Year Four (Kingmakers, #4)

by Sophie Lark

“Nobody in their right mind wants to date the daughter of Marko Moroz, that’s pretty fucking clear.”

Now I want a daughter as beautiful and vicious as Sloane.

She may be a fox, but I’m a wolf. The wolf takes the fox whenever he likes.

“You belong to me, moya malen’kaya lisa. You will carry my child.”

Evalina Markov and Donovan Dryagin might have given their baby away to hide the accidental pregnancy, then married afterward.

The hasty adoption surely shows that Evalina fell pregnant from someone other than her fiancé.

But it’s Nix who captures my attention, immediately and irrevocably.

I’m drawn to her like a fish on a line, reeled in.

“I wanted to impress you.” “It worked,” I say. “You’re stunning.”

“Do you like me better this way?” she asks, looking up into my face to see the truth of my answer, whatever I might say. “I like you best outdoors,” I tell her. “On the beach, in the woods . . . anywhere outside. It’s where you belong.”

Before she can join Anna and Leo, Hedeon cuts across the crowd of students, roughly shouldering aside anyone who stands in his way. He blocks Cara’s path, glowering down at her. Cara looks up at him, wide-eyed and startled, lips parted. “Do you want to dance with me?” he grunts. Cara’s reply is so soft that I can’t make it out over the music. She must have agreed because Hedeon pulls her onto the sand.

Lies of omission are still lies.”

“What do you want, Nix?” I ask her. “I want you to kiss me.”

“Alright,” she says. “Now I know you like me.” “Yes,” I say. “I do.” There’s no lie in that.

We’re sitting on our respective beds, ostensibly studying, but actually just shooting the shit.

“What interrupted you?” Ares asks. “I wanted to see you,” I reply simply.

“So how do I look?” “Pretty fucking gorgeous,” I tell him.

“You look like if autumn was a person,” he says,

“You look like if the woods came alive. And they were extremely co...

I’ve had sex before, but it was quick, secretive sex with one of my father’s soldiers.

“I love being out here with you. I haven’t felt this good in a long time.”

I know I’ve never been this happy.

I kiss her hard. “Nothing could keep me from coming back to you.”

“I’m going to shoot your son twice in the leg, where you shot me. And then I’ll shoot your daughter right below the heart, where you hit Daryah. Finally, I’ll strangle your wife with my bare hands, till the light leaves her eyes, so you know, you’ll truly know, the bitter agony of watching helpless, unable to save the ones you love. And all the while, I want you to beg for mercy. Beg and howl, like I did. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll let one of you live.”

He grips the handle and lunges, not at Taras, but at my brother. He means to cut Dom’s throat—only my brother’s quick twist to the right spares his life, the knife slashing open his cheek instead.

I shoot Marko in the knee, dropping him to the ground. Then I shoot Taras Holodryga, right between the eyes. “There,” I say bitterly. “It’s over.”

“Someday you’ll kneel before me, as I kneel before you now,” he says, teeth grinding together like stone on stone. “You’ll beg and plead for my mercy. And I’ll remind you that we could have been brothers . . . that I held out the hand of friendship to you, before you spat in my face.”

“It’s because we were friends that I don’t kill you,” I tell him. “My debt is paid to you. All bonds between us are cut. You have your city, I have mine—don’t come to St. Petersburg again, or there will be no mercy for either of us.”

It doesn’t help that a small part of me wanted my mother and Nix to meet. I wanted my mom to see her, speak to her face to face, so she would see that Nix isn’t some monster, some mini version of her father to be manipulated and wielded like an asset.

I want to be myself with Nix, I don’t want to be Ares. I want her to know me, not him. I want to fuck her as myself.

I can’t stay away from her. The only time I feel peace is with her. That’s the only time the pressure releases. As soon as we’re apart, I’m crushed again under the weight of my own lies.

“I know you’re getting too close to her, Ares. And I also want you to know that I don’t care. You can like this girl. You can even fall for her. It doesn’t matter.” I lick my lips, my heart nearly rigid now. “Why doesn’t it matter?” “Because in the end, you’ll choose your family,” she says. “You’re my son and I know who you are. You’re loyal.”

“I’ve never seen you in a dress before,” he says. “I’m trying something new.” “I can’t stop staring,” he says. “I’m not even gonna try.”

At that moment, Sabrina Gallo enters the dance with Ilsa Markov.

I’ve always found women just as beautiful as men—sometimes, even more so. I respect strong women the way I respect strong men. What I would call a “deep sense of admiration” sometimes has a much more heart-pounding flavor.

“You stay the FUCK away from Nix,” he shouts at the groaning, battered Estas.

“Ares,” I gasp. “What the fuck was that?” “The fucking asshole is dangerous,” he growls, his fingers a steel band around my wrist. “He’s got a grudge against you, Nix. He wants to hurt you.” “It was just punch,” I say, staring at his still-furious expression.

“No one is ever going to hurt you while I’m with you, do you understand?” Ares says, grabbing both my arms and forcing me to turn to look at him. “Do you understand me, Nix?” “Yes. I understand,” I say,

“Most people aren’t too worried whether I can take care of myself. Only one person talks like that—you sound like my dad.” Ares stares at me. “I’m not like your father,” he says.

I look Ares in the eye and say, “I’ll kill anyone who hurts the people I love.”

“You know I don’t give a fuck who your father is,” he says, his eyes staring into mine. “You know that, don’t you?” “Yes . . .” I say hesitantly.

“Do you feel the same about me?” Ares demands. “You don’t care about my parents, where I came from, what I have waiting for me when I leave this place . . . that doesn’t matter to you?”

I really don’t care. And if my dad cares, if he tried to tell me Ares wasn’t good enough for me, I’d tell him to fuck off. Ares is my equal in every way that matters: intelligence, determination, and strength. That’s what I care about.

“I’ve never met anyone as impressive as you,” I tell Ares, looking in his eyes. “I want you—not your money or your name.”

“Did you like watching me with those girls?” I murmur. “That didn’t make you jealous?” “No,” he growls, his teeth rasping against the side of my neck. “I fucking loved it. I don’t want you restrained, Nix—I want you wild and free and untamed. I want you to have everything you ever desired, and I want to watch you enjoy it . .

“I love how strong you are,” he says. “I fucking love watching you in here. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched you stretching or running or hitting the heavy bag with my cock fucking throbbing in my shorts.”

“Harder,” I beg. “Fuck me harder.” “I’ll fucking destroy you with this cock,” Ares snarls.

Ivan Petrov Present Day

so he's alive?

I haven’t seen the sky or felt wind on my face since I came to this place. But I would pass the rest of my days in darkness if I could see my wife one last time.

I know she’s looking for me. I know it as well as I know my own thoughts.

Ahhh I get it.