Soldier Mine (Sons of War #2)(61)

“He said he had Todd,” I say, unable to shake the fear of my brother being in danger.

“My fault. I picked him up after school. I should’ve let you know.”

“No, Petr. You saved his life.” I lift my head to gaze at him. His features are hard to see in the dark interior.

He kisses my lips gently and pushes hair from my face. “Are you okay, Claudia? Really?”

“I will be,” I reply. “No one has ever helped us before, Petr.”

“It’s what you do when you love someone,” he says and brushes kisses across my forehead, the one part of my face that doesn’t hurt.

Love. Petr loves me. Warmth blooms in my chest. “You weren’t joking about proposing.”

He laughs softly. “I hadn’t planned on doing it tonight. I wanted something a little more romantic than a hostage situation.” He tilts his head, considering. “Although, I think this fits my family’s way of doing things a little more than a normal proposal.”

“Because Baba kidnapped your mother?” I give a watery smile at the story he told me.

“Exactly.” Petr laughs again and hugs me.

I close my eyes and snuggle against the heat of his skin making its way through his shirt. “Thank you a million times over.”

“Thank you for trusting me.”

We hold one another for several minutes before he withdraws. “We have all night to cuddle. Your brother was having a meltdown.”

“Oh, sweet Todd,” I murmur and straighten. I put on my seatbelt and take his hand again.

We drive in silence the short distance to his house. The front door cracks open when his truck shuts off, and I hastily exit the truck. Petr takes my hand, and we trot to the door. No sooner do I set foot in the door than Todd tackles me.

“Claudia!” he exclaims. Petr braces me from behind as Todd barrels me over. He’s close to hyperventilating. “Are you okay? What happened? Where is The Monster? Did Petr kill him? What happened, Claudia?”

I shush him and lean back against Petr, whose arms circle my shoulders. His strong body is steady behind me, my source of strength since mine is about to give out.

“He won’t bother us again,” I whisper to Todd.

“But you’re hurt.” My brother gazes into my face. The strain of tonight is on his features. He’s pale, his eyes rimmed with red from crying. “He hurt you.”

“I’m okay, kiddo.” I ruffle his hair.

He looks uncertainly at Petr behind me.

“I promise,” Petr says in a low, quiet voice. “He’ll never bother you again.”

“We don’t have to leave?” Todd asks me. “We can stay with Petr?”

“Yep. We can stay with Petr,” I respond.

Todd nods slowly, a flicker of light in his shadowed gaze, fully trusting the man who managed to capture my heart.

I twist in Petr’s grip and wrap an arm around him and another around Todd. The three of us stand in the doorway and hold each other. Petr’s strong embrace engulfs both of us.

This time, I know for certain it’s over. I contain the part of me that wants to weep out of appreciation and joy. My brother is already upset; I don’t want him breaking down.

“Your sister needs to rest, Todd,” Petr whispers gently. “Do you want to hang out with Sawyer and watch movies?”

Todd hesitates. He looks at my features again before nodding. “You need to rest, Claudia,” he says with some authority.

I manage to smile. As if sensing how weak I am, Petr keeps an arm around my midsection and walks with me towards the stairs and up to the second floor. We go to his room, and I hug him again.

“C’mere. Let me have a look,” he says and moves us towards the couch. We sink down together. He lifts my chin to observe the damage and then peels up my sweater sleeve. A flicker of something dark and angry crosses his gaze.

“I’m okay,” I assure him. “Just a little shaken.”

“Claudia …” He drifts off and meets my gaze, one of his hands cupping my neck while the other is clutched between my two hands. “I swear to you. I’ll never let anything happen to you again.” The sincerity and gravity of his expression is humbling.

“I know,” I say and squeeze his hand. “Petr, thank you. I can’t … can’t begin to tell you how you’ve changed my whole world. And Todd’s. You gave us hope and … and happiness and … as if those weren’t incredible enough … you confronted The Monster.” The tears are starting again. This time, I don’t try to stop them. “I never thought … or hoped … or dreamed …” I can’t talk anymore. The emotions choking me are too intense. I make an attempt to swallow them.

“It’s over, Claudia,” he whispers fiercely. Petr is watching me with warmth in his gorgeous eyes. Light and shadows from the lit hearth dance across his features. I’ve never met anyone so beautiful in body or spirit. I spread kisses over his face, no longer able to tell him what I need to say. Petr wraps his arms around me and hauls me against his muscular frame.

“I love you, Petr.”

“Enough to bring me hot coffee next time I visit you at the diner?”

I give a half laugh, half sob that hurts my throat. “Yes!”