“There’s something else,” he said, looking into my eyes. “I owe you an apology, Tori. I’m sorry I kept in you in the dark for so long about your security. Everyone in your life has been keeping things from you, and I don’t want to be that man anymore. I don’t want there to be any secrets between us. I’m only going to be honest going forward. Because I love you.”
“I love you too,” I told him before kissing him again.
But before we could take it anything further, he pulled away and stood, tugging me to my feet. Then he led me across the living room and through the foyer, to the front door.
“I need you to meet someone,” he said.
He opened the door. There was huge man standing out there, with the bearing and crewcut of an ex-military soldier, waiting patiently in the hall with his massive arms clasped behind his back. He nodded at me. I could see he was chewing gum.
“This is Bruce,” Stefan said. “He’s your new bodyguard. He’ll be with you at all times, prominently visible. Even when you’re at school.”
“Okay,” I said to Stefan, and then I held out my hand to Bruce. “Hi. I’m Tori.”
The man shook my hand, firmly but gently. “Good to meet you, Tori,” he said. I’d been intimidated at first, but when he flashed me a small smile, I smiled back. I liked him.
“He’ll be with you even when you’re with Gavin,” Stefan went on. “So if my father has anyone watching, he’ll believe there’s no way you could be saying anything you shouldn’t. My father is well aware that Bruce works for me, and he’d never think that he or I would betray him.
“It’s important that we make a big show of the fact that I’m watching you. My father’s more inclined to trust me if he knows I’m keeping an eye on you 24/7.”
“I understand,” I said. “So he’ll be standing outside the door all night, too?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Bruce said. “Barring short breaks, as needed.”
Stefan nodded at Bruce, who gave him a brief nod in return, and then Stefan and I went back into the condo together. We sat down on the couch, and Stefan took my hand.
“There’s one more thing,” he said. “Even with the cover I’ve set in place, we have no chance of making this work unless you can convince my father that you’ve accepted the situation. So you’re going to have to pretend that you’re on board with the business, or at the very least, that you’re not concerned with what my father and I do behind the scenes.”
“How am I supposed to do that?” I asked, my heart beating faster now.
“We’ll figure something out,” Stefan said. “But this is vital. Otherwise, he’ll be watching everything we do with a magnifying glass, and we won’t get away with anything. We won’t be able to see this through.”
I put my hand on his arm. “We may not, regardless,” I said. “But we have to try.”
Tori
Chapter 30
My hand was tight on Stefan’s knee as we sat in the back of the Town Car on our way to Konstantin’s penthouse. My father-in-law had invited us over for Sunday dinner with the stated intent to discuss my role in the family. The timing was almost too good to be true—Stefan and I knew we wouldn’t get a more perfect opportunity to put our plan into action and convince my father-in-law that I didn’t care what he or KZ Modeling did behind the scenes.
But I was going to have to act my ass off convincing Konstantin that I wasn’t completely disgusted by what he and his company did to women. Stefan’s years of hard work depended on me pulling it off. It was the only way we’d have a chance in hell of taking KZM down.
Luckily, I’d had days to prepare.
Stefan and I had practiced endlessly for what I’d be up against when I spoke with Konstantin. I knew exactly what I would need to say to convince him that I was a team player.
As I’d dressed for dinner that night, I was so nervous I could barely put on my dress, my hands were shaking so badly. As he zipped me up, Stefan had kissed the back of my neck, making me shiver.
“You’re going to do great,” he had said. “My father’s ego is so big, he’s going to eat up every word you say like candy.”
“I know,” I said. “I’m just nervous.”
“I’ll be by your side the whole time,” he reassured me.
I nodded, trying to take a few deep breaths. Then I looked myself over in the mirror for a final once-over. I’d chosen to wear something simple and demure. A modest black dress that covered practically everything and went down past my knees. It was cotton—no silk or satin or lace tonight. I didn’t want to look expensive. I wanted to look as if I knew my wealth, my privilege, was a gift that Konstantin and his family business had bestowed upon me. A gift that I was aware could just as easily be taken away.
My heels were modest as well, nothing like the sexy stilettos I usually wore when I got dressed up. No labels. No designers. My hair was pulled back in a smooth, nondescript bun, my makeup subtle. I needed to look innocent and contrite. Like the kind of girl who’d consider herself lucky to be included in such a wealthy, well-situated family. Regardless of how dangerous—or illegal—their activities were.
Now that we were actually sitting in the car, though, I was nauseated with anxiety.
