions playing inside me, which I couldn't name.
Who would have thought our parents used to be that fun-loving couple who fought for justice? Or that they had an Italian Mafia Don for a friend.
A friend who was a father of the woman I desperately wanted to claim as mine.
If it wasn't for S, John, Richard and the whole human trafficking, I would have had a chance with her. She'd always be close; no one would ever harm her or me and by now, she'd probably have been my wife the minute she became legal.
Everything closed off on me; red haze played in front of my eyes, and I barely restrained myself from standing up and running the fuck away. Building rage, which didn't go away no matter how much I tried, demanded for me to fight someone and see blood.
I was so out from everything around me that the gentle touch on my cheek came out of nowhere and snapped me out of my stupor. My eyes traveled back up to the gorgeous vision in pink. I drank in her beauty and aura of serenity only she could provide for me. "Dominic?" Rosa asked softly, and without further words, I grabbed her elbow and sat her on my lap as she gasped in surprise.
The bullshit of three months was over.
I was fucking done waiting around on her. It made me a bastard, maybe.
Made me unforgivable human being.
Maybe.
But I was fucking done.
"No, I'm not all right. I need you," I whispered harshly, most probably scaring her, which would cement her views on not giving me a chance not that I was going to wait for one.
Rosa studied me, then laced her hands through my hair and brought her mouth close to mine and whispered in it, her lips touching mine in the lightest of caress, "Okay."
"Наконец то." Finally.
After months of wanting, yearning, rejections and heavy petting sessions, my woman was ready to be claimed and conquered.
If I only I could predict the future on that night, maybe I would have hesitated to touch her and sent everyone notice that Pakhan had claimed his woman.
But the choice was made.
Along with all the events that followed after that fateful night.
Later That Night
We lay breathless on the sheets soaked from our sweat after hours of lovemaking. The open window provided much needed cool air. Sapphire lay on her back with her head resting on my shoulder, gazing at the red ceiling, and then suddenly rolled onto my chest, put her hands under her chin, and held my eyes.
"What?" I asked, playing with strands of her hair.
"What do we do now?"
My mouth spread in a soft grin as my hand rested on her nape, bringing her face closer to mine. Just before our mouths touched, I whispered against her lips, "Live happily ever after."
Twelve Years Later
Damian
Kristina ran around the beach laughing while Lucky followed her. He was a bit old to keep up with her at the same speed he used to, but he tried. She took out another snack from the pack she was holding and threw it up in the air as he bounced to catch it. He missed it again, but then dropped on the sand and searched for it frantically. Worry crossed my daughter's face as she raised her eyes to me. "Daddy, I'm worried about Lucky. He doesn't seem to notice a lot of stuff lately." The dog heard his name and barked loudly, dropping to his haunches, waiting for another treat.
"Looks damn happy to me," I muttered, but then winced as Kristina nudged my shoulder. Damn, my baby girl had some strong arms from all the boxing she did. "Baby girl, he is almost thirteen years old. I don't think most dogs even live that long." I patted his muzzle a bit. "He's bound to have some weakness, no?" Her face grew sadder, but she nodded. I hugged her close to me and sighed in contentment when her hands wrapped around me.
Kids fucking grew too fast for my liking. It seemed like just yesterday she was my little girl in pigtails whose eyes lit up with pleasure from ice cream and cartoons, and today she was a young woman who was about to go away to college. In fact, this little getaway on the coast of Spain was our little gift to our family to spend her last vacation as a "kid" together and enjoy it. She decided to major in Biochemistry in Texas, and the idea of not having her close terrified me. Even though twelve years had passed since that fateful day, I still woke up with nightmares where her screams filled the air. They would probably never go away.
I hugged her a bit tighter, and she leaned back with a laugh. "Daddy, it's hard to breathe."
I winked at her. "Can't a dad hug his baby girl?"
She stopped smiling and kissed me softly on the cheek, circled her arms around me, and squeezed me tight. Then she whispered into my ear, "I'll always be your little girl, Daddy." And her words soothed any ache I felt at letting her go.
"You'll always be my little girl," I agreed, and then scowled as the most annoying voice on the planet called her name.
Hardy.
As Sapphire suspected, Kristina's obsession with Jason Miller didn't disappear, and they pretty much stayed joined at the hip through their entire childhood. My girl was in love with him and growled at any girl who tried to get close to him. Hilarious if you ask me, and as much as I disliked the kid for having all of my daughter's attention, I w
as proud of how she marked her territory.
Once she wrote with a marker on his spine "Property of Kristina Scott." I kid you not. Sapphire was red as a lobster as she sat in a chair in the principal's office while Amanda and Cormack laughed their asses off. Jason had appeared clueless to any deeper feelings she had for him, but everything changed once they turned fifteen.
All of a sudden, Kristina decided boys were stupid, and a career seemed more important. Needless to say, poor Jason was as surprised as the rest of us, and then came, as we all called it, the time of "wooing." The poor guy did everything. Roses, chocolates, USB flash drives with music that made my ears bleed, dates, even though he always trembled under my harsh stare.
Kristina wouldn't budge, and secretly I always gloated at his failures, because it meant that my little girl would still stay my little girl and wouldn't be in danger of anyone ever breaking her heart.
Then a few months later came the worst nightmare of every parent who had a good baby girl at home.
Bad Boy on a bike.
Richardson, a new hotel owner in the city, moved in with his two sons. One was Kristina's age and his name was Max, and another was Hardy, who was eighteen years old.
Fucking guess who she fell for? They came to dinner with us, and the minute he laid eyes on her, he was at her side proclaiming she was his.
Kristina was so dumbstruck that she blinked a few times and just nodded. He didn't budge under my stares, growling, or strength. He promised me never to touch her until she was legal and to protect her with all his heart among other things. Although I still didn't like him, I respected the kid, and my girl deserved to be someone's obsession too.
Jason Miller sulked a bit and then started dating Ruby. Just remembering all this high school drama made my head hurt.
Hardy grabbed Kristina by her waist, bringing her closer to his chest, and lifted his chin at me.
Little shit.