Contract Marriage: Married to My Ex-Husband's Alpha Stepfather [BL]

[KATYA]

"What in the world happened to you?" Katya asked, his worry evident.

He hadn’t expected this, and while he was slowly learning what the day could turn into, Katya wasn’t ready for this. Not for this ragged yet clean man. He would never be.

"You’ve been sleeping for too long. I thought..." Sergei spoke, his voice breaking at the end.

And Katya could swear that this was insanity at best.

A part of him wanted to say the man was pretending, that he was trying to buy Katya’s favor, but there was a line that even pretense couldn’t cross. And this right here was not it.

Maybe Katya was too trusting, but he felt a part of him ache for the barbarian before him.

It wasn’t good.

Because this man had forced a contract on him when he was about to see his mother.

This man had denied him the chance to know what his mother’s state was.

Yet this same man had sorted the bills, did whatever was needed, pulled the kind of strings that no one alive had ever pulled for Katya or even his family.

Hell, they were the kinds of strings that even love would never be able to pull as much.

"What?" Katya whispered like this was utopia.

"We haven’t gone over the contract terms," Sergei said as he walked closer.

His voice was stoic again. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

His posture was fixed. Head held high, a blank unreadable face staring back at Katya.

But his eyes...

Sergei’s eyes held a kind of desperation that Katya couldn’t translate.

It wasn’t the desperation of a man who hated to talk about contract terms. He looked like a man who had endured everything and prayed to anyone who could listen to and answer him.

Still, Katya would wait and see where this led them both.

After all, there was life beyond these four walls in Aslava, no?

"I won’t marry you, Sergei. I am married already. You know that. I’ll pay you back the money you spent on us, and this will be over. You and I won’t need to see each other again," Katya said feistily, like that was the one decision he had come to.

He was aware that this was dangerous because the man before him could ruin his life without even pushing that many buttons. Yet Katya refused to be bought. He was a person.

Granted, Yaroslav had cheated on him, but that didn’t mean he was going to pay him back by marrying his father... Right?

"Your heart stopped. Twice," Sergei said as he walked closer. He looked like he was considering his options, and when he got to the side of the bed, he sat where he had been before Katya woke up.

Before he left, Mr. Romanov with his son.

"Great. Maybe it would have stopped altogether if it saved me from you," Katya said harshly, and Sergei flinched visibly.

It was a quick moment before he postured himself again.

But Katya saw it.

"It’d be a hassle collecting debts from a grave, Solnyshka," Sergei said quietly.

There was no bite to his words, and Katya stared in confusion.

He didn’t know what version of Sergei this was, but he had to admit that this calm man scared the hell out of him more than the man who had walked into his hospital room with demands and a pen that Katya still regretted holding.

"If it puts me out of my misery, then why not? Besides, you just murdered thirty people for no reason. One shouldn’t be that hard for you," Katya spat, the TV playing in the background and news rolling in with more news of casualties.

The man beside him didn’t even seem bothered anymore.

Sergei was just staring at him.

Watching him.

Studying him like Katya was this phenomenon he didn’t understand.

Perhaps that was what this was. A curious father-in-law, and not a barbarian who had done everything wrong yet so right.

"It was either that, or killing Yaroslav," Sergei said, his tone calm, yet it held the threat, the warning, the reminder that things had to happen. It held a justification that horrified Katya. Because this man was confirming what Katya already suspected.

The explosion at Korin...

Was for Katya.

Fuck.

"Great. Who else are you going to kill? The entire world?" Katya mocked, and Sergei let out a laugh that held almost nothing.

"If they hurt you... Yes. I’ll burn the entire world to the ground," Sergei said, and this time, Katya turned to look at him, their dark eyes meeting.

One set was filled with determination, while the other stared like he had just been introduced to the worst of maniacs.

"Are you sure you didn’t escape the psych ward? Aslava Psych is known for being the best. Maybe you can consider an admission?" Katya rambled sheepishly.

He was nervous.

Sergei was staring at him in all seriousness, and his words held the threat of not just a town or a person but a realm. And the worst part about all of this was that Katya didn’t sense a lie in the barbarian’s words.

That right there...

Terrified him to the core.

"Righttt... The mighty Sergei Moskowsky burning realms down because some omega got hurt. How noble," Katya sighed in frustration.

"You’re not some omega, Solnyshka," the barbarian said after a long silence.

"Oh, yeah? I’m just the son-in-law trapped with a father-in-law who is unhinged and won’t take no for an answer," Katya rambled angrily.

He could believe that this was what he was reduced to.

He hadn’t signed up for this, and the fact that he had endured so much already was pissing him off. This was their anniversary with Yaroslav. Anniversaries were beautiful and healthy, but now, he had nothing.

No partner.

No child.

No home.

"You’re not trapped, Solnyshka," Sergei said, and Katya rolled his eyes at the man on his bedside.

"You forced me into a contract marriage, you barbarian," Katya sighed in frustration as if that was supposed to make Sergei understand what this was.

"You can read it and see the terms," Sergei said.

Katya didn’t trust him.

It was obvious.

"Why? So, I can see how many days I’ll be chained beside the great Moskowsky?" Katya said, still fiddling with his hands in frustration.

"Well, yes. I bought your family’s security and gave your mother a heart, didn’t I?" Sergei said sinisterly, and Katya felt the breath get knocked out of his lungs.

Of course, this was the devil of Frolo.

Of course, he didn’t understand the first thing about freedom and consent.

Of course, he would be unhinged and not care what Katya had to say to him. This man was crazy and deserved to be locked up.

Katya’s mind was whirring with endless thoughts. He wasn’t sure which one to focus on, at least until the sound of palms meeting cheeks echoed across the room and Katya stiffened.

"You need to relearn your alphabet, Solnyshka," Sergei said, before he pulled the slightly wrinkled envelope and handed it to Katya.

"You..."

"I already told you. I bought you. You are mine. The sooner you understand that, the better for everyone, including your parents. Now, I’ll go sort a few things at the office, and let you use your brain this time.

"If you’re thinking of ripping the contract, know that our marriage has been registered already. You are Mr. Moskowsky now, Solnyshka. And not even the gods can change that," Sergei said before he walked away.

The print of Katya’s small hand on his cheek was still evident.

"I hate you!!!" Katya shouted in rage.

Then he opened the contract again.

And maybe... Just maybe...