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He grunts.
“Why are you helping me and Dimitri?” I ask, folding my legs beneath me on the sofa.
“Out of boredom. So don’t put me on a pedestal.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” I keep my tone light and dry.
He finally lifts his gaze to mine. “Good. Since we’re on the topic of motives, Dimitri Kozlov is going to owe me big for this one. Assuming everything goes to plan and I manage to keep you both alive.”
“So you’re really helping because you want a favor from my husband?” That figures.
“I don’t know about the world you come from, but that’s how it works in my sphere. Deals and favors.” Blake continues working on his computer, ignoring me again.
I’m only half teasing him when I say, “Are you sure you’re not doing it because you want to reunite two lost lovers?”
He grimaces. “Love is the most ridiculous reason to do anything. So, no, the fact that you two supposedly love each other has no bearing on my motivations. The potential for favors and information is the only reason I’m pursuing this adventure.”
“And boredom.” I remind him.
“And boredom,” he agrees.
CHAPTER 40
Dimitri
Have I been here for days or weeks? I can’t tell anymore. The minutes bleed into hours and time seems to have both slowed down and sped up. My reality has been reduced to this chair and these chains, an empty belly, and my father’s fists pummeling my body. Even so, all I can think about is Arianna.
Konstantin’s voice taunts me from somewhere nearby. “Agree to marry a woman of my choosing and this will all end. You’ll be fed. How about a hot shower?”
I shake my head. Grabbing my hair, he lifts my face then slams his fist into my jaw. The pain spikes for a second before fading enough to blend in with the constant, miserable ache that’s my body’s normal state these days.
I was such a fucking coward with Arianna. I’ve been obsessed with her for so long that I was too afraid to give her a choice—terrified that she’d never choose me. And in the end she chose her freedom over me, so I guess I was correct the whole time. What is she doing with her newfound freedom? Did she start dating Connor fucking Bane again? Maybe she met someone new at Leonidas. I’m glad I’m a world away because seeing her with another man would be the end of me. I’d rather carve my own heart out than run the risk of bumping into her when she’s with someone else—someone she chose.
She’s moved on. I wish I could do the same. Except I left my heart in New York City with a woman who doesn’t want it. Does it really matter what I do with the rest of my life?
My wife is gone. We’re divorced. It’s over.
Finally admitting that to myself, a hollow space opens up in my chest, right where my heart used to be. The agony is gone. In its place I feel nothing. Nothing but emptiness.
I raise my blurry gaze to Konstantin. “I’ll do it,” I croak.
The satisfaction and triumph that lights his features should have me worried about what I’m agreeing to—except I don’t feel a thing, I don’t care.
Fight night in a Moscow club is much the same as it is in America—the roaring crowd, the thirst for blood, the obscene amount of money that changes hands. But none of it holds the same appeal that it used to. I don’t feel at home here. My head didn’t clear as soon as the scent of blood and sweat reached my nose.
I’m not the man I used to be—and I’ll never be that man again.
“Here they are,” Konstantin says close to my ear. “Remember, they are all of the right bloodlines, so the choice is yours. Just choose a wife by the end of the night. We’ll hold the ceremony tomorrow, then you can knock her up. Once you have an heir, a boy, you can keep your wife or get rid of her. Whichever’s your preference.”
I nod, watching the three women come into our VIP box that looks down on the fighter’s cage. A blond, a brunette, and a redhead. They’re wearing dresses that leave little to the imagination, and shoes that add at least five inches to their natural heights.
Soon I’ll have to choose one, make her my wife, then fuck her. Honestly, I don’t care which one it is. They come toward me, their hands all over my chest and stomach, touching, caressing. My muscles tense.
Konstantin was true to his word and released me from the restraints once I agreed to do this. Over the past few days, I’ve been fed and cleaned up, but I know I still look rough. The bruises and cuts on my face are going to take a while longer to heal. Even so, these women fawn all over me like I’m a real catch. Any one of them would spread their legs for me in a heartbeat. They’ve been instructed do so, maybe even paid.
I realize I hate that fact. Arianna made me work for it, earn it. Nothing with her was ever easy.
I mentally shake away that thought, only for my gaze to drop to the crowd below us where my imagination summons a woman who looks exactly like Arianna. Her dark hair is piled high on her head, exposing the smooth, gorgeous skin of her throat. A pearl necklace. The dress she’s wearing has me clenching my fists. She shouldn’t be in a place like this looking that fucking edible.
