Page 22 of Marrying My Ex's Brother
For one stupid second, relief hits me so hard I almost smile.
He’s here.
Then I hear Katya.
My steps slow.
Their voices are coming from the small sitting room near the east corridor, the one Galina said was closed to guests. The door is not fully shut.
I should not stop. I know that even before I do.
But then Katya says, “You need to calm down.”
And Dmitri answers, “Don’t tell me to calm down.” His voice is low. Angry.
I stand just outside the door, half-hidden by the wall, my hand tightening around the fabric of my dress.
“I mean it,” Katya says. “You’re acting strange. People will notice.”
Dmitri laughs softly inside the room, tired and irritated at the same time. “Let them notice.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“No?” he asks. “Maybe I’m tired of hiding.”
Something cold moves through my stomach. I tell myself I’m misunderstanding. I have to be. Katya is one of my bridesmaids. She spent the morning helping button my dress. She held my veil while the stylist pinned it in place.
She’s my friend.
I move closer before I can stop myself.
Through the gap in the door, I see them. Dmitri is standing near the window in his wedding suit, jacket discarded over a chair, bow tie loosened. Katya is directly in front of him, so close their bodies are almost touching.
Too close.
His hand is around her wrist.
Katya shakes her head lightly. “You’re getting married in less than an hour.”
“And?”
“And Anya is going to?—”
“She’ll be fine.”
The words hit harder than they should. Like a slap.
Katya looks up at him, frustration all over her face now. “You can’t keep doing this.”
Dmitri steps closer. “You say that every time.”
Katya presses a hand against his chest, but she doesn’t push him away. If anything, she looks tired. Emotional. Like they’ve had this conversation before.
Many times before.
“You promised me things would change after the wedding,” she says quietly.
Dmitri exhales through his nose and brushes a strand of hair away from her face with unbearable tenderness. “You know why this marriage matters.”
