Page 27 of Hunted Bride

But this…my betrayal will test their capacity for forgiveness.

Hell, Max might kill me himself for what I’ve done. Might consider murdering me a mercy compared to what the Morozovs would do to me. He takes family loyalty very seriously, and I’ve been shitting on that allegiance for six years.

“What are you not telling me, brother.” Max tilts his head. His blue eyes, the exact same shade as mine, turn ice-cold. I know he’s killed people. We all have. He has that look in his eye now.

I’m fucked.

I should come clean.

Instead, I open my mouth to lie straight to my own brother’s face.

I’ll do anything to keep Milena a secret. Even deceive my own family. The worst part is that I can see how worried he is about Alisa, and I still play the fucking joker instead of telling him the truth.

“I’m learning how to do my own makeup.” I grin. Max doesn’t. He glances at my tattoos and then back at the shiny flecks all over my face. His expression turns thunderous. Do I stop? No. I keep running my fool mouth. “Lilia’s teaching me how to apply glitter. I know you wouldn’t approve, so I’ve been doing it in private. Guess I didn’t wash it all off⁠—”

Behind me, there’s a quiet click. Hairs prickle on the back of my neck when the basement door cracks open. Milena’s small hand slips around the edge. Her beautiful, wide-eyed face appears. Then the rest of her emerges.

“What the actual fuck,” Max breathes.

Vot der’mo. I’m so completely dead. I glower at her. “How did you open that?”

She holds up a key. Blyat. Why didn’t I think to search the basement for a spare key? The Morozovs aren’t stupid enough to lock themselves into a bunker with no way out.

Milena pushes the door open and steps out. Her long, dark hair hangs in loose waves all the way to her waist. The skirt is short, and I know she’s not wearing panties. I want to shove her out of sight, fuck her against the wall, and then find her clothes that aren’t verging on flashing her crotch. Only I get to look at her that way.

The reason she’s dressed in ill-fitting castoffs is that I stole her clothes in the first place. I have only myself to blame.

Max turns on me. “You kidnapped my fiancée’s little sister?” He doesn’t hesitate. Just swings. Hard. His fist connects with my jaw. My head snaps back. Stars dance behind my eyes. Distantly, I hear Milena’s gasp.

“Stop!” she shouts.

I stagger upright. Touch my chin where my brother decked me. My little mouse puts her body between us, her soft eyes flashing with anger. She turns away from me and advances on Max. He actually backs up a step. It’s almost hilarious the way this small woman makes my big, scary brother back off.

Defending me. I don’t deserve it.

“Tell me, Maxim, did anyone notice I was missing?” she demands. “Did my parents notice I was gone? Did my boss at the library alert anyone when I didn’t come in to work for two days in a row?”

I’ve never seen Milena angry before. Usually, she holds it in. Unleashed, she is magnificent. She prods my brother in the sternum. He blinks at her in shock.

“Not one person thought to look for me, did they? Your fiancée went missing and you sprang into action. I went missing for two whole days and you didn’t think to check on her sister, did you? Not” —poke—“even” —poke—“once.”

Max’s startled eyes meet mine. I shrug, but I’m trying not to laugh. She’s right. He didn’t give a shit about Milena until she popped up, having rescued herself from my clutches.

“I’m the one who gave Alisa my burner phone and my car,” she says, scowling. “Did you figure it out, or am I that invisible to you?”

Max glares at me. “Did you know about this?”

I open my mouth, and close it again. Shrug. Max scoffs.

Milena is just getting started. “Alisa doesn’t want to be married to you. She thinks you’re an asshole. Frankly, your entire family is.” Milena turns on me. “Especially you, Ilarion Orlov.”

Uh-oh. We’re in full name territory.

“But at least your brother thinks about me,” she says, glaring at me. It’s not a compliment.

“All the time,” I interject. She looks ready to murder me herself. With her bare hands. What a way to go.

“At least Ilarion remembers that I exist,” Milena fumes. “Unlike my own parents. Or my future brother-in-law.”