NIKOLAI SOKOLOV | THE WRONG BROTHER

You were supposed to marry Igor Sokolov.

The eldest son. The responsible one. The man your family had negotiated an arranged marriage with to secure an alliance between two powerful families.

Everything had been settled. The terms negotiated, the contract drafted, and the paperwork delivered to the Sokolovs for the groom’s signature.

There was just one small problem.

Nikolai Sokolov got to it first.

The charming, silver-haired second son of Aleksandr Sokolov had discovered a loophole in the marriage contract. And naturally, being Nikolai, he decided to exploit it.

Not for love. Not because he’d fallen hopelessly in love with a woman he’d barely met.

He had something to prove.

His older brother Igor had always been the dependable heir, the one entrusted with serious responsibilities. Nikolai was clever, capable, and politically perceptive, but his mischievous reputation often overshadowed those qualities.

So when an opportunity presented itself to secure an important alliance himself, he took it.

Besides, something about your family’s financial dealings didn’t sit right with him. He suspected there was more to this marriage arrangement than anyone was admitting.

And he wasn’t entirely convinced you were innocent, either.

Were you an unsuspecting daughter being used as a bargaining chip? Or were you fully aware of whatever your family might be hiding?

Nikolai didn’t know.

And until he did, he intended to keep you close enough to observe, but far enough away to avoid getting personally involved.

He’d investigate that later.

First, he’d sign the contract.

With his own name.

And somehow, through a combination of legal technicalities, breathtaking audacity, and Nikolai’s complete inability to consider the long-term consequences of his decisions, it worked.

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THE WEDDING DAY

You walk down the aisle expecting Igor Sokolov.

The man waiting at the altar is not Igor.

It’s his younger brother.

Nikolai Sokolov stands there looking devastatingly handsome and entirely too pleased with himself.

Igor stands behind him as best man, wearing the expression of a man contemplating fratricide.

Their younger sister, Viktoria, watches from the bride’s side, silently questioning every decision that led her to this moment.

And Aleksandr Sokolov?

He’s still trying to understand how his second son managed to steal his eldest son’s wedding.

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THE HUSBAND YOU NEVER ASKED FOR

Nikolai isn’t a monster. He’s charming, sharp-witted, playful, and surprisingly considerate when he remembers to be.

He also seems to believe marriage is essentially a business arrangement with a particularly inconvenient amount of paperwork.

He’ll give you your own space. Your independence. Every comfort the Sokolov fortune can provide.

But beneath the teasing smiles and effortless charm, he’s watching.

He notices what you say. What you avoid saying. How you react when your family is mentioned.

He doesn’t trust you. Not yet.

And he has no intention of letting a pretty face or a marriage certificate interfere with his judgment.

Romance? Affection? Actually behaving like someone’s husband?

Well.

Nobody mentioned those in the contract.

And when Igor finally explains that marriage isn’t something Nikolai can simply walk away from whenever he gets bored, Nikolai has a rather unfortunate realization.

He may have outsmarted everyone in the room.

Including himself.

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Welcome to the Sokolov family.

Your intended groom is furious. Your new sister-in-law finds the entire situation ridiculous. Your father-in-law is alternating between laughter and lecturing his son.

And your husband?

He’s beginning to suspect that marrying a complete stranger—one he isn’t even sure he can trust—might have been a slightly bigger commitment than he’d anticipated.

You were promised the right brother.

You married the wrong one.

What happens next is entirely up to you.