A/N: More mention of abuse in this chapter and another sex scene...okay to be fair they will be going through a very long dry spell very soon. So it's only fair that they have a lot of sex now before I tear the rug out from under them. Anyways I hope you enjoy!
Russian Translation
Kotyonok = kitten
Moi Sladkiy - My sweetness
Da = Yes
"Hi, I wasn't expecting to see you up."
Alex didn't say anything, he just walked by her and went into the drawer and pulled out the ring, setting it on the counter. "I knew you would come look for it at some point after this morning."
She could see the worry etched onto his face and eyes, it made her face softened as she walked over to him and leaned up to give him a chaste kiss. "I couldn't help it, it was cute to see you trying to hide it from me." She looked over at it and then back to him. "I never expected for you to have one already and yes I know you have it now but that doesn't mean we need to be engaged. You hid it because you thought it wasn't time and I respect that." She grabbed both of his hands and smiled up at him, and he mirrored it back. "I'll wait however long until you think it's the right time. Whether it's three months from now or two years, the answer will always be yes."
He let go of her hands to cup her face and crushed their lips together. Skylar couldn't suppress the laugh as he kissed all over her face. A moment later he stopped, gazing into her eyes with a loving expression on his face. "Really?"
Skylar laughed and removed his hands from her face. "Yes really. My feelings for you will never change moi sladkiy. And I can't wait for the day I go from Skylar Jackson to Skylar Senaviev!"
"I love you!"
"I love you too!"
The smile on his face turned into a smirk and he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, heading back into their bedroom.
She laughed as he tossed her onto it, then crawled on top of her, kissing and nipping at her neck. A smile spread across her face and she rolled her eyes - chuckling. "Not tonight hot shot. I'm still sore from earlier."
He moved his head from the crook of her neck and looked down at her, then gave her a kiss and rolled over to his spot. "Are you sure I'm not going too rough kotyonok?"
"I'm very sure, and if you were I would've told you that." She got under the covers and turned on her side in his direction. "I do love the ring you chose."
Alex got under the covers and turned to face her, giving her a small kiss on the nose. "You do?"
"Yes." She laughed and snuggled up against him. "You did a good job picking it out. It's fancy, but not too fancy."
"I knew you wouldn't be keen on me buying you a huge diamond ring, even though you deserve it. Once I saw that ring it just screamed Skylar, it's fancy, but not overpowering in a way that you're bragging."
"You know me so well." She looked up at him and gave him a quick kiss before snuggling back into his chest and letting out a content sigh. "The only thing I'll brag about is having you!"
His arms that were wrapped around her tightened, pulling her closer to him as if it were possible and he kissed the top of her head. "I'll always brag about having you! In more than one way."
"Alexsandr!"
They both laughed and moved their heads to look at each other, Skylar could see the smirk on his face that only made the smile on her face grow even more. She lightly shoved at his chest, pushing him down onto the bed and straddled him, trickling her fingers down his bare chest.
He placed his hands on her hips, looking up at her with amusement and lust. "I thought you were sore kotyonok?"
She bit her bottom lip, rolling her hips against the slowly growing bulge in his boxers forcing a low grunt from the back of his throat. "I am, but there are other ways we can have some fun."
"What other ways are you talking about?"
Skylar snorted and rolled her eyes, she loved how he could act oblivious and know exactly what she was talking about, all because he wanted her to say it. She got off his lap and went over to his nightstand drawer and opened it, pulling out the bottle of lube that was in there and showed it to him.
"Lube up and you'll find out."
Alex sat up and she tossed it to him, giving him a wink before stripping out of her clothes and laying down on the bed. He looked from the lube bottle in his hands and then over to her, watching her roll over onto her stomach and slightly lift her ass in the air.
He smirked and set the lube aside to pull his boxers down to free his restrained cock that was rock hard at this point and very eager. Skylar watched him flip the cap open and pour a generous amount on his cock and stroked himself until his cock was slick enough to slide in with little to no effort.
The bed dipped under his weight as he got behind her, gently lifting her hips for her ass to be in the air. He took the excess lube that was on his hand and circled it around her asshole, and gently pushed it past the few layers of muscles.
She took in a sharp breath, but quickly relaxed as his finger circled around, lubing up her inside. It felt pretty nice, but his finger was a lot less smaller than his hard cock. And that she had somewhat of a hard time taking.
"Are you sure about this kotyonok?"
"...Yes."
He pulled his finger free and looked down at her. "You didn't sound so sure with that 'yes' you just said. We don't have to do anal if you don't want Skylar."
"No I do, it wasn't a good experience the first time, that's all."
"Henry?" She nodded her head and looked away from him, making him lean down and gently forcing her to look at him. "Let's take this slow, da? There's no need to rush this, we'll both get our pleasure in the long run."
She nodded her head again and softly smiled at him. He reached for the lube on the nightstand and pour a tiny bit more onto his fingers. And as if she could read his mind she got on her hands and knees to make it easier.
He pushed two fingers past the few layers of muscles and slowly pumped them in and out. "Are you in any pain?"
"No, it feels a little weird though." She chuckles.
"It will for a little bit."
He pumped his fingers a little faster, nothing too bad to make her feel any discomfort or pain. As he watched his fingers disappear inside of her he felt his cock twitch, but ignored it. Her comfort was far more greater than his need to get off.
When she started to push back on him and moan he added another finger, and gripped her ass with his free hand. The harder she pushed back on his hand the more he knew she was ready. He pulled his abused fingers free, getting a whine from her in reply.
"Lay down on your side kotyonok."
Skylar eagerly laid down on her side and he joined her seconds later. He moved her leg up a bit, placing his cock head at her lubed up hole and slowly pushed past the few layers of muscle until his head was fully inside. He let go of her leg and wrapped his arms around her, sinking his cock deeper and deeper until he bottomed out.
"Oh...my god."
Alex stilled inside her, kissing her cheek and neck. "Any pain?"
"A little discomfort."
"Tell me when you want me to move." He pulled her closer, nibbling at her earlobe and moved a hand between her legs. "I can wait."
She softly moaned as she felt his hand between her legs rubbing at her clit in slow circular motions. She pushed back on him, telling him it was okay to move and he wasted no time on slowly rocking his hips.
He moaned into her ear as her muscles clenched around his cock, milking him for all that he had.
His pace began to fasten, and his cock was leaking pre-cum, slicking himself up even more. Skylar was moaning loudly and pushing back on him as he tried to keep his hand between her legs, but found it difficult with their moving.
He removed his hand from between her legs and maneuvered himself onto his back without pulling out and held her hips as he thrusted up into her. She loudly moaned and laid her head back, having her hair fall against his chest.
Her hand took the spot of his between her legs and she rubbed at her clit with added pressure. She could tell he was close and she wanted to come with him.
His grip on her hips tightened and he thrusted up into her once more - stilling as he came. Skylar followed soon after, body trembling as her orgasm overtook her body.
Alex moved them back into the spooning position and kissed her cheek before he pulled out.
"Holy crap that was amazing." She turned over to look at him, giving him a chaste kiss. "I know I don't need to say this but… thank you. You always put my pleasure in front of your own and I'm not sure how many people would do that."
"Kotyonok you were abused and it would kill me if I ever accidentally hurt you." He leaned down and kissed her forehead, lips lingering there for a moment before he pulled away and gazed into her eyes. "I know I won't be able to erase all the bad things he did to you, but I can make sure you're treated like a queen because after everything you deserve at least that."
Her face softened under his gaze and she placed her hand on top of his. "You never could hurt me Alex, it's not in your nature. Even when we have sex you watch for my cues if I'm in pain or not and if I am you stop and ask. You might not be able to erase what Henry did to me, no one can but your love has made me start to heal. Your love has given me happiness, pleasure and most importantly hope."
His own face softened at her words and he leaned down to place a more passionate kiss upon her lips. "I love you kotyonok!"
"I love you too moi sladkiy!"
"Why don't we get cleaned up and get some sleep?"
Skylar nodded her head and got off the bed, scrunching her face as she stood up when she felt the lube and his semen start to drip down her inner thigh. "I don't like this feeling."
She quickly made her way to the bathroom to grab some toilet paper and clean herself up with, Alex trailing behind her. He grabbed some toilet paper himself and wiped off the excess lube from his cock and tossed it into the trash.
He leaned against the sink, watching her intently as she cleaned herself up. There was a lot more than he had and it made him a little guilty, maybe he should've worn a condom for anal sex. It would've made clean up easier on her.
Once she was done he picked her up bridal style. She giggled and wrapped her arm around his neck for support as he walked them back to the bed.
"How chivalrous."
He chuckled as he made his way to the bed, stopping abruptly when he saw the mess they made. "Looks like the sheets need to be changed."
She glanced over at the bed, seeing the decent size wet spot. "Yeah I think that's a good idea."
Alex put her down and she went to retrieve her panties and a shirt from the floor and put them back on while he went for his boxer. She watched him pull them back on and then head for the closet, pulling out a fresh batch of sheets for the bed.
He placed the new ones on the dresser before he pulled the comforter off the bed, leaving it on the floor. Skylar grabbed the pillows and placed them on the dresser next to the sheets so they wouldn't get dirty from being on the floor. He stripped the bed next, bunching the top sheet into a ball and tossing it into the hamper, followed by the fitted one.
He grabbed the fitted sheet from the dresser and opened it up. She went on the other side of the bed to help, not thinking much of it but stopped when she saw him stare at her. "What? Those fitted sheets are a pain to put on by yourself."
"No it's not that. We're making a bed, together. It's domestic."
Skylar laughed and a big smile spread across her face. "Yeah, it is pretty domestic. Our lives will be like this quite a bit when we're living together."
"I like it!"
"I'm glad you do, now can we please get this bed made so we can go to sleep?"
"Da, kotyonok!"
They both chuckled and continued on making the bed. Once the comforter was back on, she went for the pillows, tossing one to his side of the bed and the other to hers, then crawled under the covers with a content sigh. He chuckled and got under the covers with her, then wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him and kissed the back of her neck.
"Goodnight kotyonok!"
"Goodnight moi sladkiy"
xXx
The next morning Skylar was sitting at the counter looking at the ring again while Alex made breakfast. She didn't get a good look at it last night due to not wanting to get caught, even though that failed and asked if she could see it again.
Now that she was looking at it in more detail and light she was astonished by its beauty. The cut of the diamond was in the shape of a heart and it sat on a shiny rose gold ban. She never mentioned to him that she liked rose gold more than the typical silver or gold you can get engagement rings in. Then again she did wear a lot of rose gold jewelry when off duty, it wouldn't have been hard for him to pick up that it was one of her favorite colors.
"Moi sladkiy, this ring is absolutely gorgeous! You did a good job picking it out!"
"I did?" He turned around to look at her in time to see her nod.
"Yes you did! You've paid close attention to what kind of jewelry I wear and I know you picked the heart shaped diamond because… well you love me."
She placed the ring back in it's box and got up from her seat. Walking over to stand in front of him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "How did I get so lucky to have someone as amazing as you?"
He placed the spatula down on the counter and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her. "And how did I get so lucky to have someone as loving as you?"
She locked eyes with him, staring into his blue ones that reminded her of clear blue ocean water, that made you just want to swim in them. His arms however felt like home, they were safe and warm and nothing could touch her when she was in them, not a single soul or memory. She was safe and happy and that's all she ever wanted.
"You didn't do anything but be yourself, and you put your faith in me."
"Faith? Kotyonok you didn't need my faith, I needed yours. You could've easily ended this relationship before it even started, yet you didn't. You put your trust in me from the moment we fell on that ice at the holiday party, and it has grown immensely since then. My faith was already there, yours had to grow and it had every reason too."
"My trust in you was there a month after I joined." She pulled away from him, eyes beginning to glisten. "Henry took everything from me, my worth, my dignity. My innocence. After I finally escaped him I realized he took my trust too, trusting comes a lot harder for me now and I tend to not trust people as a default." She wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand, letting out a shaky breath. It broke his heart to see her like this, hurt and he wished he could take it away. "Then you came along. You gave me my space the moment I got here, and you always asked if it was okay for you to touch me whether verbally or not. It didn't take me long to figure out you knew something happened to me before joining, my scar shows proof of that."
With a blind hand he shut off the stove before he burned their breakfast, but by the smell of it he already did.
He brushed some strands of hair behind her ear and cupped her face, caressing her smooth skin with his thumb. Her hazel eyes that reminded him of moss covered trees on a dewey morning gazed into his, then he wrapped his arms around her in a tight, yet gentle hug.
"People don't get scars like that from just training, something horrific happened to you and I wanted you to trust me from the beginning. I never would've guessed you were abused in every aspect. And I'm so sorry you even had to deal with that in the first place."
He kissed the top of her head and lingered there for a moment, taking in the fruity scent of her shampoo from her morning shower she had a near hour ago.
Seconds later he felt her body tremble against his and her legs gave out and sank to the floor - he never let go of her, only sank down with her and held her closer to his chest. He closed his eyes and exhaled a breath as her sobs made their way to his ears, then he maneuvered them so he was sitting down and put her in his lap.
"It's okay kotyonok, I'm here, I'm always here!"
She grabbed his shirt into her fist and sobbed into his chest, feeling both embarrassed and relieved. Years were spent suppressing her emotions from her abuse, only letting them out if she was with her therapist or when the nightmares came crawling back in the night.
Those were the nights spent curled up in bed crying alone until she couldn't cry anymore, feeling numb and distant. She didn't have what she has now, a shoulder to cry on. Someone who will console her when the demons strike at night and tell her everything will be alright.
It took a little time but she eventually calmed down and her sobs turned into sniffles. She moved her head away from his chest and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and looked up at him. "Thank you!"
He kissed the top of her head again and leaned back against the counter, pulling her back to his chest and rubbing his hand up and down her back. "Don't get up until you want to kotyonok, I'm not going anywhere."
She didn't say anything just laid back down against his chest with a sigh. "I hate feeling like this."
"I know you do. I would rather have you let it out then keep it in and have it eat away at you." He put his index finger under her chin and gently moved her head to look at him. Her face was red and tear staind and her eyes were still glistening. "Kotyonok, you barely told anyone what really happened between you and Henry, you've kept all the pain inside of you for years and you had to deal with it on your own. I don't want you to hide that pain with me, if those nightmares come back, tell me and I'll be there. I'll hold you through the night until they go away. I'll keep you safe!"
More tears started to well in her eyes and she wrapped her arms around his neck and maneuvered herself to straddle him. "I love you Alex, more than anything in this world and thank you for not giving up on me."
"I will never give up on you Skylar, never. You're healing and if anyone thinks you're not good enough because of that, then they're not worth it." He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly in them. "I will give my all to keep this relationship going, only death will break us apart."
"I hope death won't break us apart for a very long time. I don't want to think of a world without you." She lifted her head and planted a firm kiss on his lips. "And I will always give my all for this relationship too."
Alex kissed her forehead and stood up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist as he walked over to the couch and sat down, then moved them to a lying down position. "Death isn't going to take me from you anytime soon, I promise you that kotyonok!"
"Good!" She snuggled up into him again, taking in a big breath of air and nuzzled her face into his chest. "I want us to live a long and happy life together. With a bunch of little Senaviev's running around."
He laughed, pulling her closer to him. "There's not a doubt in my mind that there will be a bunch of little Senaviev's running around our home in the near future."
She chuckled and then went quiet, shifting the atmosphere in the room. Alex looked down at her with curiosity to see the absent look on her face. She looked lost in thought, thinking back on old memories or maybe of what could've been. A lot has happened in her short life and he couldn't, no wouldn't blame her for thinking on what could've been if something didn't or did happen in her life.
"I know you said before that me having a kid wouldn't have deterred you away from me, did you mean that?"
"Da, I never once lied to you kotyonok. The only difference would be we would be taking it a lot slower." He kissed her forehead and gave her a small smile. "Would you have deterred away from me if I had kids?"
"No."
"See. I know the last few years haven't been kind to you and things could've happened differently. All I know is that my love wouldn't have changed for you if you had a kid right now or not."
Her face softened and a small smile started to spread across her face. She hated how much she needed to be reassured that he wanted her, yet there was this deep rooted fear that someday he might think she's not worth it and that terrifies her. Who else would be able to deal with someone who has so much baggage? Not many.
"I'm sorry I keep needing to be reassured, I'm sure it gets annoying after a while."
Alex wrapped his arms around her again and pulled her against his chest, kissing the top of her head. "No need to apologize for that kotyonok! You know I'll always want you. I have a ring to prove it."
Skylar chuckled into his chest and shook her head. "That you do."
"You can wear it if you want to, I wouldn't object to it."
She propped herself up on her elbow, arching a brow at him. "Was that your proposal moi sladkiy?"
"No, my real proposal will be much more romantic kotyonok!"
"I'm sure it will be." She leaned over and planted a passionate kiss upon his lips. His hand slid down her side, resting at her hip. "But I'm not going to wear the ring, I might not take it off."
She pushed him onto his back and swung her leg over him, laying her head on his chest. His hands came up to rub at her back and he sighed in content. Her laying on top of him was something he thoroughly enjoyed, having her so close to him that she could hear his heartbeat. The heart that belongs fully to her.
"I wouldn't want you too!"
A smile began to spread across her face, though he couldn't see it since she wasn't facing him, but he could feel her cheek move against his chest. She knew he wanted to ask her to marry him, yet he didn't for whatever reason unbeknownst to her. Maybe he wanted to wait a little longer, long enough for the base to know and not give a crap after a while. Or maybe it was just fear.
She lifted her head to look at him, face softening upon his gaze. "I know you want to ask me moi sladkiy. And it's eating away at you. I'm not sure about the real reason you're not asking me, but it's okay. Whichever day or year you choose to propose, I will say yes."
He sighed in defeat and locked eyes with her. "Da, I do want to ask you, more than anything. I don't care if people think we're taking it fast, I just don't want their repercussions coming on to you. It scares me to think I could propose right now, you would say yes and then people would talk about us rushing into things and maybe you might think it's not the right time and call it off."
"I would never call it off, ever! I don't care what other people think, it's not their decision anyways." She sat up and he followed suit. "I have been raped, beaten and torn down until there was nothing left of me. Once I got away the thought of dating scared the hell out of me, who would want someone like me? Someone with that much baggage. Or when I tell someone about what happened they look at me with pity and disgust." She wiped a few tears from her eyes and let out a shaky breath. "Then you came along and when I told you about the abuse you didn't look at me with disgust or pity, you looked at me with love. I never thought I would meet someone who would care so deeply for me and I'd be damned if I ever let that go because of peoples unwarranted opinions."
"I would never look at you in such a way. You were a victim, you didn't ask for it and now you're slowly healing. I don't care how much baggage you have kotyonok, I'll always be here for you."
She gave him a small smile and looked down at her hands, beginning to fiddle with them. "I can still remember those nights laying beside him in bed, in pain wondering why me? What did he see in me to make me his victim? Yet there were times I would think, maybe it's better to stay with him…"
"No." Alex sat up, startling her a bit and locked eyes with her as she met his gaze. "That's Henry talking, not you. You would have been miserable if you stayed with him." He went quiet for a moment, glancing down for a brief second and back into her eyes. "And I wouldn't have met you because you wouldn't be in Rainbow."
"I know, I know. I would have been miserable, times ten. I just have this deep rooted fear that no one will want me. I'm shocked that you even want me as much as you do."
She closed her eyes and sighed, looking down at her hands and Alex's torso. Her life has been nothing but great since she joined Rainbow and nothing short of perfect since she got together with him. He's made her feel loved and wanted, has helped her start to heal and all of that seemed far fetched to her before she joined almost six months ago. She truly never thought she would meet someone who would do any of that.
"Skylar you're kind, compassionate, loving, funny, and an all around amazing woman." She looked up at him with glistening eyes and he cupped the side of her face. "Da, you do have some baggage, as do I. It's too be expected from our line of work, but I fell in love with you because you are everything I've ever wanted in a significant other. You're funny, loving, feisty and a hell of a fighter. The abuse you endured in the past will never not make me want you. You make me happy kotyonok, truly happy and content, that's never going to change."
More tears started to well in her eyes and she chuckled as she wiped them away. "I'm getting real tired of crying all the time."
"It's good for you to let everything out."
"I love you moi sladkiy!"
"I love you too kotyonok!"
Skylar's face softened as she leaned forward to give him a kiss, then wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulders. "The one thing I've always wanted in a relationship was to know I'm safe. And now I have that."
A small smile started to spread across his face as he wrapped his arms around her. "You will always be safe with me, I promise."
She pulled away with a content sigh and looked at him. "I think I ruined breakfast." She chuckled. "Sorry."
"Don't worry about that, we can eat later."
She nodded her head and got off his lap to stand up, stretching her arms above her head. As much as she hated all this crying, Alex was right, it was good for her to get it all out. And in all honesty she was feeling a bit better, she no longer had to hide in her room or a bathroom and cry her eyes out when the nightmares or her PTSD came back. Now she has someone who will be there to hold her through the night, telling her everything will be okay.
A moment later she walked over to a nearby window and looked out over the city, or to the little bit of the city she could see from the five story window. She was quickly falling in love with Saint Petersburg and hated that they only had one day left until it's back to Hereford.
The next thing she felt were a pair of arms wrapping around her waist. "See anything good out there kotyonok?"
"Not really." She chuckles "No, I've only been here a few days and I've already fallen in love with the city. It sucks we go back to work in a few days."
He leaned down and gave her cheek a quick kiss. "I know, why don't we go out to buy some more vodka and snacks and stay in for the night."
"That sounds amazing actually." She turned around to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "A nice relaxing night in, just you and me before we have to deal with work."
"And a long flight."
"That too. So when do you want to go?"
"In a few hours." His hand traveled over her ass and picked her up, kissing at her neck as he walked back over to the couch.
Skylar giggled as she felt his lips touch her neck, feeling his hand rest just about her ass as they sat down. "Always so horny."
He stopped his attack on her neck, moving his head to look at her better. "Da, only for you." He leaned forward with a devious smirk on his lips, nibbling at her earlobe. "Then again you do act like a kotyonok in heat."
"Well of course, I do love when you mount and load me."
A smirk spread across her face as he pulled away again, looking at her with lust. "I can mount and load you right now, if you'd prefer?"
"Later." He pouted his bottom lip at her and whined in disapproval, making her laugh. "Aww you poor thing." She rolled her hips for good measure, feeling his growing hard on beneath her panties. "Well I might need to help take care of this problem."
Alex kissed along her jaw, moving his hand to the small of her back and flipped their positions. "Please kotyonok? I'll make it worth your while."
Skylar let out a loud laugh and looked up at him with a gaping smile. "My clothes aren't gonna take themselves off now will they moi sladkiy?"
He leaned back down, crushing their lips together as he pulled her panties off and tossed them aside.
xXx
It's been a few hours and they were both getting ready to go out to the store to pick up some snacks and more vodka for their relaxing night in.
Skylar was sitting on the bed half dressed as she did her hair, making it into a braid like she almost always did before she put her pants on. As she brushed out the snarls in it from their coupling not that long ago she watched him get dressed, looking at his muscular thighs as he pulled on a new pair of jeans.
When he turned around, he noticed her staring absentmindedly at him while still braiding her hair. It made him chuckle. "Kotyonok?"
She blinked her eyes a few times as she snapped back to reality, looking up at him with a small smile. "Huh?"
"Nothing, you were just staring at me absentmindedly."
"Oh." She chuckled as he sat down next to her. "Well it's not my fault, stop being so attractive."
He let out a booming laugh of his and kissed her temple. "I can say the same for you, kotyonok."
She tied the hair tie around her hair and laughed in return, letting the braid fall limp against her shoulder. She grabbed her pants that were laying next to her on the bed and stood up to put them on. Once she buttoned them, Alex grabbed her hand and pulled her in between his legs and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his head against her chest.
Her hand came up to thread her fingers through his blonde hair, hearing a content sigh leave his lips. "Is everything alright moi sladkiy?"
"Da, I just wanted to hold you."
"You hold me everyday," She chuckled. "What is it?"
"It's nothing I promise. I just want to hold you!"
"Okay. I believe you!" Skylar wrapped her arms around him, rubbing her hand up and down his upper back. "Kinda."
Alex snorted and looked up at her through hooded eyes. "I promise kotyonok, there's nothing wrong."
"Alright, alright." She kissed the top of his head and threaded her fingers through his hair again. "I believe you moi sladkiy."
"Good." He wrapped his arms around her tighter, pulling her closer to him. "I love you!"
"I love you too!" She held him a bit tighter, letting out a content sigh. "When I was little I always wondered who I would end up marrying. Who my knight in shining armor would be, cliche I know. Then I met Wyatt and we started dating, he was someone I could see myself marrying someday. Obviously we broke up when I went into the Marines. Next came Henry."
When she went quiet Alex pulled away and looked up at her, seeing the broken look on her face again and pulled her onto his lap. "I have you, go on."
Skylar gave him a small smile and continued on. "In the beginning things were good for the most part. Yeah he had some anger issues, but it was only raising his voice nothing more. Sometimes he would be a bit rough during sex, it was nothing that truly hurt me though. Then everything changed one night."
His arms wrapped around her tighter, becoming more of a safety net. She took a deep breath and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"We both had training that day but his went sour because of one of the other men in his squad. And to blow off steam he wanted to have sex. I would have agreed to it, but I was so sore from training earlier and just wanted to sleep. When I told him no, he hit me and then ..."
"He raped you didn't he?"
She nodded her head and looked down, tears welling in her eyes once again. She removed her arms from around his neck to wipe the tears from her eyes. "That was the beginning of a very long, grueling year. You grow up with fairy-tales and knights in shining armor, then you join the military and find out what people are really capable of. When I was finally free of him, my view of the world and men was jaded. Next thing I know you come along and I suddenly feel like I'm back to being a teenager again when I was with Wyatt. It's such an amazing feeling to feel this way about someone again. To know I'll be cared for and loved. And to picture a future!"
Alex kissed her cheek and held her closer to him, lips lingering there for a moment. She leaned into the touch, letting out a small hum.
"I'm sorry you had to go through all of that. You didn't deserve it, but it also made you something, a survivor." He moved slightly away from her, gently turning her head to look at him. "I'm happy I can make you feel that way again, and I will always care for you and love you! You are my kotyonok after all!"
A genuine, happy smile started to spread across her face and she leaned forward until their lips met, moving in perfect tandem. When she pulled away, he saw the smile still on her face and eyes much brighter.
"I never thought I could be this happy again, so many years of putting up a facade to make it seem like I was. Only to come here and meet you..fall in love. So as cliche as this is, thank you for being my knight in shining armor."
He gave her another quick kiss, gazing into her eyes. "I never saw myself as a knight, however it does make me happy knowing I can be yours!"
"Forever and always!" She gave him one more peck on the lips before standing up. "I think we should get dressed and head to the store soon. I'm very much looking forward to our relaxing night in."
"Right, I forgot we were leaving."
Skylar snorted as he got up to finish getting dressed, then they were out the door.
xXx
Shopping was going relatively well, for Alex at least. Skylar was stumped on what to get, with so many Russian snacks to try she was having a hard time choosing.
She glanced over at him, seeing him leaning against the cart. "I need your recommendation, I don't know what to get."
He laughed and pushed himself off from the cart and walked over to her. "Why don't I make you something instead? Or we can make it together, if you prefer?"
Her face lit up at the suggestion and she softly bounced on her heels. "What did you have in mind?"
"Plyushka. It's bread with melted sugar on top, simple but very delicious. Or we can make pirozhki, they're yeast filled dough with any filling you want. Baked or fried."
"Both sound delicious, how about the plyushka? It sounds easier and quicker to make, we can always make the pirozhki together at our own place. Be the first thing we bake together."
"Sounds perfect!" He kissed her forehead, hearing her giggle. "I just need to grab some flour and yeast and then we can go."
"Okie dokie."
Alex snorted and began walking, Skylar walking behind him slowly, looking at all the other stuff that she couldn't read. Only to walk smack into his back, stumbling a little.
"Moi sladkiy are you okay?" She walked to his side to see his face went pale, then drifted her eyes over to what he was staring at. All she saw was a blonde haired woman, late forties in scrubs. "Who is that?"
He looked over at her, giving her a small smile. "My sister."
She looked back over at her, etching her features into her mind. The more she stared, as bad as that was, the more she could see the Senaviev in her. Then she turned her attention back to him. "What do you want to do?"
Before he could answer, a voice spoke his name and they both looked over to see her walking towards them. "Anna, I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"Neither was I."
She glanced over at Skylar and back to him, speaking in Russian. It didn't take a genius to know she was talking about her, most likely how young she was compared to him. And by the sound of Alex's voice, he wasn't happy.
Skylar fiddled with her hands as she overheard them talking, wishing she could understand what was being said.
"Anna I don't care what you think of her, I love her and that's all that matters!"
Her eyes shot up to look at them, seeing the anger and hurt on his face. She walked over to him, placing her hand on top of his. That seemed to ease his mood a bit.
Anna glared over at her, making Skylar quirk a brow in a taunting manner. "Fine, don't come crying to me when she goes to someone younger."
"You don't know me, hell you barely know your brother. If it wasn't for me he wouldn't be trying to mend your guy's relationship right now. I love him and that's never going to change."
She seemed to be taken aback by how forthcoming Skylar was, as was Alex to be honest. Even though she has been through hell and back the one thing that never changed was her being protective of the ones she loves. And she loves Alex.
"We'll see about that."
She walked away after that and Alex let out a breath. "That went well."
"Don't worry about it, she'll come around. Maybe."
He placed his hand on the back of her head, gently pulling her closer to him and kissed the top of her head. "Let's head home."
xXx
Skylar placed the bag on the counter while he did the same with the two he carried up. She couldn't wait to start baking, though she wished he had a mixer to make the kneading a bit easier and quicker. Nonetheless she was excited to bake with him.
She pulled out the flour, yeast and the bottle of vodka from the bag, setting them on the counter. Then she watched Alex take out the other stuff they bought, mostly junk food and something more healthier for dinner. It reminded her of her teen years on the weekend, pigging out on junk food.
"I haven't eaten this much junk food since I was a teen." She laughed. "Hopefully I won't indulge too much."
"Indulge as much as you want, just try not to make yourself sick."
"Damn, there goes that plan." She shot him a glare and laughed. "So what was the whole conversation about at the store. I clearly know it was about me."
Alex sighed and leaned against the counter, pushing some of the other snacks to the side. "She thinks you're too young, that you'll find someone younger than me sooner or later. And that I should find someone my own age, like that's easy with my work life."
She gave him a small smile, walking over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a chaste kiss. "Well that's never going to happen. I love you! I only want you! Like you said before we're going to have a few people dislike this relationship due to the age difference. But I don't care, I'm happy and that's all that counts."
His hands traveled to her hips, picking her up and placing her on the counter. Spreading her legs apart and placing himself in between then and crushing their lips together. She giggled into it, so much so she had to push herself away. Alex looked down at her with a smile, finding her giggly state to be adorable and kissed the top of her head.
"What's so funny kotyonok?"
"It's nothing moi sladkiy." She tried stifling a laugh, failing as he let out a booming laugh of his. "Okay okay, I just love how horny you get and so quickly. I don't have to do or say much and you're rearing to go."
"Is that a bad thing? I don't think it is."
"No I don't think so, I mean we are making up for lost time." She leans up, giving him a more passionate kiss before pulling at his jeans. "I just never thought I would enjoy sex again, not after everything that happened."
He gazed into her eyes, face softening. Out of everything she's been through he knew their sex life could be a lot less active and he would be fine with that. All that matters to him is her comfort and he's fine with her not wanting it.
"You know it's okay if you don't enjoy it all the time."
"I know." She looked down and sighed, thinking back on when she finally got away and wondering if she would ever be sexually active again. Afraid of what might happen if she said 'no' to someone, so she kept to herself for the most part, never going out. Then that hookup happened with Alex a few weeks ago and she hasn't been this happy in ages. And thoroughly enjoying their sex life. "Of course there will be days where I don't want it, and I don't need to be afraid about that anymore. Because I know you'll never hurt me."
"Afraid?"
"One of the reasons I was so afraid of dating after Henry was knowing any relationship I had was going to inevitably have sex in it. I didn't want to be raped again by saying no, so I just didn't get close to anybody or went out much."
"Then we happened."
Skylar could see the small case of sadness in his eyes and the worry, making her grab his hand and hold it in between hers. "Hey don't worry about that night, I was sober enough to know what I was doing. Truthfully I wanted to sleep with you, have for months at that point."
"Really?" His face lit up and he scanned her face, looking for any indication that she was lying, but found none.
"Yes really. You were the first person I was sexually attracted too in a long time, hell I would get turned on by just hearing your voice." She could feel her cheeks burn, not doubt turning red and she looked down at her hands. "Those nights usually ended with a long shower, since it was the only privacy I could get."
His mouth fell open and he let out an amused laugh. "Kotyonok, I never expected you to do such a thing."
She met his gaze and scoffed - rolling her eyes. "Like you didn't masturbate to me before we were together moi sladkiy."
"Oh I did, a lot truthfully."
"I knew it. I did too, well when I felt like it and had more privacy."
"The real thing is so much better!"
"Agreed!" She leaned up, giving him a quick kiss before unbuttoning his pants. "How about a quicky before we get started on those plyushkas?"
"Don't even need to ask."
He crushed their lips together and went for the button on her pants and undid it in one fatal swoop.
xXx
After a bunch of kneading that left her arms a little sore they were finally sitting on the couch, in front of the television with a plate of warm plyushkas. Skylar couldn't wait to try them.
She took one from the plate and took a bite, moaning in satisfaction. "These are really good."
"They are." He took one from the plate and leaned back against the couch, turning his head to look her over, smirking. "You wearing just your panties and a shirt is better."
Skylar snorted and rolled her eyes before taking another bite and snuggled up next to him. She could still remember her and Wyatt doing this when they were still together, baking a cake or cupcakes and buying a bunch of junk food and spending the night together. In a way she missed it, but now she can do it with Alex, only they could have some Russian desserts and snacks too.
"I missed nights like these, just snuggling up on the couch with a bunch of good food and watching movies. And having some really good sex."
He wrapped his arm around her as she snuggled up against, lightly groping her breast. She looked up at him with a smirk and chuckled.
"So you used to do this a lot?"
"I did when I was with Wyatt, those were the nights I longed for. After a long week at school and doing other things, figure skating for me and he played soccer, or football for you Europeans. It was just nice to have a Friday night where we went to the football game and then go back to my place and do nothing but pig out in front of the television."
"Your parents' were okay with that?"
"Yes, they knew I was having sex and they knew I was on birth control." She chuckled again and cranked her head to look at him. "And they trusted Wyatt."
"No, I get that. I just don't know how I would feel if our daughter asked to have her boyfriend spend the night."
Skylar sat up and turned to face him, placing her hand on his arm. "I wouldn't mind having our daughter have their boyfriend sleep over from time to time, as long as we both like him. As much as they find this awkward at first, once they turn thirteen I want to really talk with them about sex. I want them to know everything and that it's okay to not have it, to wait as long as they want to have it and to say no. Most importantly I want them to come to us when they feel nervous around a guy."
"I think that's a perfect idea. And I'm gonna teach our sons how to respect women and that no means no. I also want them to read cues, that if she's nervous or doesn't really know, he stops. No trying to force her into doing something she doesn't want to do."
"I think that's a perfect idea too!" She looked away and sighed, feeling her vice get caught in her throat. "I was raped, I'm going to do my best to make sure the same doesn't happen to our daughter. It would kill me."
He placed his hand on the back of her head and pulled her forward, resting their foreheads together. "Don't worry about that now, we still have some time to wait until we welcome out first."
"That's true." She chuckled.
Alex pulled away and kissed her forehead, then wrapped his arm around her shoulders - having her snuggle up against him.
They went quiet, watching whatever was on the TV and munching on the snacks they bought at the store. Skylar maneuvered herself to laying her head on his lap where he began to play with her hair, forcing a content hum from her lips. He leaned back against the couch, letting out a satisfied hum as his fingers threaded through her hair.
The past few weeks have been nothing short of a blessing to him, to her. It's been years since he's felt this happy, and in love. Meeting her family, getting her father's blessing and accidentally giving wind on the engagement ring he already had. But spending time with her was the thing he loved most about this little vacation, without the eyes of their peers and a lot more privacy. Now all that's left is to head back to Hereford and then it's off to London to see little Grace before it's back to work. All in all, he would say these last few weeks were perfect!