Viktor
Page 24
Alexis helps me with the store too, mostly by watching the storefront while I’m in the workshop. I think she’s even started to like helping people find their perfect piece of handcrafted jewelry. She seems to love the money the most, though.
I don’t blame her; I do too. There’s no need for schemes anymore, and she doesn’t need to sell her body to make a living either. Even her sister has joined in on our little business, finding and buying shipments of raw jewels at the lowest price while also managing the marketing.
Both of them have moved into my home. Together, we cleaned up the place, opening the curtains and getting rid of the broken furniture to make it livable again. Well, after the corpses were removed, of course, courtesy of Marcus’s crew. We buried Vladim’s body ourselves, so no trace of him will ever lead back to us.
But really, no one has bothered us since. Nothing’s bothering me anymore, either. I made peace with what happened to me. I even stopped using the pills to kill the pain. I don’t need them anymore. Maybe I was addicted to them, but now that I have her, the pain slowly stopped, so I threw them all out last week.
Dealing with the pain is not the only thing that’s going great, though. We’ve been living together in my home for quite some time now, and I can honestly say it’s never been better. We’re like one big happy family.
And all because I met her.
Because of how I saved her … and when I was at my lowest, she saved me too.
I smile as I blow the dust off the tiny diamond while looking at it through a thick, magnifying lens. Perfect. With special tweezers, I fiddle the diamond into the base and secure it by bending the tiny metal prongs into place. I push away the lens and look at the ring from afar, nodding like a proud motherfucker at my own work.
Then the door slams open, catching me by surprise.
“Viktor, did you—” Alexis looks up from her list, and she stops clicking her pen.
I quickly hide the ring behind my back but not in time.
“What’s that?” she says, narrowing her eyes.
“Uh … nothing,” I say, shrugging. “What’s up?”
“This can wait.” She throws the list of client names on my desk and walks up to me. “You said you were done for today.”
“I was just messing around.”
“No, you had something in your hand. You made something.” She tries to snatch it from me, but I’m too big for her to lean over. Her boobs almost fall into my face; that I like.
“Show it to me!” she says, play fighting me over it.
“No, you’ll ruin it.” I try to push her away, but she’s persistent.
“Ruin what?”
I raise a brow, slamming my lips shut while looking her directly in the eye. “Too late for that now.”
“Oh … oh, fuck …” she mutters, her hand covering her mouth. “Is this …”
I pull out the ring from behind my back and hold it up. She sucks in a breath at the sight of it.
“I was going to ask you formally, but I don’t think you’re the type who likes that.”
Her lips part but nothing comes out.
“I’ll just ask it now … random, surprise marriage proposal.”
“Oh, God …” She frowns, looking at the ring while I grab her hand.
“Is that a yes? Or do you want me to go down on one knee? Because I will.”
Tears well up in her eyes as I move off the stool and drop to one knee on the floor. “Don’t cry.”
“I’m not,” she says, even though one is already rolling down her cheek, making me laugh.
I pick it up with my finger. “A girl like you doesn’t cry.”
“Exactly.” She sniffs. “I just … this never has … wow.”
“You don’t have to say yes. If it’s too quick, I understand.”
“What?” she mutters.
“It’s okay if you wanna wai—”
Her lips are suddenly on mine, smothering me with love.
Another tear rolls down her face and onto my lips, and my tongue dips out to lick it up.
“Yes, goddammit,” she growls.
“Yes to the waiting?” I cock my head.
“No, asshole.” She sighs. “Yes to the ring.”
“Oh …” I smile as I slide it onto her finger. “Well, you can have the ring, as long as …”
“And you,” she adds, laughing a little while looking down at the ring. “Yes … to both.”
I keep holding her hand as I look at her. “You sure?”
She nods. “I wouldn’t even say no if you smacked me in the face with it.”
I laugh. “Well, I guess that means you’re happy.”
“Fuck yes. It’s gorgeous.” Her eyes shimmer as she looks at the diamond. “I can’t believe it.”
“What?”
“This. I mean … Me? Marrying?”
“If it’s not your thing, it’s not your thing. I can understand.”
“Fuck no, I’m not letting you back out of this one,” she says, making me laugh again.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I muse.
“Good because I sure as hell am going to marry you now that you have asked. I’m just so surprised you’d actually … you know … ask. I didn’t think you were the type.”
“And you are?” I raise a brow at her.
“No … not really,” she mutters, still looking at the diamond. “But I could definitely get used to that.”
Smiling, I pull her onto my lap and kiss her again. “At least you’ll have something pretty to look at.”
“I have something pretty to look at every damn day of the week.” She taps my chest. “And it never gets old.”
I grab her fingers and kiss the tips. “Oh, I’ll get old all right, but at least, I won’t be alone.” I caress her cheeks. “I’ll have you.”
“Yeah, but I’m not exactly marriage material either.” She grabs her hair. “Black hair, tongue piercing, tattoos everywhere.”
“Just the way I like it.” I kiss her on the cheeks.
“There’s the age gap, though,” she murmurs.
“So? Who cares?”
“I don’t know … People?”
I shrug. “People can suck my dick. I only care what you think, and I like you, and you like me, hopefully.”
“Of course, I like you.” She shakes her head, smiling. “Why else would I say yes?”
“Because you’re addicted to me and can’t say no?”
She shrugs. “Yeah, you’re right about that one.” She bursts into laughter.
I grin. “Lexi Ki—no, Lexi Melikov … my badass wife.”
“Wife … I could get used to that. The Melikov part? Eh …” She makes a face.
“What about the Lexi part?” I muse.
She shrugs, sporting a playful smile. “I’ll add it to my list of shitty-things-I-love, one in which the first entry is you.”
A deep, rumbling laugh emanates from my chest. “You fell for the Grizzly, joke’s on you.”
“But I do love my fuzzy, cute grizzly,” she says, pouting as she squeezes my cheeks, making me growl.
“That is so not fucking badass; I’m almost tempted to take that ring back.”
“Fuck no.” She clenches her fingers like they’re precious treasures. “This is mine.”
My hand snakes around her, which makes her squirm. “And you’re mine too.”
She turns her face right when I kiss her, and her lips meet mine in surprise. We both smile, and then continue kissing. When she briefly takes her lips off mine, all I can think about are her kisses… and how I’ll be feeling them for the rest of my life. I can honestly say I’m a lucky man.
She licks her lips and murmurs, “Hmm … we are one weird-ass couple, you know that?”
“One weird-ass couple who’d kill and die for each other. Now, if that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.”
I grab her face and kiss her again and again until we’re out of breath and out of time. Because the tiny bell rings again,
telling us that our life together continues. Just the way it should.
###
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***
Check out Ultimate Sin, a dark romance standalone!
Rule #1: Never disobey master’s commands.
Rule #2: Always strive to please your master.
Rule #3: Don’t ever kill your master.
Breaking the rules is the ultimate sin.
All I am is a servant. Rules like these keep me alive. They’re all I’ve ever known.
Until him.
My new master: Marcus Knight, the charismatic and ambitious leader of an underground empire.
A man with a history he vows to destroy.
With his newfound ownership over me, he seeks to atone for his crimes … and to satisfy his wicked needs.
With love, he shows me what it means to belong to him … and it makes me question everything.
I don’t know why he chose me, but it feels too good to be true.
And it is.
Because I’m going to break all the rules.
Read it now!
***
Liked VIKTOR? You may also enjoy Mr. X
*Author Note: This is not your average romance story. Some people will kill for love.*
He’s come to kill me.
I’m a user and abuser of my own body. In my darkest hour I sold my soul to the devil and now I must pay the price. With his gun to my head I have no choice but to listen and obey, but I refuse to go down easily. Nothing is stronger than the will to survive. My instincts kicked into full gear the second he stepped into my motel room.
Except when I look at him I see my own heart staring back at me. A history tainted by blood.
I don’t know his name, but I know he wants me. To save myself I’ll sacrifice my sanity. My body. My soul. Something tells me the x-shaped scar that marks his eye is the only escape I have. He is Mr. X; the man who comes to claim my life. Can I save myself before he demands my heart?
WARNING: This book contains very disturbing situations, strong language, drugs and alcohol, and graphic violence.
Read it now!
***
More books by Clarissa Wild
Standalones
Mr. X
Twenty-One (21)
Ultimate Sin
Viktor
Dark Romance
Delirious Series
Stalker & Killer (prequel to Stalker)
New Adult
Fierce Series
Blissful Series
Erotic Romance
The Billionaire’s Bet Series
Enflamed Series
Visit Clarissa Wild on Amazon for current titles.
Want to get an email when my next book is released?
Sign up here and receive four free stories too: http://smarturl.it/newsletterbooks
***
About Clarissa Wild
Clarissa Wild is a New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author, best known for the dark Romance novel Mr. X. Her novels include the Fierce Series, the Delirious Series, Stalker, and Twenty-One (21). She is also a writer of erotic romance such as the Blissful Series, The Billionaire's Bet series, and the Enflamed Series. She is an avid reader and writer of sexy stories about hot men and feisty women. Her other loves include her furry cat friend and learning about different cultures. In her free time she enjoys watching all sorts of movies, reading tons of books and cooking her favorite meals.
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