Last Chapter.

Alfresca's POV:

"Please...I'll do anything I could. I am even ready to beg... please forgive me. I didn't know and...I never wanted to kill him...mom forced me..." He bent down and placed his forehead against his hands that held mine.

He killed my father...my real father...

"If you decide to not forgive me and you don't want to see my face ever again, I swear I will leave this instance and would never ever bother you again. But I need you to know...that I am really sorry for what I did. I never meant to kill him..." He pleaded.

I ran my fingers gently through his hair and lifted up his head, and cupped his cheek, he placed his palm over my hand that cupped his cheek and he leaned into it, closing his eyes.

"I...I... don't remember my father...how did he look?" I asked him, which surprised him as his eyes flew open. That's the last thing he expected me to ask.

"He..." Ruslan thought for a moment before saying. "He had the same pair of eyes as yours and same hair colour...I don't remember much...I was...too busy crying... refusing to hurt him...but there was determination in his eyes to find his lost daughter."

I sighed and nodded in response. "Ruslan...I don't know what to say...I don't have any memory with him...nor do I remember him. I grew up believing Easton's parents were my real parents and... it's not that they mistreated me besides not letting me go outside. They did treat me as their daughter...yes... sometimes they also did some partialty but...they treated me okay. And if not for them...I would never had Easton as my brother who loved me like his real sister and I... would have never met you."

Ruslan didn't say anything and waited for me to continue. "Yes...what you did was wrong...but you didn't have a choice. It wasn't your mistake entirely...you are guilty for it and that's enough for me. I forgive you, Ruslan. For everything. But now, I just need you with me."

Ruslan's features relaxed and he sighed heavily as if a burden has been lifted off his shoulder. And he smiled softly.

He leaned closer and gently grabbing the back of my neck, brought my lips to his and kissed me softly.

"I love you, Ruslan." I whispered against his lips making making him smile. "I love you too, Alfresca." And he kissed me harder slowly lowering me down on the couch when I remembered something and I pushed him back.

His body hovered mine and he looked at me baffled. "What?"

"I... need...to tell you something..."

"Yes, love?"

I sat up straight. "Promise you won't be mad about it and we will discuss this properly first before taking any actions."

He looked more confused now. "Why will I be mad about it?"

"Okay...um...to be honest... it's your mistake...you didn't use protection the first time and...I'm three months pregnant now." I held back my breath, waiting for his reaction as I bit my lips.

His mouth slightly parted in surprise, his brows furrowed together and he blinked a few times. "W-what did you say?"

I lifted my t shirt and taking his hand, placed his warm palm over the slight bump on my belly. "I'm pregnant, Ruslan."

His jaw dropped and he glanced between my belly and my face in complete shock.

And then a smile broke out on his face.

One moment I was sitting on the couch and the other I was being lifted up by my waist and twirled around by him in the air. His eyes twinkling with happiness. "Oh my goodness! You are pregnant!" He exclaimed. "I'm going to be a father!"

Seeing him so happy about it filled with so much joy. Easton was right.

He gently placed me down on the floor, the huge smile permanently etched on his face. And pulling me closer, he hugged me tightly.

And peppered kisses all over my neck. "God. You make me so happy! I love you so much."

I giggled. "I love you too, Ruslan."

He pulled back and rested his forehead against mine. "I'm so sorry I didn't come back earlier. I'm so sorry. I was feeling so guilty but then Easton called and talked some sense into me and I came running here...well...flew over here actually."

Smiling, I took a step back. "How did you manage to get a flight ticket so fast?"

He cocked his slightly and smirked. "Love, I have a private jet. I don't need a ticket for it."

He's a billionaire for God's sake! Of course he has a private jet.

I smiled sheepishly. "Oh..."

He pecked my lips lingeringly and then dropped down on both his knees and lifting up my t shirt, pressed a kiss against my belly.

I ran my fingers through his hair as he continued placing kisses all over my belly and paused when his lips moved above my abdomen where there was a light scar since Geordi shot me there.

He sighed and looked up at me. "Geordi...he...he was really sorry for shooting you...he was just overwhelmed by emotions and shot you..."

I gave him a small smile. "It's alright, Ruslan. I have no hard feelings for anyone."

He nodded and placed a open mouthed kiss over that scar.

"Umm...Ruslan?"

"Yes, love?" He whispered huskily against my belly.

"Do you by any chance remember... about a little girl...of around twelve...with whom you danced at a masquerade ball. And you even let her inside that event even though she didn't have an invitation..."

That made him stop kissing my belly and he got up on his feet. A sexy frown on his face. "How do you know that?"

"Um...and her name was...she said her name was Cindrella." I reminded him.

He started growing impatient. "Yes, I do remember. But how on earth you know her?"

I chuckled softly. "Because that girl was me."

His jaw dropped. "You? That was you? Cindrella?"

I gave him a toothy grin. "Yes, my Prince Charming."

That made him laugh loudly, his eyes crinkling. "Oh God! That was you! I can't believe this!" He looked so genuinely happy. "But how come you were so sure that it was me?" He asked.

I gazed into his eyes intensely. "Your eyes are beautiful, Ruslan. I never forgot those pair of eyes that helped me get in even though you didn't even know me. And you never left my side and didn't let me get bored. And you even danced with me. My first dance."

He brushed a strand of stray hair behind my ear and cupped my cheek. "What a bloody coincidence! That was you all this time!"

I nodded biting my lips. "Yeah. That was me. Mom didn't allow me to go the event and I was dying to, so I sneaked away with the help of my nanny. And why did you help me get in by the way?"

He shrugged. "I don't know...you looked lost and quite desperate to get in. I thought I could help. Plus you looked damn beautiful in that dress. And the way your eyes lit up when we entered inside. It was a gorgeous view. I won't say I fell in love with you but...you were on my mind for a long time and I was going to search for you but then..." His voice turned low. "All that drama with dad happened so...I forgot...or else I would have found you."

"Well...the fate brought us together again."

He pressed his lips against mine for a few seconds. "It sure did and I am grateful for it."

"And now... where's the bedroom?" He inquired.

I raised my brow. "Why?"

He stepped closer and brushed his lips against my ear and whispered huskily. "Because now...I am going to worship your body. And make love to you." And he gently bit down on my earlobe.

I bit my lips to stop myself from moaning.

I pointed to the direction of my bedroom and he bent down and picked my up in his arms and carried me to the bedroom and closing the door with his leg, placed me down on the bed.

He removed his jacket, throwing it on the floor and with his eyes locked on me, he continued to unbutton his shirt, slowly and teasingly while I watched him with hooded eyes.

And with the same, slow and torturing speed, he pulled off his shirt revealing his six pack abs and his broad shoulders that flexed with every movement he made.

And then without removing his jeans to my disappointment, he crawled on to the bed, over me and pulled my t shirt off my body and continued to move down and take off my jeans.

I closed my eyes as he ran his hand over my legs and shifted down and placed a kiss on my toes and trailed gentle, soft kisses over my ankle.

I think he meant it when he said he was going to worship my body because he made sure to kiss each and every part of my leg and made his way upwards.

He then paused all of a sudden and came up to me and resting his forehead on mine, he caressed my cheek with his thumb. His voice was husky and low. "You want this, right? Or should I stop, love?"

I nodded my head and rasped. "I want this." And collided my lips with his.

.
.
.

My head rested on Ruslan's bare chest, his arm around my waist and his other hand playing with the strands of my hair.

"I'm so sorry, Ruslan. I'm so sorry for hurting you..." I apologised again even though he said he forgave me.

His arm around my waist tightened, his hand stopped twirling my hair around his finger and he sighed. "I forgave you, Alfresca. We both made mistakes but we can't let those mistakes take away our life's happiness."

"I love you." I whispered against his chest and he pressed a kiss on the top of my head. "I love you too."

"I'm so proud of you, Ruslan. You worked hard for your company to flourish, you left everything else for it."

He lifted my chin with his finger to look at him and he said softly. "I did it for you, Alfresca. You made me realise that I now have the freedom to do anything I want, that I could follow my passion. Thank you."

I smiled and gently caressed his cheek with my thumb making him smile too. He grabbed my palm and kissed it. "I'm taking you out on a date. This evening."

"The date Easton was talking about?"

He nodded. "Yes. Now I can't let his efforts go to waste. He worked hard to set up everything."

I chuckled softly and laid my head back on his chest, hugging him tightly, cherishing the feeling.

.
.
.

"It's so beautiful!" I exclaimed looking around the beautifully decorated garden in awe.

"Glad you liked it, love. The idea was mine but it's all Easton's hard work." Ruslan spoke, intertwining our fingers together.

He lead me forwards to the small round table set up in the middle of the garden, number of candles placed on top of it and not to forget the variety of food too.

He pulled out a chair for me and thanking him, I sat down and he sat opposite to me looking handsome as ever, wearing plain, white shirt, a pair of light blue jeans and a grey trench coat over it.

"I learnt how to cook." He spoke with a proud smile on his face, starting a conversation.

I was surprised. "Really? Who taught you?"

"Geordi did. He said it's a basic life skill and I should know it instead of being dependent on others to feed me."

I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the table. "That's awesome."

He smiled softly, staring at me. "Hmm...I needed to learn how to cook so that I could feed my wife."

Wife? Wait a damn minute.

"What did you say?"

"That I learnt to cook in order to feed my wife. Future wife, actually." He repeated nonchalantly, his eyes twinkling.

"Do you...mean...me?" I questioned, pointing to myself.

His face blanked and he pursed his lips. "No. I'm talking about someone else. I met a woman in Chicago. Cute and innocent and I am going to ask her to be my wife. I came here to ask for your permission."

I burst out laughing seeing how exasperated he looked by my question. "Okay...okay. I get it. You are talking about me."

He rolled his eyes and got up, and extended his hand to me. Placing my hand in his, I got up.

"So...um...wife to be..."

I again started laughing. "Yeah, I got that. You want to marry me and--"

"I'm serious, Alfresca." He cut me off.

"What?"

His hand held mine tightly, his eyes bore into mine. And his forehead resting against mine. "I know this is too early to ask you to be my wife but it's difficult to survive everyday without you. I need you, beside me, as my wife. I want to shower you with all the love and care I could give, I want to wake up to your beautiful face every morning. I want to make love to you every night. I want you to be there to remind me of my mistakes, to correct me. I want you to scold me, to love me. And I want to fall in love with you, again and again and again."

Tears welled up in my eyes and his too and he let out a shaky breath. "You have no idea how much I love you. The moment you tried to help me fight my demons, the moment you tried comforting me was the moment I fell deep in love with you. So deep that it became hard to breath but then, you were there to provide me with the oxygen I needed. And then all that drama happened but I don't care. I want to start again, this time with you as my wife...so..."

He left my hand to kneel down, while his hand searched the pocket of his trench coat. A small smile on his face and tears in his eyes.

And he paused all of a sudden, half bending. The smile falling off his face and his hands frantically searching his pocket. "Bloody hell! Where's the damn ring?"

"What?"

He stood up straight and searched each and every pocket, the coats and the jeans with a scowl on his face.

"Fuck." He cursed. "Where did the ring go?!"

And his phone rang which was on the table. Seeing it was Easton's call, I handed the phone to him and he picked it up.

Since Easton was shouting on the other end, I could hear him clearly. "Bro! You left the ring here only! Are you stupid?! How could you?"

Ruslan groaned loudly, face palming himself. "Aargh! I can't believe this!"

"You just love to ruin every plan I make, asshole!" Easton scolded making me chuckle. Ruslan removed his hand from his face and his eyes narrowed at me making me chuckle again.

"Okay, stop shouting! And bring the ring over here." Ruslan ordered and Easton said something before hanging up the call.

Ruslan again groaned, not looking at me, and placed the phone down on the table.

"Oh God! This is so embarrassing!" He said running his hand down his face.

I stepped closer to him and removing his hand, cupped both his cheeks in my hand. "Hey. It's okay..." I assured him in a soft tone.

His eyes were lowered. "I ruined it, Alfresca. I wanted this to be perfect. I...I...I r--"

I silenced him by placing me lips on his, kissing him softly. He was still worried about ruining the moment as it took him a few seconds to respond to my kiss.

"I love you, Ruslan." I whispered against his lips. "And that speech was really romantic and emotional. And I don't care if you forgot to bring the ring. I don't need that moment to be perfect, I need you to know that I love you. No matter what."

"And..." I stepped back and bending down, plucked the grass from the ground as he watched me in confusion.

Standing up, I took his left hand and wrapped a single grass around his ring finger and tied it. Lifting his hand, I kissed his finger. "There. I made you a ring and now you are my fiance."

His mouth was slightly parted in surprise and it slowly curved up into a breathtaking smile making my heart skip a beat. And he pressed his lips upon mine for a few seconds.

He pulled back and offered his hand. "Wanna have a dance with me, Cindrella?" He drawled the word Cindrella, hinting at the night we first met.

I giggled. "Why not, my Prince Charming." And I placed my hand in his and he pulled me closer, wrapping his arm around my waist.

"There is no music here." I reminded him, as he intertwined our fingers and I placed my other hand around his neck.

"Well...I can sing for you." He admitted gently waltzing us.

My eyes widened. "You can sing?"

He shrugged. "Maybe...I initially planned to sing this song for you. Actually dedicate it to you."

"Okay..." I whispered. "Go on. Sing it."

"Umm...I am not that good at singing and I am going to sing the second paragraph because I love those lyrics." He explained and I nodded, gesturing him to continue.

He cleared his throat and started singing softly:

🎶There goes my hands shaking
And you are the reason
My heart keeps bleeding
I need you now
And if I could turn back the clock
I'd make sure the light defeated the dark
I'd spend every hour, of every day
Keeping you safe
And I'd climb every mountain
And swim every ocean
Just to be with you
And fix what I've broken
Oh, 'cause I need you to see
That you are the reason...🎶

By the time he finished, I was on the verge of breaking down into tears. His eyes never left mine while he sang and tears formed in the corner of his eyes too.

We stopped dancing and he kissed my forehead lingeringly and smiled at him through my tears.

"Guys! I'm here! I have my hand over my eyes so I don't walk in and see you guys kissing or something." We both heard Easton saying at a distance.

Ruslan rolled his eyes and I chuckled turning around to see him coming towards us, his eyes closed.

"You can open your eyes, Easton." I said making him sigh. "Oh, thank goodness."

He came to us and pulled out a small jwellery box from his pocket and handed it to Ruslan who thanked him.

"Okay. You guys have fun...and I am going now. Bye!" And he ran away.

Chuckling at him, I turned to Ruslan who opened the jwellery box to reveal a gorgeous ring. A huge diamond in the middle of it and number of small diamonds on either side of it.

He went down on his knee and extended the box towards me. "Alfresca. Will you marry me, please?"

I grinned. "Yes!"

Smiling, he pulled out the ring and slid it down my ring finger and kissed my knuckles before standing up and I engulfed him in a warm, tight hug.

"I love you, fiancee." He whispered, kissing the top of my head.

"I love you too..." I whispered back.

Chapter completion on: 18/9/21

I haven't written the Epilogue yet and I have no idea when I will be able to write it...and also have no idea what to do with Easton's parents. I should have plotted the story well.

Anyway... let's see what happens...

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. See you all in the Epilogue!

~Ahlam