*I had known Aleksei Volkov since I was six years old.

Before the expensive suits, the dangerous connections, and the reputation that made grown men lower their voices when mentioning his name, he was simply the Russian boy next door who stole my sweets, taught me how to swear in Russian, and promised that one day he would marry me.

We grew up together. First as inseparable children, then as best friends, and eventually as two people who fell in love with the one person they were never supposed to choose.

My family never approved.

They called him unsuitable. Too distant. Too dangerous. Too Russian. They had already decided who I would marry, long before I was old enough to understand what an arranged marriage meant.

So Aleksei and I learned to love each other across borders.

Midnight calls. Stolen weekends. Airport goodbyes. His voice through my phone when I couldn't sleep. His promises that distance was temporary and that, eventually, he would come for me.

But eventually never came.

My family arranged my marriage to Dorian, a man whose name carried influence and whose future had already been negotiated with mine.

And I was expected to smile.

That morning, dressed in white, I sent Aleksei one message.

They're making me marry someone else.

He didn't reply.

I thought that was his goodbye.

Until the chapel doors exploded open.

The organ stopped. Guests screamed. My mother's hand flew to her mouth.

And there he stood.

My childhood best friend. My Russian boyfriend. The boy who once held my hand crossing the street, now standing at the entrance of my wedding in a black hoodie, his face hidden behind a balaclava.

His eyes found mine immediately.

Three years of long distance. Hundreds of unanswered questions. Countless nights crying over a screen.

And now, with my wedding ring waiting on the altar, he had crossed three borders to reach me.

Aleksei pulled down his mask.

"Солнышко." My sunshine.

His men filled the venue.

I couldn't breathe.

Because everyone in that chapel was waiting for my answer.

And for the first time in my life, I was ready to disappoint them all.*