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“Ayla?” I called out softly, without looking away from the door. “I heard something.”
I sucked in a breath when she and Maddie came to stand behind me. “It’s so late…” Maddie mumbled.
Ayla had her keys in her hand. She didn’t pause, didn’t think twice before opening the door. “It’s probably just—”
She didn’t finish her sentence. Ayla and Maddie walked through the door instead. It was so dark, I could barely see anything beyond the threshold. I heard Ayla fumbling around and then the light came on. It wasn’t a bathroom.
My lips parted, and my mouth opened in a silent gasp.
I followed the two women through the door. Holy shit. What was this place?
“Welcome to The Wild.” Maddie gestured at the open space. “Steakhouse and bar, proudly owned by Mrs. Ivanshov.”
Ayla grinned and then shrugged when I only stared at her in confusion. “Another gift from Alessio. He also bought the building beside my coffee shop and told me I could do anything with it. During the day, we run Angel’s Coffee. At night, we run The Wild. This place is mostly frequented by Alessio’s associates and business partners. It’s widely known around here as the best steakhouse.”
“Shit.”
Another voice.
Our heads snapped toward the direction it came from, and I found myself staring at a couple in mid-embrace. He made quick work of fastening his pants while the blonde woman slid away from him and tried to pull her dress down. Her red lipstick was smudged and her hair was a little messy. Were they—
Now that they had our attention, I noticed that the air around us was saturated with the smell of sex.
Yeah, they definitely were…
“Whoops,” the pretty woman tsked. “We didn’t think we’d have company. This place doesn’t open for another two hours.”
“Nina,” Ayla acknowledged with a smile, while the man slid away from us and disappeared behind another door. It said Washroom on it.
Maddie gestured to Nina. “This is our other business partner. While I help Ayla with the coffee shop, Nina helps run The Wild sometimes.”
She came forward, her dark gaze flashing with something unnatural. Nina slowly assessed me, and I had to fight with myself, forced myself to stay in my spot. I fought the urge to take a step back and cower. Her eyes were cold…almost inhuman. I suddenly felt like a deer trapped in the headlights.
When she finally spoke, her voice didn’t match her deadly gaze. In fact, her words were somewhat spoken softly, almost with a gentle undertone. “You must be Valerie. I have heard a lot about you.”
I didn’t know what I was supposed to say to that. Her lips twitched and she fought back a smile. I was saved from replying when the man came back out. He sauntered toward Nina and wrapped his arm around her waist. Her expression changed instantly, hardening, and the cold look was back on her face.
Nina looked down at the arm wrapped around her. “I suggest you take your hands off me before I rip them off your body.”
He tightened his hold instead. “Oh, c’mon. No need to be so dramatic. We were just fucking two min—”
He didn’t finish his sentence. Nina dug her nails into the flesh of his arm and twisted around, sliding out of his embrace. She leaned forward and whispered something in his ear. I watched as all the color drained from his face and he made a hissing sound of pain. Nina let him go and he quickly sauntered away from us, practically making a run for it. He left the bar and the door closed behind him.
“Who was he?” Maddie asked. “Never seen him before.”
Nina rolled her eyes at the question.
“I’m pretty sure he’s a regular customer,” Ayla added.
“Don’t know. Don’t care. I needed to scratch an itch and he was available.”
She came forward and patted me on the shoulder. “It was nice to meet you. I believe we’ll see each other much more now. Welcome to the family.”
“Thank you,” I said, relieved to see she appeared to be nicer than what she portrayed herself.
Nina waved at the others. “I won’t be in later. Alessio has a job for me tonight.”
I watched in stunned silence as she walked away.
Maddie released a laugh. “Well, this was very eventful.”
“She’s a friend?” I asked when we were alone once again.
Ayla laced her arm around mine. “She is family. We’ll tell you more later. C’mon, I’ll show you around.”
Her smile was truly genuine, and I found myself smiling back. It was hard not to. I realized I had been smiling a lot lately.
My heart ached in my chest, but it was a good ache. The pain in my chest made me feel alive.
A caged bird tasted freedom.
Chapter 37
Valerie
Viktor nuzzled into my chest, as if seeking for my warmth. His body was heavy on me. Our skin gleamed with a sheen of sweat and we still fought to catch our breath after our morning…activities. Viktor woke me up with his head between my legs. Quickly afterward, I was shaking with an orgasm and then he found his way inside me.
