Alessio
As I carried Ayla off the platform, all I wished was that we were in private. But no, we had more than five hundred people watching us.
Ayla was so beautiful in this moment that all I wanted to do was steal her away, hide her from everyone’s eyes…so only I could feast on her.
When she walked out of those doors, it felt like my heart had stopped. I found it hard to breathe as she walked down the aisle to me.
And then she said her vows, taking me by surprise but messing with my head at the same time. I didn’t think I could love her any more than I did, but the moment I heard those words from her lips, it felt like my heart would burst.
Ayla’s arms tightened around my neck, her lips pressing against my skin in the sweetest kiss.
I pulled her even closer. “Can we leave now?” I muttered in her ear.
She laughed and shook her head. “No. Maddie will hunt us down.”
Fucking Maddie.
When I reached the middle of the garden, where all the tables and chairs were, I let Ayla down. She grabbed my arm to steady herself.
Pulling her closer to me, I gripped her hips possessively. The guests started our way, excited to finally meet Ayla.
With Ayla at my side, I introduced her to the rest of the Bratva.
“Alessio,” Dmitry said, coming closer with his wife and kids at his side.
Slapping me on my back, he said his congratulations. “Ayla, this is Dmitry Agron. Boss of the Agron Family. He is part of the Bratva.”
She smiled kindly and shook his hand. “And this is his wife, Lidiya. The little girl in her arms is Anastasia,” I continued to introduce.
Lidiya came forward and hugged Ayla. “It is so very nice to finally meet you, Ayla.”
“I would like to say the same. I have heard so much about the Agron family,” Ayla replied, placing a kiss on Lidiya’s cheek.
“And this is my son,” Dmitry said, pulling Grigory forward. He was fourteen years old, the next in line as Boss after his father.
“It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ma’am,” he said with a slight bow.
Grigory nodded at Ayla, his face stern and hard. Emotionless. Well trained. I nodded at Dmitry in approval.
Behind Dmitry, I saw Valentin making his way to us. Fucking Solonik. I pulled Ayla closer to me, and she looked up at me, confused.
“Alessio, son…I am hurt that I had to hear of the wedding from someone else,” he said, coming to stand beside Dmitry.
His eyes went to Ayla, his stare burning into her. A small smirk appeared on his lips, and all I wanted to do was punch it in.
I felt a hand on my back. “Control, Alessio,” Viktor said quietly, coming to stand beside me.
“A lovely wife you have there,” Valentin continued, his voice thick with his Russian accent.
He moved forward, taking Ayla’s hand before she could even react. My fingers bit in her hips, trying to control myself at the sight of him touching my wife.
Valentin bent his head, placing a kiss on the back of her hand. “It is my pleasure, Ayla Abandonato,” he said, his eyes darkening.
“Ivanshov. Ayla Ivanshov. That’s my wife you are speaking to,” I growled, pulling Ayla away from him.
“Of course. My apologies,” he quickly said, his eyebrows raised in amusement.
“Valentin, how nice to see you after so many years,” Lyov said in Russian, standing beside Ayla. Isaak took his side, both of them glaring daggers into Solonik.
Ayla looked up at me, demanding answers. “It’s Valentin Solonik,” was my only reply.
Her eyes widened and stepped closer to me. Solonik might be part of the Bratva. He might have been a boss, but I was still the Godfather. He hated it. He loathed that the Ivanshov led the other families.
Valentin had always tried to find a way to take over, but he never got a chance. Not now and not ever.
Valentin and Lyov continued to converse in Russian.
“Where is your wife?” Isaak asked.
“She is at home,” Valentin answered drily.
He might have been old enough to be my father—his reign started around the same time as Lyov, but his wife was years younger than me.
“Are they speaking Russian?” Ayla whispered.
I nodded and slightly bent my head down so I could whisper in her ear. “Yes, Valentin’s estate is in Russia. He takes care of the business there. Barely comes over to the US or Canada.”
We stepped away from the crowd, Dmitry nodding at me in understanding. He took his wife by the hips, kissing her on the lips before leading them away.
“Can you speak Russian?” she asked quietly, her arms going around my waist.
I chuckled at the questions. “Of course, I can, Ayla.”
“Say something in Russian,” she demanded. “Emm…it sounded…nice when the others were speaking it.”
Pulling my wife against me, my fingers grazed her neck. She shivered at my touch, her eyes half closing as I trailed my finger down.
“Kotyonok,” I whispered roughly before nipping at her earlobe.
She jumped in response, her arms tightening around me. “What does that mean?” she whispered back, breathless.
“Kitten,” I replied, my teeth grazing her neck, biting down softly.
“Oh.” Her lips parted, and other ideas jumped in my mind.
“Alessio, man, do you need a room?”
I groaned and pulled away from Ayla. Erik Gavrikov smirked as he stared at us.
“Ayla, this is—”
“I can introduce myself,” he said, pushing me away.
“Fuck off, Erik,” I snapped back.
He laughed and pulled Ayla in a hug. He winked over her shoulders before stepping back. “I’m Erik Gavrikov. I’m sure you’ve heard of the name. The better-looking Boss,” he teased.
Ayla’s cheeks turned red, and I watched her flustered over Erik.
“Emm, yes…Alessio has told me about you,” she replied.
“I can’t fucking believe that you’re hitched, Alessio. Am I the only single one left?” he said, running his fingers through his hair.
“Pretty much. If you don’t count my men,” I replied, rolling my eyes.
“Well, I like my pussies varied. Can’t stick with just one.” He shrugged. His eyes went to a woman as she passed by us.
“I’ll tap that one anytime,” he said, smacking her on the ass. “Tonight, kotik. What say?”
Too bad for him the woman turned out to be Nina.
She swiveled around; her glare could kill anyone on the spot. “Touch me again and I will rip your arms off and beat you with them,” she growled.
Erik raised his hands up. “Damn, Nina. I thought we were good. You liked it last night.”
Ayla coughed, hiding her laugh behind her hand.
Without answering, Nina started to walk away, only to stop again. “Oh, and call me a pussycat again and you won’t be able to speak. Got it?”
Erik stared at her speechless. “What crawled in her ass? She need the stick removed or what?”
He smirked then. “I’ll remove it…and then replace it with something else.”
He thrust his hips forward and winked. I could see Ayla blushing, and she looked down.
“Where is Viktor?” Erik asked. “Can’t see the best man anywhere.”
“He must be somewhere,” Ayla asked. “He was right beside us a few minutes ago.”
Erik nodded and started to back away. “I’ll see you both later.”
Ayla waved and then sagged against me. “Is he always like this?”
“Yes,” I replied drily.
“It looks like I have met all of the Families,” she said, watching the guests mingling around. “They seem…very enthusiastic. I can’t explain it. It’s strange.”
“Most of us here are killers, Ayla. Of course, it’s strange. We don’t mingle and party.”
Ayla nodded in understanding as other guests made their way to us. She talked, smiled, and laughed at everyone.
I watched her getting along, and pride filled my chest. She has come a long way. We both have.
Ayla deserved this more than anyone.
I snapped out of my thoughts when Ayla made her way to me. Leaning on her toes, she placed a quick kiss on my lips, catching me by surprise.
I love you, she mouthed.
I heard people laughing and clapping as I pulled her onto my lap. Yeah. I fucking loved this woman.
And she was getting deliciously fucked tonight.
***
Ayla
My heart drummed as Alessio pulled me onto his lap.
I bit on my lips, feeling my cheeks heating under his eyes. His eyes followed my movement, and if possible, his gaze was growing more lustful. He looked so sexy in this moment.
From the corner of my eyes, I saw Maddie motioning me over. “I guess it’s time for our first dance,” I said softly.
Alessio cradled me to his chest and stood up. He carried me to the platform before placing me on my feet. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I moved closer.
Alessio held my hips as we started to move to the song. It was slow and perfect. He twirled me around and then pulled me back.
We moved together as the others started to join us. Placing my head over Alessio’s shoulder, I let him lead the dance.
The moment felt so surreal, so perfect that tears blinded my vision. We danced for a long time, neither of us wanting to let go.
When my feet were tired and aching, I finally pulled away. The sun was setting, casting a beautiful soft orange glow in the sky.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Evaline dancing with someone I didn’t recognize.
Maddie tsked beside me. “What is this girl doing?”
I didn’t reply. My gaze stayed on Evaline, who was dancing way too close. Oh.
Her arms went around his neck as they laughed, the man enjoying her closeness.
Maddie laughed. “She’s crazy.”
I glanced Nikolay’s way.
Not good. Not good at all.
He looked like he was ready to commit murder.
I looked at Evaline again. This time, her eyes were on Nikolay as she continued dancing. She moved closer as she rolled her hips against the man’s groin.
“Emm…” I started.
“She’s playing with fire,” Maddie replied before I could say anything. “But God, I’m loving this!”
Nikolay finally snapped, and I winced.
He prowled toward the dancing couple and grabbed the guy by his collar, practically pulling him off his feet. He pushed him away, the man tumbling over.
Oh dear.
Nikolay grabbed Evaline’s hips, pulling her against him. He bent his head down and whispered something in her ear. His face looked harsh and angry.
He thrust his hips against her before twirling her around. It wasn’t a slow, romantic dance. No, it was angry and sensual.
Even I blushed at the scene.
Evaline was laughing, clearly not affected by Nikolay’s anger. She pulled away from him but not before I saw her palming him between his legs.
She winked and then sashayed away.
Nikolay stood there for a second before following after her.
“Is she going to be okay?” I asked, worried.
Maddie chuckled. “Babe, she is definitely going to be okay. She just won’t be able to walk for days.”
When realization finally dawned to me, my eyes widened, and I had to hide my smile behind my hand.
Could this day get any better? I didn’t think so.